Is PC Lighting Good Enough For a T. Crocea

[dj synystr]

i have a 20 long with 65 watt 10k bulb and a 65 watt antinic bulb over the tank. the clam is now in my 46 bow front with MH lighting but my tang is picking at it. where we got the clam from they had it under VHO lighting. my question is will the 130 total watts from the Power Compacts be enough for the clam in the 20 long. its roughly about 7 watts per gallon. please help me out. thanks in advance.

[Peabody]

Have to say it....no way, not even close. 99.9% of the time they need MH......the rest of that percentage is usually VHO lighting.

[dj synystr]

really so even though the lighting is higher watts per gallon with the pc it still isnt enough.

[Peabody]

Watts per gallon means nothing really...PC bulbs don't have the PAR to keep croceas.

[dj synystr]

oh ok, so im stuck on tang patrol. he was picking at the clam today and it went back into its shell. is this normal for tangs?

[Peabody]

Depends on which tang. Usually, no, but none are 100% safe...sounds like you got unlucky

[Peabody]

One possibility is the stress of being in a 45 gallon tank may have driven him to clamicide.

[dj synystr]

the tang is a small yellow tang and has been in the tank for 2 years hes only about 3 inches long. we have a 125 that will be set up once we move into our house in 2 months. we had a clam in there before and he didnt bother it.

[maoiwowie]

I have a crocea under PCs in my refugium; however it is elevated around 1/2 inch off the water surface. Seems to be doing ok.

[jedininja]

I'll bet it lose a lot of its color and reduce its growth rate. Unless you have an absurd amount of PC, the crocea will slowly die. How long have you had it under PC?

[maoiwowie]

Ive had it in there around 10 days now...im sure it will grow slower but the color seems to be holding. The reason i have it in there is because i noticed a small hole near its mouth. The cause of the hole could be because of a fish, or maybe an urchin falling in...i dont know, but i feel isolating it from the fish and other elements will allow it to recover better. What do you think? Will the hole heal itself?

[Peabody]

Not under those lights....croceas (and usually maximas) slowly starve over 4-6 months under PC, even right under them.

Color is not a indication of health in clams....most often after starving they look fine and then you wake up the next day to find an empty shell.

Get the clam under a halide ASAP for it's own good. It will heal more quickly if given good conditions.

[jedininja]

10 days is way too short to see any change. I agree with peabody. Get it under MH or it will not survive. How long has it been in your main tank and what lighting do you have there?

[dj synystr]

ok now i have a question, if i have a 46 bow front and have the crocea on the bottom is that ok with 175 mh and 130 antinics? i was going to move it into a specimen container to keep the tang away from it and put it up top of the tank. i would like to move it into my 20 long how many watts vho would be good for it?

[jedininja]

I think that would be ok, not optimal, but it would work as long as the crocea is directly underneat the MB bulb and not off to the sides or anything.

[dj synystr]

ok but what about vho lighting how much will i need for the 20 long in order to keep it healthy?

[MiddletonMark]

I guess, though getting good flow past the clam in a container is tough. I still wouldn't give much hope with PC's ... my 175w MH's [2 on a 58] seem to have very slow growth on my clam ... and the PAR difference between PC's and MH's is great [and that's about 6wpg MH, nevermind PC's].

One more vote for too cramped conditions for the Tang. No suprise to me he's causing trouble.

Anyway, I'd be darn tempted to get rid of both, or have them held until you can house them where they'll thrive. IMO this hobby isn't about making things stay alive in my tank, it's to have them in such health that they grow.

[dj synystr]

ok like i said before i am moving in 2 months to our new house. i have a 125 gallon tank sitting on the front pourch WAITING to get set up. so in 2 months the tang will be in a larger tank. my tang didnt bother my dersa but he is bothering the Crocea. could be the colors, not sure. as for pc light if you READ i said after the initial post how many watts of VHO would be ok for the 20 long to keep the clam?

[dj synystr]

oh and for flow i have a dremmle and know how to use it so the flow issue wouldnt be a problem i can easily cut holes and slits to allow good flow though the container.

[MiddletonMark]

Originally posted by dj synystr
as for pc light if you READ i said after the initial post how many watts of VHO would be ok for the 20 long to keep the clam?

I wouldn't put a Crocea or Maxima under less than MH. I have not seen long term success with clams under VHO's except for squamosa.

Just my 2 cents.

[jedininja]

VHO is actually less intense than PCs.

[dj synystr]

ok cool thanks for all the help, ill just have to keep him in the specimen container i modified till we set up the new tank.