Help with lighting schedule

[Nathan Milender]

I recently ungraded from 2 maxspect 120W lights to a t5 hybrid fixture with 4 bulbs and 3 AI prime fixtures for a 6ftx18inx 24inch deep (minus sand etc) 125 gallon. I am really struggling with the schedule. So far I downloaded AI prime's sig schedule of the schotsky guy, but I am trying to figure out how much T5 to run. Current T5 is running 5 hours a piece with a 30 min overlap. I decreased the T5 because they are so bright my wife was complaining about the light in the room.

Current corals are a medium size torch which did start bleaching. One large frogspawn which is doing well other than the head that was mysteriously eaten. Two toadstool plugs which seem happy anywhere (moved a few times to accommodate the frog and torch without being in harms way). And a couple of zoa frags, a red gonipora, a candy cane and three frags I do not remember the names of (small round polyps with orange blue and green in a carpet type pattern). All seem fine but I have not found final homes for the plugs.

LEDs put out light but I figure the T5s can really pick up the slack. I look at light schedules and see some really short dawn to dusk times. I figured equatorial animals expect 12 hours but really only get the intense light for a fraction of the day. Am I crazy? Should I just set it how I like it and keeps the people happy and expect the corals to adjust? Any help is fine, but actionable details are more important to me than vague feelings.

 

[Dana Riddle]

I recently ungraded from 2 maxspect 120W lights to a t5 hybrid fixture with 4 bulbs and 3 AI prime fixtures for a 6ftx18inx 24inch deep (minus sand etc) 125 gallon. I am really struggling with the schedule. So far I downloaded AI prime's sig schedule of the schotsky guy, but I am trying to figure out how much T5 to run. Current T5 is running 5 hours a piece with a 30 min overlap. I decreased the T5 because they are so bright my wife was complaining about the light in the room.

Current corals are a medium size torch which did start bleaching. One large frogspawn which is doing well other than the head that was mysteriously eaten. Two toadstool plugs which seem happy anywhere (moved a few times to accommodate the frog and torch without being in harms way). And a couple of zoa frags, a red gonipora, a candy cane and three frags I do not remember the names of (small round polyps with orange blue and green in a carpet type pattern). All seem fine but I have not found final homes for the plugs.

LEDs put out light but I figure the T5s can really pick up the slack. I look at light schedules and see some really short dawn to dusk times. I figured equatorial animals expect 12 hours but really only get the intense light for a fraction of the day. Am I crazy? Should I just set it how I like it and keeps the people happy and expect the corals to adjust? Any help is fine, but actionable details are more important to me than vague feelings.

Do yo have a PAR or lux meter? If so, we can calculate light dosage and see where you stand.

 

[Nathan Milender]

No I do not, wouldn't mind getting one but they are pricey. The lights are bright. If anything they will overpower more than under power. This seems especially true of the T5. I had no idea how bright those are. It is like looking into the sun.

 

[Daniel Waters]

Your coral stock list is not very light demanding in my opinion. Thus, I think you can run whatever your preference is for the full or majority of your photo period. Thus, if you like the T5s best, run those the full time. You can add the LEDs in if you like but I'd run them at low intensities, say 25%. If you prefer the LEDs only, run them at a higher %, say 50% to 75%. If you want to run the T5s some with the LEDs but want to stay mostly with just LEDs, I'd recommend just a 4 hr period with the T5s and reduce led intensity during that 4 hour period of time.

An 8 to 12 hour photo period is fine. You can always run the LEDs at lower intensities for part of the day if you opt for a longer photo period and you're worried about algae growth or bleaching corals.

 

[Nathan Milender]

Your coral stock list is not very light demanding in my opinion. Thus, I think you can run whatever your preference is for the full or majority of your photo period. Thus, if you like the T5s best, run those the full time. You can add the LEDs in if you like but I'd run them at low intensities, say 25%. If you prefer the LEDs only, run them at a higher %, say 50% to 75%. If you want to run the T5s some with the LEDs but want to stay mostly with just LEDs, I'd recommend just a 4 hr period with the T5s and reduce led intensity during that 4 hour period of time.

An 8 to 12 hour photo period is fine. You can always run the LEDs at lower intensities for part of the day if you opt for a longer photo period and you're worried about algae growth or bleaching corals.

Thanks, that was what I was trying to figure out was the photo period. I will add corals down the road that will be more light demanding. The idea with the T5s is that they will provide the bulk of necessary light with the leds offering the aesthetics. I actually like the full color of the T5s. I do not like the flat look that makes me think I am at work. The trick is, how many hours do the T5s need to be on? I did not think 4 hours would be enough so that is good to hear. I also realize that the four hours is dependent on the LED output. I think 3 ai primes would be insufficient on this tank without the t5. Also, the less I run the T5, the happier my will be. Should that be increased to 6 hours with sps down the road? I only ask because the addition freaked out some of the fish and I can work on it gradually so it's ready later.

 

[Daniel Waters]

Thanks, that was what I was trying to figure out was the photo period. I will add corals down the road that will be more light demanding. The idea with the T5s is that they will provide the bulk of necessary light with the leds offering the aesthetics. I actually like the full color of the T5s. I do not like the flat look that makes me think I am at work. The trick is, how many hours do the T5s need to be on? I did not think 4 hours would be enough so that is good to hear. I also realize that the four hours is dependent on the LED output. I think 3 ai primes would be insufficient on this tank without the t5. Also, the less I run the T5, the happier my will be. Should that be increased to 6 hours with sps down the road? I only ask because the addition freaked out some of the fish and I can work on it gradually so it's ready later.

You're probably right that the 3 AI primes may not be adequate. I just assumed you were using the AI hydra 26 or Hydra 52. You probably would need another 2 AI primes. For SPS later, you would probably need to run your T5s longer. If you're going to doing SPS later, you will want to get a par meter and map out your oar output from the T5s and the LEDs. You can put together a photo period schedule based on the par numbers. In general, I think 4 hours of intense light with 4 to 8 hours of lower light can work, but it just depends on your par range. If you're barely getting 200 par with everything turned on, you might need more than 4 hours. If you're getting 400 par with everything turned on, that 4 hour period is probably okay. This assumes you are getting a decent level of par from your LEDs (say at least 100 par). As I said before, your lps and softies aren't an issue. SPS adds a whole other degree of complexity to get things fiber tuned.

It sounds like you need a canopy / floating canopy to contain the light. This would be my recommendation. Either that or a new wife! Canopy is probably cheaper!

 

[Nathan Milender]

You're probably right that the 3 AI primes may not be adequate. I just assumed you were using the AI hydra 26 or Hydra 52. You probably would need another 2 AI primes. For SPS later, you would probably need to run your T5s longer. If you're going to doing SPS later, you will want to get a par meter and map out your oar output from the T5s and the LEDs. You can put together a photo period schedule based on the par numbers. In general, I think 4 hours of intense light with 4 to 8 hours of lower light can work, but it just depends on your par range. If you're barely getting 200 par with everything turned on, you might need more than 4 hours. If you're getting 400 par with everything turned on, that 4 hour period is probably okay. This assumes you are getting a decent level of par from your LEDs (say at least 100 par). As I said before, your lps and softies aren't an issue. SPS adds a whole other degree of complexity to get things fiber tuned.

It sounds like you need a canopy / floating canopy to contain the light. This would be my recommendation. Either that or a new wife! Canopy is probably cheaper!

Thanks, that helps. Down the road I will likely rent a par meter. I live near brs and there is new aquarium shop called reef collective; both rent par meters. If all I need is 400 par I am pretty sure I am near it with what I have in some areas. I am not yet running the LEDs at full intensity because I cannot dim the T5s and two of my fish really lost it with all the add'l light. Once their fins start healing up I will start upping it again and then check the par. If it really does not matter for the softies and lps I will continue to stock the bottom of the tank and save the sps for when I am ready to start the top. If I cannot reach 400 par lower in the tank I will just do more low light animals, I kind of like them waving around in the current anyways.

As far as a hood, yeah I have been thinking about it. It is a close call on which to replace though. Something lightweight with a front hinge flap would be ideal and I bet just 2-3 inches would be all it would take to cut the glare down. Two maxspect 120ws were nowhere near the light of the T5 alone. The aquaticlife fixture is nice and streamlined but the lights barely fit in. I adjusted the T5s so the intense part of the aquarium day matches the intense part of the actual day. She is ok as long as the T5s are off in the evening when it is dark outside and she can sit on the couch and not notice it. I just wanted to make sure 4-6 hours of T5 was enough.

 

[Daniel Waters]

Thanks, that helps. Down the road I will likely rent a par meter. I live near brs and there is new aquarium shop called reef collective; both rent par meters. If all I need is 400 par I am pretty sure I am near it with what I have in some areas. I am not yet running the LEDs at full intensity because I cannot dim the T5s and two of my fish really lost it with all the add'l light. Once their fins start healing up I will start upping it again and then check the par. If it really does not matter for the softies and lps I will continue to stock the bottom of the tank and save the sps for when I am ready to start the top. If I cannot reach 400 par lower in the tank I will just do more low light animals, I kind of like them waving around in the current anyways.

As far as a hood, yeah I have been thinking about it. It is a close call on which to replace though. Something lightweight with a front hinge flap would be ideal and I bet just 2-3 inches would be all it would take to cut the glare down. Two maxspect 120ws were nowhere near the light of the T5 alone. The aquaticlife fixture is nice and streamlined but the lights barely fit in. I adjusted the T5s so the intense part of the aquarium day matches the intense part of the actual day. She is ok as long as the T5s are off in the evening when it is dark outside and she can sit on the couch and not notice it. I just wanted to make sure 4-6 hours of T5 was enough.

Just to clarify, I just threw out the 400 par number. In general, I think 200 to 250 par is adequate for most SPS corals if they are getting that for the duration of their photo period. You could get by with say 150 par for most of the photo period, as long as you had a 3 or 4 hour period where they were getting more par (which is why I just threw out the number 400 for instance). It's hard to give you more definitive numbers, as certain corals are more light demanding than others. I've had acros that grew in 150 par, but typically, I want them to get at least 200 par for a large majority of the photo period (and some do better in 350 par for instance). For LPS and softies, I think they can do fine in 50 to 100 par, but they will be fine at the higher par levels....they are pretty adaptable.

 

[Nathan Milender]

Just to clarify, I just threw out the 400 par number. In general, I think 200 to 250 par is adequate for most SPS corals if they are getting that for the duration of their photo period. You could get by with say 150 par for most of the photo period, as long as you had a 3 or 4 hour period where they were getting more par (which is why I just threw out the number 400 for instance). It's hard to give you more definitive numbers, as certain corals are more light demanding than others. I've had acros that grew in 150 par, but typically, I want them to get at least 200 par for a large majority of the photo period (and some do better in 350 par for instance). For LPS and softies, I think they can do fine in 50 to 100 par, but they will be fine at the higher par levels....they are pretty adaptable.

That is a little more quantitative. I realize the taxonomy of coral makes it difficult to know what you have, but have you found a source that lays out necessary par levels for coral growth? I have never seen anything definitive in spite of the constant discussion and analysis of par out put and spread at depth.

 

[Daniel Waters]

That is a little more quantitative. I realize the taxonomy of coral makes it difficult to know what you have, but have you found a source that lays out necessary par levels for coral growth? I have never seen anything definitive in spite of the constant discussion and analysis of par out put and spread at depth.

Dana Riddle has plenty of scientific research has has shared. Coral labs is a good white paper you can read. They have various par levels they use for their lps and sps corals. They are in the business of growing corals, so I would consider their experience to be pretty authoritative. Go to the link below and download link on the website for their white paper they created detailing their setups.

https://ecotechmarine.com/corallab

 

[Nathan Milender]

Dana Riddle has plenty of scientific research has has shared. Coral labs is a good white paper you can read. They have various par levels they use for their lps and sps corals. They are in the business of growing corals, so I would consider their experience to be pretty authoritative. Go to the link below and download link on the website for their white paper they created detailing their setups.

https://ecotechmarine.com/corallab

Thanks, that will help. Now all I have to do is figure out what all my corals are.