Watts on, Watts off

Discussion in 'Reef Lighting' started by JohnO, Jan 31, 2005.

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  1. Dingo

    Dingo Giant Squid

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    not trying to steal your thunder here... But being a microbilogy major at psu I can say from experience that the media to grow zooanthids on has not been developed yet (to my knowledge). So we would pretty much have to take a lot of frags and try them all under ceartain wavelengths. This seems a little tedius and not very productive. :(

     
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  3. jfannin

    jfannin Flamingo Tongue

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    Ok being I'm that guy just trying to get good lighting so I can enjoy the hobby. I must say I thought I would have got alot more useful info from this threed. I'm not say that their isn't alot of good info, but it's alot if info that is har to actuly apply.

    What I was hopping to find out or read is some way to figure out how many watts and Kelvin that I need for my tank and of coarse any other factors other then watts and Kelvin. Know i have come to understand that the lower the Kelvin the better the grouth and the higher the K the better the look. I at least think I have the correct. As for the watts if I understand it correctly, it controls how deep the Kelvin/light will travil. Sound correct? If that is way off fill free to correct me.

    So if I understand this right. That is why halide lights do so well per light. Simply because the lights have the same K as HO T5 but produce much more watts per light.

    So me having a 40g tank that is 17 inch deep, i would need what kind of lighting setup using A HO unit?
     
  4. Tangster

    Tangster 3reef Sponsor

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    All depends on what your goals are for this tank and what type of animals do you want to keep under the lighting.. This is a somewhat old thread and I have not a clue what all had been posted on this one myself.. I just noticed it was resurrected from the old moth balls . WE keep 99.99 % sps corals and in this 90 I use 3 400 watt 20 K lamps and run them 8 hrs a day and I also run 2 48 inch VHO actinics for 16 hrs aday
     
  5. mmakay

    mmakay Feather Duster

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    Nope. Watts is the amount of ellectricity used. That's all. Kelvin is just a way to measure the color of the light. Efficiency, in general, refers to how many lumins are generated per watt. T5's are actually pretty good efficiency ... very close to MH, in fact.

    Where MH win is that the light is generated in a small point, and the bulb is clear. That means the light is easy to focus (with a reflector) and light that bounces off the reflector and back toward the bulb keeps on going into the tank.

    T5's are a little harder to focus with a reflector, though it's not too bad. But because the bulbs are coated with phosfers, light bouncing back toward them is absorbed rather than allowed to pass. It's called "restrike". Depending on the reflector design restrike can cut output by like 20%.
     
  6. jfannin

    jfannin Flamingo Tongue

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    Well Im realy just wanting a nice reef. I like a larger range of coarls. So I'm really wanting to get the best lighting that I can without using halides and not having to use a cooling system. To be both cast more then I want to spend. I would just rather stick with the t5 style lighting. The thing is I just don't know as far as lighting what kind of wattage I should be trying for with my tank. The size is a 40g that is 36Lx17H.
    Know if I understand the light correctly 10k is best grouth but kinda yellow looking, while 20k has little grouth but a very clear/blue color, 14k is in the mid. Know I was kinda thinking that a nice 6 light setup would be realy good. Somthing like 2 14k HO or 2 24K HO with 2 10k HO and then 2 actinics and of course the moon lights. For a total or 6 lights not counting the moon lights. I was thinking this would give good grouth but also good color and really good wattage.
    Keep in mind that I'm going off who I think the ligting worksand this is: increase in watts increases how deep the light travless through the water and that the lower the Kelvin(10k) the better grouth but less blue, the higher Kelvin(20k) the more blue look. Know as for the actinic, i'm not to sure on but everyone apse uses them so I thought I should. I'm think the lower of the 2 gives the water a more blue look and the higher # produces a ligh ter blue, and are just simply for looks for the reef. I might have the # for each flipped. I'm on my phone so I can read back and type.
    Know if Im thinking all wrong about this please tell me. Oh yah would a 6 36inch light setup like what I posted porduce alot / to much heat to run a closed top DT? Or could I not run that setup anyways.
     
  7. Gresham

    Gresham Great Blue Whale

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    Those measure LUX which while is a decent number to start with, it encompasses all light while PAR only measures usable light. PAR is by FAR the best measure for reefers and anyone growing anything photosynthetic.
     
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  9. kayjay

    kayjay Plankton

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    Ok, I know I'm blonde but I am confused, I want to know what light to buy for my tank...I am new to this site & haven't figured out how you get your info. on the bottom like everyone has...so here what I have: 55 gal corner tank, live rock with a condy anemone, 2 clown fish, 1 blue tang, 1 nano tang, 1 yellowtail damsel, 1 domino damsel, 2 peppermint shrimp & a seastar. I bought my tank used with rock and sand so I don't know how old the lights are. Should I get anymore fish or is this all I should have in this tank?? I'm not sure how big these fish get or how much room they need. Everyone (fish) seems to be happy & healthy. I am new at his but I did do some homework & added a little at a time. Still learning...
    Dingo what do you think?? ;)
     
    Last edited: Sep 22, 2010