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View Full Version : More actinic light than daylight?


Solstice
05/20/2009, 10:42 AM
Hey all,

I have 6x49w of light over my 50g tall. The way the fixture is setup, 2 of the bulbs are on one switch and 4 are on the other. I currently have 2 actinic bulbs and 4 10ks. I'm considering swapping them around to have 4 actinics and 2 10ks because the light is extremely bright for a small tank and I'd like to get a little more color out of my corals.

Is that something I should consider doing or will I need the stronger 10ks in the long run?

Thanks!

scottallert
05/20/2009, 10:44 AM
that should be fine, really blue though, i would go 3 actinic 2 10k and a 75/25 14k

der_wille_zur_macht
05/20/2009, 10:56 AM
To keep the ability to best simulate dawn/dusk, I would leave the two actinic tubes on the two-tube switch, and just swap out one of the 4 daylight tubes for actinic. If it still wasn't blue enough, you could swap another one for a 50/50 or other mixed bulb.

IME the best dawn/dusk simulation comes from using a very small amount of light. 4 actinic bulbs blasting at that small of a tank is gonna look like an alien science experiment, not a gentle undersea sunrise.

In the end though of course it's personal preference, just sharing my thoughts. As far as if you'll "need the stronger 10kk tubes in the long run" it really depends on your livestock plans.

Entropy
05/20/2009, 12:17 PM
IMO you cannot have too much actinic, so the question will be do you have enough daylight? If your tank inhabitants can get away with 2 daylight bulbs, then the rest can be actinic. I agree with the gravey train Captain that you should leave the two bulb switch actinic and just mix in more actinic to the four bulb setup.

username in use
05/20/2009, 01:14 PM
try the geissman aquablue+ instead of the 10k's. They are a little bluer (14k'ish), and a little softer than straight 10k's. Nice deep water look when paired with their actinic+, or their true actinic for a little more pop on your reds.

reefscape15
05/20/2009, 02:42 PM
I was going to suggest something like that also. I found Reef Blue 10k's out of Foster and Smith, but I can't remember which company made them. They are pretty blue, while still providing enough light for your corals to get a little growth from

WaterKeeper
05/20/2009, 02:50 PM
I too would not go with that much actinic. They don't have much in the way of PAR value and in a tall tank that is important. I also would look at using two higher K value tubes rather than true actinic if you wish a blue look.

divewsharks
05/21/2009, 02:19 AM
if you want the blue look, but need the output look at G'Mann Actinic+'s or ATI Blue+'s. They are very blue bulbs but produce a high amount of PAR.
What kind of corals to you have?