White LED Question

[ajoe]

Anyone out there running LEDs with 0% white spectrum and if so what are you running and at what percentages?

[Ron Reefman]

I set up a new system with some LR and corals from a bigger tank that sprang a big leak. I had a fairly strong diatom bloom and the tank already had a lot of corals from my old tank, so I considered the diatoms an issue I needed to address. BTW, I run Reef Breeders Photon V2 lighting.

I didn't want to go lights out for 3 days as the corals were already stressed from a month of being in small tanks and tub and buckets with small power heads, marginal lighting and water changes for filtration. So I tried going all blue, no white, red or green. I ran the blues at 100% and the PAR was a bit on the low side, I don't remember specifically. I ran the tank this way for a week and the corals had good polyp extension and looked quite happy. The diatoms were gone. A couple of weeks later the diatoms were back and the bloom was big enough that I decided to do the all blue again. This time for 10 days. Again, the corals looked just like they do all the time at the end of a normal day when I do a very blue sunset. Good polyp extension and great fluorescence. This time the diatoms were gone and the new bloom was quite manageable without going lights out.

I hope that helps?

[reefteaser]

Hi Ron, you and I have the same light. I'm getting ready to do a blackout, which I've had success with before, but I'd like to try your method. Did you use both blue and the purple channels, or just the blue?

[Ron Reefman]

I ran all 3, but the violets really don't add too much. I think either way will work.

[reefteaser]

Thanks, I'll give it a try. I'm away from home until Wednesday. I'm home a week, and on the road a week and don't like the idea of not enjoying my reef on my precious time off.
I've had a bloom or two before, but it was always a brown color. This time it's bright green, and has been slowly growing over several weeks. I'll post my results.

[ajoe]

I set up a new system with some LR and corals from a bigger tank that sprang a big leak. I had a fairly strong diatom bloom and the tank already had a lot of corals from my old tank, so I considered the diatoms an issue I needed to address. BTW, I run Reef Breeders Photon V2 lighting.

I didn't want to go lights out for 3 days as the corals were already stressed from a month of being in small tanks and tub and buckets with small power heads, marginal lighting and water changes for filtration. So I tried going all blue, no white, red or green. I ran the blues at 100% and the PAR was a bit on the low side, I don't remember specifically. I ran the tank this way for a week and the corals had good polyp extension and looked quite happy. The diatoms were gone. A couple of weeks later the diatoms were back and the bloom was big enough that I decided to do the all blue again. This time for 10 days. Again, the corals looked just like they do all the time at the end of a normal day when I do a very blue sunset. Good polyp extension and great fluorescence. This time the diatoms were gone and the new bloom was quite manageable without going lights out.

I hope that helps?

Thanks Ron, ...i don't have any diatom or algae issues but was just curious if anyone had a thriving tank using lighting that did not include any white light beyond ambiant room/window light. Sounds like this is viable and I might give this a shot. Not a huge fan of the white spectrum and the tank gets enough ambiant light as is. I simply like the look of this and am considering it. I might pull the trigger and increase the blues/violets 2% a day until I hit those targets and decrease the whites 2% a day and see how everything progresses.

[Ron Reefman]

I run my frag tank at 10% white and 90% blue. It's a very cool white and IMHO the frags grow just as well as they did under 40% white and 90% blue.

[ajoe]

I bet that tank is pretty to look at under that light. I am going to give this a try and see how everything responds. Slowly of course. Thanks for sharing Ron. Your always eager to help and share your experience and I appreciate it.

cheers

[Ron Reefman]

You are very welcome.

The frag tank looks OK. My real pride and joy is my main sps/lps mixed reef. With an led fixture that does sunrise/sunset control I get into the sunset after it gets dark outside and the tank still has a lot of blue light and the house inside lights are set a little lower. I've been getting more and more corals that fluoresce colors under the blue light. So it's starting to look like a old brightly colored hippi poster under a black light. I can just stand there and look at it in amazement. I just wish I could take a photo of it when it's fluorescing color like that. But the photos just come out blue.

[djbon]

I like my white channel very much. Mine runs 85% for full 5 hours every day. No ramping up/down. I just turn on or off individual channels (blue/daylight/mid day).

[Ron Reefman]

I like my white channel very much. Mine runs 85% for full 5 hours every day. No ramping up/down. I just turn on or off individual channels (blue/daylight/mid day).

And your point is what?

Sunrise/sunset isn't a feature to help with coral health. It's a feature for the user's enjoyment. All the less expensive black box fixtures just turn on and off, no sunrise/sunset.

ajoe was asking if all blue would work. You like your white look, that's fine. How does that add to the discussion?

[djbon]

Good bye, have a good day!