Can Metal Halide kill Aussie Acan?

[jamirlima]

Acan lighting?

Is 250 watts metal halide too strong over 18" tall cube tank 24x24? Plus 2x24 watts T5

The metal halide light is 12 inches above water surface.

 

[Reef Pets]

That should not be too much light as long as you keep the acans low in the tank.

 

[Hypertek99]

I have 250MH over a 29gal and my tank consists of acans, micros, and chalices

 

[Saltysteele]

i've got 48" T5's, driven with an icecap, and they bleached all my aussie acans that were out in the open. i've got them in indirect light right now, recovering. believe my tank is 24" top to bottom

 

[Chris22582]

I have 2 175's over my 75 and I keep fighting to find a place they dont bleach. Starting to get agrivating. lol I have them in shade now and they seem to be recovering.

 

[Poseidon]

I melt Acans under my T5's so, yes halides could melt them too. Find a cave for them....

 

[EliteReefs]

i would say they are fine. I it to be more about how they are introduced to the higher light. I run all 400 halides. if i toss in an acan it will bleach out very quickly. however if i start them way over to the sides and slowly move them over to more direct light they do just fine and in some cases end up getting even brighter then when i got them.

 

[Saltysteele]

i am in no way an expert, but have read that aussie acans come from deeper waters, and are used to more of a blue light, and not high intensity light.

indie acans, on the other hand, come from shallower reefs, and are used to more intense lighting

take a look at junior's collection. he has them under blue lighting, and they're slammin.

 

[EliteReefs]

i am in no way an expert, but have read that aussie acans come from deeper waters, and are used to more of a blue light, and not high intensity light.

indie acans, on the other hand, come from shallower reefs, and are used to more intense lighting

take a look at junior's collection. he has them under blue lighting, and they're slammin.

this is true. i should have mentioned that. I run all radium bulbs

 

[jamirlima]

this is true. i should have mentioned that. I run all radium bulbs

Radium bulbs? Are those metal halide bulbs?

 

[jamirlima]

i am in no way an expert, but have read that aussie acans come from deeper waters, and are used to more of a blue light, and not high intensity light.

indie acans, on the other hand, come from shallower reefs, and are used to more intense lighting

take a look at junior's collection. he has them under blue lighting, and they're slammin.

Whats the difference between indie acan and aussie acan lords? I thought there were only enchinata and lordhoweinsse (dont know how to spell right)

 

[EliteReefs]

Radium bulbs? Are those metal halide bulbs?

yes radium is a brand of halide. there 400 bulb is veyr much on the blue side of the spectrum.

 

[jamirlima]

yes radium is a brand of halide. there 400 bulb is veyr much on the blue side of the spectrum.

But 20K is does not give the actual color of the coral though... it is just pleasing to the eyes since most corals looks better under blue lights. Does the blue light make coral grow at all?

 

[EliteReefs]

But 20K is does not give the actual color of the coral though... it is just pleasing to the eyes since most corals looks better under blue lights. Does the blue light make coral grow at all?

sure it does. my corals grow like weeds. color spectrum does not mean a coral wont grow. your not talking about blue like actinic blue. your talking about more of a crisp white. radium bulbs have great lum/par readings out of the 400's when run on 220v

it is a VERY popular bulb for sps keepers. you have to remember that the deeper you get into the ocean reefs the more blue it gets since the waters are filtering out lower end of the spectrum.

PS: 20K should really just be called blue and is a term popular in the fish world. the reading from the blubs that we call 10-20 K are really running much cooler then that. it is best just to remember that the lower the number the more yellow it will get and the higher the number the more blue it will be. all bulbs and numebr are not created =. one brand 20K will NOT be the same as another brand since they are not rated on a standard. you have to play around with different bulbs to find one that gives you both the color and growth you are looking for. for me that bulb has been the radium for nearly 10+ years. I have tried them all and nothing seems to give me better results.

PPS: blub and ballast bulb combo is also very important. just because a bulb will light with a ballast does not mean it is the best ballast for the bulb. thats a whole different conversation though

 

[Poseidon]

But 20K is does not give the actual color of the coral though... it is just pleasing to the eyes since most corals looks better under blue lights. Does the blue light make coral grow at all?

:confuse::confuse::confuse:

Huh? Where in the world did you hear that?

Please, I am not trying to be mean, but you have to understand that the depth at which acans come from is virtually ALL BLUE light. As for showing the "real" color of the coral, well if the color is there, it is "real" right?

As for growth, YES, Acans will grow and grow and grow under a blue spectrum, but that is because their growth rate is more determined by what you FEED them then it is what spectrum they are kept under.

Please don't get caught up in the blue is bad.... that is really old school thinking, and with current lighting and filtration methods, there is really no point in the old 6.5K = Growth and 20K = Color, I am convinced that was just a fallacy given the growth AND color achieved with 14K+ bulbs, especially with 400W Radiums, and "Blue" T5's.

 

[jamirlima]

So it does not matter if it is 20K metal halide or just blue actinics T5? I am confused now. Can I use only T5 blue actinics for acans and other corals?

 

[Chris22582]

What he is saying is you have to think about where the corals you have come from. Most of them arent at the surface where they get the whiter light. So if you give them the bluer spectrum its closer to what they would have had. Hope that helps some. :)

 

[jamirlima]

Is Blue coming from 14K or 20K metal halide is different as compared to blue from t5 actinics?

 

[Poseidon]

No, that is not what I meant to imply.

What I was trying to say is that "Blue" light is not bad at all. You can use 20K Radiums, or you could use the 22K Aqua Science T5 bulbs, or Blue + from ATI, or Actinic + from Geismann, these last 3 are all very similar, and yes they are T5. It seems more and more the people choose either T5 or halides, VHO, PC, LED only make up a small portion of lighting right now.

Since you already have halides, I would go to a 14K Phoenix bulb or depending on your ballast, maybe a Radium bulb. My point is there are many options for lighting, but isn't the desired result to have a tank that is "pleasing to the eye"?

 

[jamirlima]

I just read that bulbs needs pulse start ballast. I thought there were only 2 metal halide ballast - magnetic and electronic....sorry am new with MH.
Mine is magnetic so not sure if I can use radium bulbs.