Anyone use 67K colored lights or similar on their FOWLR

[Thumbster]

Tinkering around with the idea of using daylight bulbs on my tank. Anyone else used them on their setup? Did you run into algae problems that you would not have if using 10k or 12k lights.

Right now I have power compacts (compact flourescents) with 10k bulbs and am not entirely happy with the color. I swapped them with some 67k bulbs to see what they looked like and I think it brings out the reds a little better.

[seanothon]

I haven't was thinking about getting one, as one of my actinics went out. Thought it could be beneficial to my macro algae, as well

[Thumbster]

So would you be using just 6700k bulbs then?

[agreeive?fish]

i have tried them could not stand the yellow look. i cant even stand the yellow look of "lower K" rated bulbs on my freshwater tank

i cant give you any "long term" opinions because i paid for OVERNIGHT shipping of higher K bulbs the same day i tried the lower K bulbs

[larrypoe]

never used them in SW, but I have several FW tanks w 4700k or 6700k lights.....and have some 3000k I just got ahold of I will be trying soon. accualy there are 3000k lights on the 2 SW FO tanks I have atm come to think of it.


I like the look of 6700k, and the 4800k too......havent had the 3000k in use long enough to know what I think of them atm though.

I dont keep corals though, and I havent realy seen an algea issue in the FW tanks with them.....in fact algea is pretty much non existent in them to be honest.


the fish are all I care about, couldnt care less if the tanks "grow" anything else.......but as a side note the 4800 and 6700k lights give me about 2ish inchs of growth a month on the elodea in them.....and within a week or 2 the color is a much darker green than when first placed.

[Cptn Spaulding]

"and I havent realy seen an algea issue in the FW tanks with them.....in fact algea is pretty much non existent in them to be honest."

Lower Kelvin rated bulbs have the potential to promote algae in saltwater, while inhibiting it in freshwater. The reverse is true with actinic lighting. Switch out one of your bulbs on a FW tank for a bluer bulb, you will have more algae within a week than you did before.

In terms of your tank, it is all preference. Most of us in this hobby enjoy a bit of bluer spectrum, not only because it helps ward off nuisance algae, but also because it makes a lot more colors pop as opposed to a more yellow or red bulb (it's also a bit more natural to the real lighting in the ocean as well). If you like the look of it and you never get a lot of gross algae, go for it!

[seanothon]

I was planning a blend of 10000k 6700k and actinics