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View Full Version : Please help me choose some light bulbs for my tank


macDRE
03/28/2006, 05:54 PM
Hi i'm gonna be buying some new pc bulbs soon and i know that there are alot to choose from.What should i get for my tank that has alot of soft coral's mostly shrooms and easy plants.But i want good color like a bright white/blue color. i know that there's like 1000k and 1200k and then for the actinic there's true actinic actinic 420 actinic 03. WHAT WOULD BE THE BEST FOR MY KINDA SET UP

perc
03/28/2006, 07:12 PM
I have used alot of pc's, and I have to say for what you want to do, 50/50s are perfect. Your softies will love them and they have a very plesent blueness to them. If you do decide to go with a two type bulb combo, def go with 10,000k and actinic 03. I have used both combos and they both work great, but i do prefer the look of the 50/50's. How many watts were you planning?

macDRE
03/28/2006, 07:17 PM
It's 260 watts. 4x65 watt. So your saying to get all 50/50 ?So 4 65 watt 50/50 bulbs?

macDRE
03/28/2006, 08:15 PM
bump

perc
03/29/2006, 12:25 AM
Yes, but thats just my opinion. Some people like to do the 10000/act 03 combo so they can leave their actinics on later for a "sunset". I had 4 65 watts on my old 55, at first I had the combo (10,000 and 03) but since one was closer to the front and one was closer to the back, they tended to give off "shadows" of just daylight or just actinic. Then I got all 50/50s and the light was perfectly distributed. I think the pleasent color and more even distribution of the two spectrums is worth the 50/50s.

goreefer
03/30/2006, 08:57 PM
I have used both combos and it's all in what you are looking for. I still use a 20 watt 03 near the back of my tank. I let it stay on for about 30 minutes longer than the other 3 65 PC's. It gives somewhat of a sun down effect on the tank. It's really interesting what happens when the 03 is the only light on. Your live rock will come alive.