WaterKeeper
12/31/2008, 12:10 AM
A common question just posted-
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=14045519#post14045519 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by reefworm
Hey Waterkeeper!
QT lighting
the article in waterkeeper's forum on QT procedures mentions minimal lighting to keep animals alive, not necessarily growing, particularly with regard to corals. I would assume for fish the standard hood/light that come with a 10 gal. would be adequate. for LPS/SPS later down the line should I be looking at PC lighting or would the one I mentioned be enough for QT purposes, and then acclimate to DT light over time [1x250w MH + T5 actinic]. Don't want to spend more than needed, but want to get it right. QT is a 10 gal. by the way
Transported corals and fish have been shipped in the dark to your doorstep and need to be QT'ed. Just like people that have been in a dark room for a long time, placing them in bright light is a shocking experience.
In setting up a QT one doesn't need to have a bunch of high intensity lighting to greet the newcomer. Use standard lighting and acclimate the new arrival slowly to the light. Place it on the bottom of the QT and illuminate for around 6-8 hours a day at first. Place some base rock in a stairstep fashion in the QT and, as the QT period runs its course, move the specimen to higher steps on the staircase you built.
Say you have a 24" deep tank. Moving the specimen up to 12" increases the light intensity by a factor of 4. Raising it to 6" by a factor of 16. During the QT merely raising the specimen and increasing the photoperiod allows for a gradual adjustment to artificial lighting in the tank. If you have a brightly illuminated display, also start out with a shaded area to start and then move it to the permenent location. This avoids light shock and allows one to save money by not overdoing the lights on the QT,
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=14045519#post14045519 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by reefworm
Hey Waterkeeper!
QT lighting
the article in waterkeeper's forum on QT procedures mentions minimal lighting to keep animals alive, not necessarily growing, particularly with regard to corals. I would assume for fish the standard hood/light that come with a 10 gal. would be adequate. for LPS/SPS later down the line should I be looking at PC lighting or would the one I mentioned be enough for QT purposes, and then acclimate to DT light over time [1x250w MH + T5 actinic]. Don't want to spend more than needed, but want to get it right. QT is a 10 gal. by the way
Transported corals and fish have been shipped in the dark to your doorstep and need to be QT'ed. Just like people that have been in a dark room for a long time, placing them in bright light is a shocking experience.
In setting up a QT one doesn't need to have a bunch of high intensity lighting to greet the newcomer. Use standard lighting and acclimate the new arrival slowly to the light. Place it on the bottom of the QT and illuminate for around 6-8 hours a day at first. Place some base rock in a stairstep fashion in the QT and, as the QT period runs its course, move the specimen to higher steps on the staircase you built.
Say you have a 24" deep tank. Moving the specimen up to 12" increases the light intensity by a factor of 4. Raising it to 6" by a factor of 16. During the QT merely raising the specimen and increasing the photoperiod allows for a gradual adjustment to artificial lighting in the tank. If you have a brightly illuminated display, also start out with a shaded area to start and then move it to the permenent location. This avoids light shock and allows one to save money by not overdoing the lights on the QT,