Coral and DLI

[AudioJunkie]

I’m new to the reefing world and will be starting my journey this fall, I’m trying to gather as much information as I can so I am well prepared.

With that said, I have some questions about coral and daily lighting integral.

In all my research so far I’ve constantly read about giving coral the correct PAR, but I’ve only seen one mention of DLI, and it only explained what DLI is.

I have a background in growing plants under LED lighting and DLI is a huge part in getting a much better result and since coral are also photosynthetic, do they benefit from this as well?

If so, what is the proper DLI to shoot for? Does it differ with species or the different types within the species? (Sorry for the, probably, incorrect coral terminology, I’m still new )

 

[strich]

No idea on actual numbers. But yes DLI matters. It depends on the kind of coral - Some love and demand high amount of light and primary position in the tank, some demand a lot less and are typically put deeper into the water column. The other key thing is that the light spectrum matters too - If you've come from plants then you are probably used to pushing red/green lights as the primary spectrum. Those color bands are quickly filtered out in the water column so coral are adapted to more efficiently gaining energy from the lower end of the spectrum - blues etc which is why you'll see so many blue lit tanks in the reefing hobby. But its worth mentioning that it doesn't matter all that much - Pick the color setup that suits your own tastes.

 

[Lasse]

Here is a link to another forum that may interest you

Reef lighting easy DLI calculator & findings

Hi Everyone! TLDR: Enjoy this Reef lighting DLI made simple calculator I made to make choosing your lighting settings easier. Target DLI over SPS of 10.5 (7-12.5 range) DLI, and Target DLI over LPS of 5 (2-7 range) DLI. So I went down the PAR & DLI rabbit hole because I haven't been 100% happy...

humble.fish

Sincerely Lasse

 

[oreo54]

I’m new to the reefing world and will be starting my journey this fall, I’m trying to gather as much information as I can so I am well prepared.

With that said, I have some questions about coral and daily lighting integral.

In all my research so far I’ve constantly read about giving coral the correct PAR, but I’ve only seen one mention of DLI, and it only explained what DLI is.

I have a background in growing plants under LED lighting and DLI is a huge part in getting a much better result and since coral are also photosynthetic, do they benefit from this as well?

If so, what is the proper DLI to shoot for? Does it differ with species or the different types within the species? (Sorry for the, probably, incorrect coral terminology, I’m still new )

Dana Riddle did a bunch on the subject.
Unfortunately atm reefs.com is inaccessible.
So one needs to use the wayback machine .

A Different Look at Lighting: Effects of Prolonged Photoperiod, Spectral Quality, and Light Dosage

Some reef aquaria 'experts' have suggested that we understand all we need to know about lighting of reef aquaria. This article will suggest otherwise.

web.archive.org

 

[AudioJunkie]

Thanks for the info!

@Lasse and @oreo54 really appreciate those links, very good and interesting reads!

Looks like I’ll be doing a parabolic lighting schedule, take measurements with my Apogee and dial in that DLI

Thanks again!