Is there any guideline for blend of light spectrum?

Discussion in 'LED Aquarium Lighting' started by justonwo, Sep 21, 2015.

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  1. justonwo

    justonwo Fire Shrimp

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    My 90 gallon tank is lit with 2 A360 Kessil lamps. I keep the spectrum pretty heavily shifted toward blue, because I like the look, but are there any guidelines out there for what might actually be most beneficial for the reef inhabitants? Perhaps the deep water corals might prefer more of a blue spectrum but those inhabitants living closer to the surface might like a shift more toward white light?

    Is it purely aesthetic or is there some thought that needs to go into the spectrum adjustment? I currently have a Kessil controller, so I have the ability to make automated adjustments in both intensity and spectrum.
     
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  3. Va Reef

    Va Reef Giant Squid

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    Photosynthesis peaks at about 463nm and 670 something nm.

    beneficial is kind of broad in this sense...are you asking for beneficial to growth, color, or overall health? Obviously it would be beneficial in general to provide a good mix of both ends of the spectrum. But this is not always visually appealing. A lot of color tends to get washed away as we shift from the blues to the red end. Even if an acro is from deeper water, assuming you acclimate it to the light, it would still do better with a mixed spectrum, instead of just bluer light.
     
  4. justonwo

    justonwo Fire Shrimp

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    Yeah, I figured my question was kind of general. I've been given the advice by a few people that you just adjust the spectrum for what looks good, but I figured it might be more beneficial to the overall health of the coral to have a broader spectrum. I guess it further complicates things that I have coral that live at various depths in the wild and are thus probably more adapted to photosynthesis at different wavelengths.

    I did, however, find a peer reviewed article that mentioned that even shallow water species photosynthesize best toward the blue end of the spectrum. I suppose I could always move it around over the course of the day . . .