Big E Rimless 80g Sps

[newbreefer316]

Great tank and inspiration. I'm in the process of setting up a SPS "frag" tank, with the hopes of starting my SPS journey and growing some colonies out from frags while I slowly get my new display sorted out.

Your information about bulbs, supplementation and spectrum has definitely cleared some things up for me and I look forward to testing some things out for myself. Frag tank is 48x24x12 and I've got a 8x54w ATI fixture that I'm going to try out with 4 B+ and C+ along with a pair of all blue RB tech strips to use as you mentioned for dawn/dusk/prime viewing time. With the shallowness of the tank the tech strips should provide plenty power to serve their purpose and I figure I'll probably have to raise the fixture up a bit to manage the PAR.

Couple quick questions, how do you feel about the Purple + bulbs and do you think adding 2 in the fixture would make a big impact on PAR? I was thinking Front to Back B,C,P,B,W,P,W,B or B,P,C,B,B,P,C,B. I like aesthetics of adding the purple but growth and coloration of the coral itself take precedence. Also, have you looked at the SB reef SBAR with both 420 and 450 diodes?

 

[Big E]

Beautiful stuff, bro!!

Thanks!

I had a Sky Doppel frag a few years ago and I really liked the green blue color it displayed. The colors on yours are amazing. Impressive.

Thanks, the branches can have blue, green, purple white and with the white floppy polyps it makes for a unique piece. Here's a recent close up.

sky doppel close by Big E 52, on Flickr

 

[Big E]

Great tank and inspiration. I'm in the process of setting up a SPS "frag" tank, with the hopes of starting my SPS journey and growing some colonies out from frags while I slowly get my new display sorted out.

Your information about bulbs, supplementation and spectrum has definitely cleared some things up for me and I look forward to testing some things out for myself. Frag tank is 48x24x12 and I've got a 8x54w ATI fixture that I'm going to try out with 4 B+ and C+ along with a pair of all blue RB tech strips to use as you mentioned for dawn/dusk/prime viewing time. With the shallowness of the tank the tech strips should provide plenty power to serve their purpose and I figure I'll probably have to raise the fixture up a bit to manage the PAR.

That's plenty of light.....be careful with the RB strips..........too much of that single 450nm that close can be problematic. The C+ and B+ is all you need to color the acros. The RB strip will add some ambient pop for viewing. Use my par table for inches from the bulbs for reference.

I don't like the P+ due to the ambient pink it displays. The C+ bulb has plenty of what the P+ offers. It's your call if you like the ambient look better. The C+ serves the same purpose as the AB special (White bulb) and the P+ combined.

I can't stress enough to keep a consistent spectrum spread across the whole tank.........you'll find it much easier to color acros because you don't have pockets of missing spectrum. All you have to do is focus on placing the coral high or low to create the best intensity for color.

Here's an example.........I did nothing but raise this coral...........notice the progression of growth and color. I was able to move it to any open spot in the tank with the right height.

Ultimate rainbow low by Big E 52, on Flickr

Ultimate rainbow 032117 by Big E 52, on Flickr

ultimates rainbow 060517 by Big E 52, on Flickr

 

[Big E]

Also, have you looked at the SB reef SBAR with both 420 and 450 diodes?

Yes, I did see that..........I'd prefer more of the 420nm diodes than they provide but it looks okay as long as it doesn't create any disco effect due to so few 420nm diodes.

I'm not sold on the longevity of 400-420 diodes...... it's why I haven't tried a strip with them. The plastic covers blacken or the diodes burn out all too often. I believe that's what stops most LED companies from putting more in their units........they all need more than the handful provided by most manufacturers.

 

[newbreefer316]

Thanks for the detailed response, it sounds like those 2 bulbs have everything I need. Can't wait to get this tank up and running now!

 

[Daniel@R2R]

That's plenty of light.....be careful with the RB strips..........too much of that single 450nm that close can be problematic. The C+ and B+ is all you need to color the acros. The RB strip will add some ambient pop for viewing. Use my par table for inches from the bulbs for reference.

I don't like the P+ due to the ambient pink it displays. The C+ bulb has plenty of what the P+ offers. It's your call if you like the ambient look better. The C+ serves the same purpose as the AB special (White bulb) and the P+ combined.

I can't stress enough to keep a consistent spectrum spread across the whole tank.........you'll find it much easier to color acros because you don't have pockets of missing spectrum. All you have to do is focus on placing the coral high or low to create the best intensity for color.

Here's an example.........I did nothing but raise this coral...........notice the progression of growth and color. I was able to move it to any open spot in the tank with the right height.

Ultimate rainbow low by Big E 52, on Flickr

Ultimate rainbow 032117 by Big E 52, on Flickr

ultimates rainbow 060517 by Big E 52, on Flickr

Wow! That's a beauty!

 

[CoralWealth]

Ed I really like the color of your red planet. Where do you have it in your tank compared to par? High, medium or low?

Also your colors are so dark, I love it compared to the pastel colors most people go for. What do you contribute to this?

Can you post a FTS soon so we can see how you have most of the corals placed compared to your lights and powerheads, or better yet maybe a video so we can see the flow which I think would help a lot if you have the time.

I also noticed your reds are so nice, do you contribute this to anything in specific?

 

[Micksfish]

Beautiful tank! Looked through and didn't see anyone ask, but what dosing regiment are you using? Whatever it is, it is working!

 

[Big E]

Ed I really like the color of your red planet. Where do you have it in your tank compared to par? High, medium or low?

Also your colors are so dark, I love it compared to the pastel colors most people go for. What do you contribute to this?

Can you post a FTS soon so we can see how you have most of the corals placed compared to your lights and powerheads, or better yet maybe a video so we can see the flow which I think would help a lot if you have the time.

I also noticed your reds are so nice, do you contribute this to anything in specific?

I snapped a pic of this red planet a few days ago......it's 15" from the bulbs which is 300 par in my system. The only green it has is deep in the base area which can't really be seen.

red planet 091917 by Big E 52, on Flickr

Colors--

There's two parts to this what the coral pigments need for excitation(spectrum/intensity) and what we visually see with our eyes.

I don't over light the corals in par or duration. My lights cover the complete spectrum balance for most/all Sps pigments.
Coral+ bulbs help to produce reds in the coral and visually to our eyes My tank is bright and more of a 14k look so our eyes see reds, purple, and blues better.......most people overdue blue light, which can darken the look of the tank to our eyes. We can't see reds, purple and blue as well as the cones in our eyes aren't as good seeing those colors the darker the ambient lighting look becomes.

A 14-20k look should be fine for most tanks, which is never that windex black light poster look.

An overly blue look will make yellow, green and orange pop more because the cones in our eyes see these colors better & of course the blue light helps enhance reflection of them.
This table shows how we see colors.........you can see which are harder for our eyes to detect. As the tank gets darker our cones see less of those colors which make them pop less.

Eye light sensitivity graph by Big E 52, on Flickr

One last mention on my lighting..........I overdrive my bulbs on an ice cap ballast..........it's old school, before ATI fixtures became mainstream. I believe what I do is the T5 version of the 400w Radium over driven on an HQI ballast.
I don't know of anyone else that does this, but I can tell you the best SPS tank I ever saw in person had overdriven T5s.

I recommend the ATI Sunpowers as I do think they can come close enough but I'm not giving up my current setup. There are also hundreds of beautiful Acropora systems with
T5 fixtures......they simply work.
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Nutrients-- As long as you're not starving the corals they will be darker and more vivid. The pastel look can come from low nutrients, intense lighting, and/or anything that will cause expulsion of zoo.

There is a ballpark range of numbers most tanks will fall in but more importantly you want a high energy reef that doesn't allow pest algae to proliferate. This usually includes a good fish population......they are the best dosers as they produce ammonium and urea directly to the corals.
A lot of other elements and nutrients pass through the fish in the manner of what we call fish poop.

This is better than any dosing potions.............it's the natural & balanced way. You don't have to manipulate anything............just keep the fish fed well.

Again, it's not a test kit target as much as looking at the corals themselves. A 100g tank with 3 fish and .03 phosphates isn't the same as a 100g with 6 fish and .03 phosphates. The six fish tank has more available to the corals.

Flow-

As long as you are getting good flow all round the corals and enough to push detritus to the overflow it should be fine. This video is the most I would give to corals and plenty like it like this.

Flow video by Big E 52, on Flickr

 

[Big E]

Beautiful tank! Looked through and didn't see anyone ask, but what dosing regiment are you using? Whatever it is, it is working!

Thanks, I don't dose anything other than alk and calc.

I do 7-10% weekly water changes to keep balance and replenish elements.

One other note, I don't run any algae filters, so no depletion of nitrates( zero levels) or trace elements occurs.........the corals have plenty of what they need.

 

[revhtree]

That's just amazing!

 

[Big E]

That's just amazing!

Thanks!

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I touched on having the correct spectrum to produce good coloration in a coral This is the DSred pigment ........you can see the excitation is in the 550-590 area. The red line is the emission wave length, if you don't produce that excitation level in the coral you're not going to get the red you want out of this pigment.

In my bulb configuration the Coral+ bulb fulfills this need---------------

DsRed pigment chart by Big E 52, on Flickr

 

[tripdad]

Good info, thanks for sharing your knowledge. Your colors are second to none. Nice tank!

 

[DaveRaz]

Yes, thanks bigE. You helped me achieve this on my first tank and I hope to do the same the new one. You rock.

 

[Big E]

Good info, thanks for sharing your knowledge. Your colors are second to none. Nice tank!

Thanks! I'm happy to share anytime.

DaveRaz-

Yes, thanks bigE. You helped me achieve this on my first tank and I hope to do the same the new one. You rock.

That looks great.............It's always good to hear feedback like this, thanks!

 

[Big E]

Here's some new shots.........I did some experimenting with a porthole on some of them

Porthole 101017 by Big E 52, on Flickr

purple and red table by Big E 52, on Flickr

pink lemonade by Big E 52, on Flickr


porthole 2 101017 by Big E 52, on Flickr

Wolverine by Big E 52, on Flickr

BC Glo stick 101117 by Big E 52, on Flickr

rommels watermelon by Big E 52, on Flickr

poletti by Big E 52, on Flickr

porthole 5 101017 by Big E 52, on Flickr

 

[Abhishek]

Amazing @Big E !! Love the porthole shot .
What kind of granulosa is the 4th one ?

Regards,
Abhishek

 

[Big E]

A few more--

Blue Tenuis by Big E 52, on Flickr

Red Gecko front 101117 by Big E 52, on Flickr



Rec Gecko top 101117 by Big E 52, on Flickr

lemon lime table 100917 by Big E 52, on Flickr

 

[Big E]

Amazing @Big E !! Love the porthole shot .
What kind of granulosa is the 4th one ?

Regards,
Abhishek

Thanks, that's a rainbow granny.......no trade name...........it's got four colors in it.

 

[Abhishek]

Thanks, that's a rainbow granny.......no trade name...........it's got four colors in it.

I have stopped visiting your thread as it makes me feel so bad about my tank . It is the epitome of acro keeping .
Need to get cash soon to fill my up rock with some of Big E smooth skins !!!

Regards,
Abhishek