So it looks like we've made it through another week, huh?
With all of the great conversations we had, I forgot to post on a topic that's been piquing my interest for some time now. Perhaps you can, ahem- shed a little light on it (really bad pun here...you'll know why in a second)...
It's no secret that Unique Corals grows tons of Acropora. We are near-obsessed by Acros, especially Millies, Vermiculata, Tenuis, etc. We grow them under 400 watt, 20,000K "Radium" metal halides on light movers. Those of you who have been to our facility or who have ordered from us know that our Acros are pretty darned nice (if I say so myself...).
Now, for our use, halides are still perfectly appropriate and highly effective, even though they have fallen out of favor among many reefers. We've tried LEDs for growing our Acros in the past, and were not entirely satisfied with the results...Of course, with Jake ("Mr. LED") Adams in house, we've been getting to try out some of the newest and craziest LED systems in the world, and we're about to test a few cool units in our facility.
The issue for us with LEDs has always been the cost/benefit thing. In order to properly illuminate our 30 foot raceways with LEDs, the investment was super high, and quite frankly, we were less than impressed with our initial LED trials at growing "SPS" corals. Don't get me wrong. We love and use LEDs; it's just that we're still trying to figure out that "sweet spot" between growth and cost on them for our operation.
We have so many customers who utilize LED's in their aquariums, and I'm very, very curios what your long-term experience has been with keeping our Acros under LED's. I'm wondering what brand/fixture you use, what setting, how long your tank is illuminated, and what distance above your tank you maintain the fixture.
I'd like to know things like how your Acro colors have changed since you've received them an illuminated them under LEDs, and if you've noticed any growth/health issues...and how well the corals acclimated, etc. For example, were blue corals going green, reddish corals going blue or brown...or what?
I would love to see us move away from the "Needs strong lighting" -kind of generic recommendations for our corals , and be able to be more specific based on real-world experiences of our customers, and feedback like this helps.
Anyways, your feedback is most welcome, as are pics and your thoughts on the topic. Pros/cons...whatever...just would love to hear your experiences and see some pics!
Thanks!
Scott
With all of the great conversations we had, I forgot to post on a topic that's been piquing my interest for some time now. Perhaps you can, ahem- shed a little light on it (really bad pun here...you'll know why in a second)...
It's no secret that Unique Corals grows tons of Acropora. We are near-obsessed by Acros, especially Millies, Vermiculata, Tenuis, etc. We grow them under 400 watt, 20,000K "Radium" metal halides on light movers. Those of you who have been to our facility or who have ordered from us know that our Acros are pretty darned nice (if I say so myself...).
Now, for our use, halides are still perfectly appropriate and highly effective, even though they have fallen out of favor among many reefers. We've tried LEDs for growing our Acros in the past, and were not entirely satisfied with the results...Of course, with Jake ("Mr. LED") Adams in house, we've been getting to try out some of the newest and craziest LED systems in the world, and we're about to test a few cool units in our facility.
The issue for us with LEDs has always been the cost/benefit thing. In order to properly illuminate our 30 foot raceways with LEDs, the investment was super high, and quite frankly, we were less than impressed with our initial LED trials at growing "SPS" corals. Don't get me wrong. We love and use LEDs; it's just that we're still trying to figure out that "sweet spot" between growth and cost on them for our operation.
We have so many customers who utilize LED's in their aquariums, and I'm very, very curios what your long-term experience has been with keeping our Acros under LED's. I'm wondering what brand/fixture you use, what setting, how long your tank is illuminated, and what distance above your tank you maintain the fixture.
I'd like to know things like how your Acro colors have changed since you've received them an illuminated them under LEDs, and if you've noticed any growth/health issues...and how well the corals acclimated, etc. For example, were blue corals going green, reddish corals going blue or brown...or what?
I would love to see us move away from the "Needs strong lighting" -kind of generic recommendations for our corals , and be able to be more specific based on real-world experiences of our customers, and feedback like this helps.
Anyways, your feedback is most welcome, as are pics and your thoughts on the topic. Pros/cons...whatever...just would love to hear your experiences and see some pics!
Thanks!
Scott