After a lot of reading I noticed the true actinic bulb is the only bulb that hits 425 nm where it’s most significant according to the chart. Why don’t people use this bulb other than the PAR value? Thoughts?
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I think the lower popularity is due to a bit of the par chasing.
And judging just by eye.
A good ratio in a six tube is often reccomended to be 4 b+ 2c+ or a p+ in there. Generally each are just under 150-170 per tube at 12in. Adding an actinic drops it by close to 75 per tube.
So visually the tank is now darker, despite the increased fluorescence of some pigments in the coral and increased PUR.
A good 6 tube combo spectrally would be 2 actinic 2 c+ 2 b+. But you lose 200 ish par and visual intensity. The pop would look nice though.
A simple remedy would of course be move the light closer to find a middle ground. Or add “stunner strips” led bars of a specific NM.
Conversely , the standard 6 tube b+ c+ could be augmented well with an led bar with higher actinic numbers. The SBreeflight bar is one that does this.(tends to be described as royal blue ) Many others don’t. Some stay, Middle blue (deep blue) some tend twards green(aqua)
Lol!!!!WOW, GET OUT OF MY HEAD!!!
That sounds like a good combo. Do you have any tank shots?I actually prefer the Giesemann Super Actinic. It is kind of like a blend between the ATI Blue Plus and ATI True Actinic. I used to use ATI True Actinic. This is brighter but still gives you extra actinic vs standard blue bulbs like ATI blue plus or giesemann actinic blue. I have a 6 bulb and use the following combo back to front:
ATI Blue Plus
ATI Blue Plus
ATI Coral Plus
Giesemann Super Actinic
ATI Blue Plus
ATI Coral Plus
You definitely don't need an actinic bulb as the others do contain sufficient amounts of actinic as others have stated, but if you have a 6+ bulb fixture you have more freedom and I believe they help with health and coloration. I tried running two initially but prefer 1.
PAR is the best measurement we have at our disposal (at a reasonable price point) but you could have a 100% red light with higher par than an actinic yet the actinic has higher PUR which is more important. I actually think I read somewhere that the actinic has comparable PAR to the other bulbs but our PAR meters can't pick up a lot of it. It certainly looks dimmer but similarly that's because our eyes don't pick it all up like the higher spectrums.
It wouldn't even be worth trying as I have a ghetto Samsung s5 and I can't adjust white balance. It wouldn't even look close to what it does in person, just straight blue (even though it's not that blue imo) It's my favorite though and I've tried many combos over the years. I am in the market for a dslr though so if I remember I'll post one here for you when I get it.That sounds like a good combo. Do you have any tank shots?
I was using the 2 actinic, 2 blue and 2 coral plus combo but noticed the purple plus has almost the same spectrum (less 550-600nm) but less white look. So I replaced the coral plus with purple. Do you feel the coral plus is needed?I think the lower popularity is due to a bit of the par chasing.
And judging just by eye.
A good ratio in a six tube is often reccomended to be 4 b+ 2c+ or a p+ in there. Generally each are just under 150-170 per tube at 12in. Adding an actinic drops it by close to 75 per tube.
So visually the tank is now darker, despite the increased fluorescence of some pigments in the coral and increased PUR.
A good 6 tube combo spectrally would be 2 actinic 2 c+ 2 b+. But you lose 200 ish par and visual intensity. The pop would look nice though.
A simple remedy would of course be move the light closer to find a middle ground. Or add “stunner strips” led bars of a specific NM.
Conversely , the standard 6 tube b+ c+ could be augmented well with an led bar with higher actinic numbers. The SBreeflight bar is one that does this.(tends to be described as royal blue ) Many others don’t. Some stay, Middle blue (deep blue) some tend twards green(aqua)
No, it’s fine. There could be very minor changes in color to some of the coral, but not too likely.I was using the 2 actinic, 2 blue and 2 coral plus combo but noticed the purple plus has almost the same spectrum (less 550-600nm) but less white look. So I replaced the coral plus with purple. Do you feel the coral plus is needed?
Take a look at the ati site , the actinic is slightly lower in par relatively, and output. It’s not due to the meter in the low end , it’s the amout of filtration applied to the glass. Like a black light.I actually prefer the Giesemann Super Actinic. It is kind of like a blend between the ATI Blue Plus and ATI True Actinic. I used to use ATI True Actinic. This is brighter but still gives you extra actinic vs standard blue bulbs like ATI blue plus or giesemann actinic blue. I have a 6 bulb and use the following combo back to front:
ATI Blue Plus
ATI Blue Plus
ATI Coral Plus
Giesemann Super Actinic
ATI Blue Plus
ATI Coral Plus
You definitely don't need an actinic bulb as the others do contain sufficient amounts of actinic as others have stated, but if you have a 6+ bulb fixture you have more freedom and I believe they help with health and coloration. I tried running two initially but prefer 1.
PAR is the best measurement we have at our disposal (at a reasonable price point) but you could have a 100% red light with higher par than an actinic yet the actinic has higher PUR which is more important. I actually think I read somewhere that the actinic has comparable PAR to the other bulbs but our PAR meters can't pick up a lot of it. It certainly looks dimmer but similarly that's because our eyes don't pick it all up like the higher spectrums.
Yup. And even if the the par is too “high” , that can be manipulated by shortening the time.Part of the reason why any tank between 18-24” would be best served with an 8 bulb fixture. The spectral benefits of the actinic bulb can be enjoyed and using any combination of blue and full spectrum bulbs for the remaining 6-7 slots will be more than enough par if mounted 8-12 “ from the water
Take a look at the ati site , the actinic is slightly lower in par relatively, and output. It’s not due to the meter in the low end , it’s the amout of filtration applied to the glass. Like a black light.
It’s one of the reasons I highly reccomend a decent lux meter with a par meter (no seney lux is diffent and not wire accurate in a sense)
But yes, Par can be scewed by the presence of other colors. R Y O in some cases, too much (or only ) blue in others.
In tube selection , knowing what spectrum is going in the tank is how we try to get the best PUR.
If only one bulb I would go blue plus.This is all great info. I'm new to the hobby and am looking to add supplimental T5 to my tank. I have a cheap Orbit Marine Led and the PAR values aren't great. The color mix is fine so I was hopeful to add a single ATI actinic to give the corals a boost in growth. Which buld would you all recommend for growth?