Bulbs to increase fluorescence and how many reflectors?

[nvfishman]

I finally have broken down and decided to get 20k radiums on the 400 gallon display 10ftx28x28. I have been using 10xms for the last year with no blue accents and I keep hearing my corals look brown even though I have alot of high end acros.

I have 4 large lumenarc reflectors 19.5x 19.5 I was thinking of putting a 5th one in the middle but unsure if I need it

I was thinking of adding vhos or some leds as well but that might be down the road. What pre built Led set up can add to mh bulbs without being washed out?

let me know some imput thanks

 

[akabryanhall]

I thin the 20k Radiums will start getting some really nice color out of your corals! Once the colors come in, to really and truly appreciate them, add LED actinic supplementation, like stunner strips or powerbrights

 

[swannyson7]

+1 on the 20ks doing the trick. It may take a bit for your corals to really show their potential, but they should color up nicely under a 20k lighting scheme. If you were to add some stunner strips they would really pop, but it may be too blue for your taste if you're used to 10k

 

[CJO]

I'm thinking that you might be asking in the wrong forum (LED Lighting Specific). You'd probably do better asking your question here: Equipment, Lighting, Hardware, DIY Discussion

CJ

 

[nvfishman]

thanks
I will probally move it hoping to use leds instead of vhos gonna look for new stuff at maxx show but 10ft span might make it real expensive

trying to find blue fixture that dose not get washed out but the intensity of mh

 

[foxhuntr]

`i would go with the 60" T5's superblues from KZ.......overdrive them with some icecap 660's.....run 4 of them in the back and 4 in the front.....thats the set-up i am running with a 6' tank and 3-250 watt MH's..... really nice colors and still get the par from them

 

[RonMidtownStomp]

This forums is perfect for the LED part of the question. I've had VERY similar questions myself, so I tried it.

I made a nice little DIY strip of Cree 3W Royal Blues. They look awesome by themselves, but I've had three people plus me see if they could tell ANY difference between just the Radiums or the Radiums + the Cree 3W's and all of us have concluded no advantage AT ALL running the LED's with the Radiums.

I would HIGHLY recommend Lumenmax Elites instead of those reflectors for that tank dimension. You'll get MUCH better PAR and light spread.

As I've tried two and three LME's on my 6' long tank, I can tell you that you'll be better off with five on the 10' long tank, but could do four LME's and it would be slightly lower PAR in spots. It depends on what you're going for.