LED lighting color percentage help..

[Solasis]

Hey! I am looking for some assistance with the light settings on my reef tank. It's a 300 gallon tank with 2 AI blade grows on it. The tank has been setup for 2ish months? So pretty new. Right now it is LPS dominated with some easy SPS like birds nest.

Everything looks fine, so far my best growers have been the alveopora and birds nest. Oh and my frogspawn got an extra head.

My question is, what should my color percentage be on my AI blade? It has blue, royal blue, and white. Right now I am running 65% royal blue, 45% blue, and 65% white. It seems to be growing coral fine but I really hate the look of the tank.

What would be a good light setting percentage for someone who wants a tank that is not so blue while still keeping OK coral growth? If I'm being honest, I do not care about my corals getting that neon pop under blue light. I like the duller more natural colors they show under white light.. just not sure if that will be fine for their health.

 

[shwareefer]

White is like salt - do it to taste. You should use a PAR meter but I'm guessing two blades couldn't nuke a 300 gallon tank.

 

[Solasis]

White is like salt - do it to taste. You should use a PAR meter but I'm guessing two blades couldn't nuke a 300 gallon tank.

Thanks! So if I lower my blues to something like 25-30% and bump my whites up to 80-90%, it shouldn't an issue? I'm guessing there might be an increase in algae

 

[shwareefer]

Thanks! So if I lower my blues to something like 25-30% and bump my whites up to 80-90%, it shouldn't an issue? I'm guessing there might be an increase in algae

That's definitely unorthodox and blue is the important spectrum for corals and white is for us. Maybe try to keep the blue at 50% and put the whites up. It's more likely those aren't really the right fixture for you. You need something with some red and green leds to satisfy your eyes and you don't have them.

 

[Solasis]

That's definitely unorthodox and blue is the important spectrum for corals and white is for us. Maybe try to keep the blue at 50% and put the whites up. It's more likely those aren't really the right fixture for you. You need something with some red and green leds to satisfy your eyes and you don't have them.

I see, thank you. Do you have any suggestion for a bar LED that would have that spectrum? The way my tank is setup I can't get the classic box style lights. I might go ahead and sell my blades then.. Or just something to supplement them?

 

[shwareefer]

I see, thank you. Do you have any suggestion for a bar LED that would have that spectrum? The way my tank is setup I can't get the classic box style lights. I might go ahead and sell my blades then.. Or just something to supplement them?

Lol nope, I still use T5. I'll tag some lighting guys who might help:

@telegraham @oreo54

 

[oreo54]

I see, thank you. Do you have any suggestion for a bar LED that would have that spectrum? The way my tank is setup I can't get the classic box style lights. I might go ahead and sell my blades then.. Or just something to supplement them?

First you need to clarify what you don't like about it. Not "natural" enough, not enough florescent pop ect.

This is the full spectrum of the grow.. note grow not show..

Quanta Love | Quanta Lights

Quanta Pro LED light bars set the new standard for performance, spectrum, simplicity, and value. Make your corals thrive! Learn more.

www.quantareef.com

Plenty of color choices

 

[Doctorgori]

Thanks! So if I lower my blues to something like 25-30% and bump my whites up to 80-90%, it shouldn't an issue? I'm guessing there might be an increase in algae

Like already stated, I’d adjust the light to suite your taste (highest PAR possible) … the corals will eventually adjust if left alone

.don’t worry about algae and white light…its a over parroted (and wrong) idiom (I’m on a crusade…lol)

 

[Solasis]

First you need to clarify what you don't like about it. Not "natural" enough, not enough florescent pop ect.

This is the full spectrum of the grow.. note grow not show..

Quanta Love | Quanta Lights

Quanta Pro LED light bars set the new standard for performance, spectrum, simplicity, and value. Make your corals thrive! Learn more.

www.quantareef.com

Plenty of color choices

I increased the white to 90% and I like the look of the tank now more. Yellow tangs are glowing. Glad to hear about the algae and white light relationship..

So right now I am running 65% royal blue, 45% blue, 90% white! My tank is 30 inches tall though and my lights definitely aren't the most powerful .

My issue with the tank was how un natural it looked. If I'm being honest I would like all of my corals to be the brown/white/reds you see in nature rather than the neon colors. Both styles of tanks are beautiful but I lean more towards the natural style. I am slowly tailoring my coral purchases to that color scheme as well.

 

[PeterEde]

Thanks! So if I lower my blues to something like 25-30% and bump my whites up to 80-90%, it shouldn't an issue? I'm guessing there might be an increase in algae

keep blues up and add white to taste.

 

[Bpb]

Something to keep in mind. Everyone glosses over this or even forgets it.

White = blue.

By replacing blue wattage with white wattage you aren’t reducing your blue. You are adding in other colors to make white.

Yes white is like salt. Add to taste. I like VERY salty color as well. Turn the whites up to 100, and gradually lower the royal blue until it looks to taste. Note that program. Return to what you’re presently acclimated to, and bump those faders by 1-2% per day until you reach the new color layout you prefer. It’ll take several weeks to get to where you want it, but this is how you do it without stressing your livestock. If you have violet channels you can control independently, work those up to max output as well

 

[Bpb]

Also…algae happens. Just as much under all blue tanks. You just don’t see it as clearly due to the lack of green light reflecting it back. You have 300 gallons to work with so…rabbitfish, tangs, urchins, ect and algae shouldn’t be much of a concern past the one year mark

 

[telegraham]

White = blue.

Thank you for beating me to this point.

My tank is 30 inches tall though and my lights definitely aren't the most powerful .

If you can, consider testing PAR.

 

[Hooz]

Ok. This seems like the perfect application for the Fluval Marine 3.0 lights. They have a very white look while still providing a nice wide spectrum of blues behind the scenes to satisfy the coral health. When all the channels are set at similar levels, they have a very "reef daylight" kind of look to them. I ran one on a nano tank for a while. It grew my coral well, but wasn't nearly blue enough for me.

They don't put out the PAR that some of the "higher end" lights do, but they're not as expensive (so just add more of them). You didn't say what length your tank was, but at 30" deep I'd probably start with 2 rows of lights and test PAR to see where you're at. They have a very wide spread (advertised as 120 degrees), so you can basically have them sitting on top of the tank rim if you want. They also have Bluetooth/app control and programming.

Someone already mentioned Quanta. They have a Reef Daylight bar, as does Orphek and (I think) Reef Breeders. They have varying methods of control (or lack thereof) and vary in price, but they ALL share the same narrow lenses. If you want good spread and color blending, they really need to be mounted 10" or more above the water line. If you can get them up high enough, they are all good options too.

 

[telegraham]

Ok. This seems like the perfect application for the Fluval Marine 3.0 lights. They have a very white look while still providing a nice wide spectrum of blues behind the scenes to satisfy the coral health. When all the channels are set at similar levels, they have a very "reef daylight" kind of look to them. I ran one on a nano tank for a while. It grew my coral well, but wasn't nearly blue enough for me.

They don't put out the PAR that some of the "higher end" lights do, but they're not as expensive (so just add more of them). You didn't say what length your tank was, but at 30" deep I'd probably start with 2 rows of lights and test PAR to see where you're at. They have a very wide spread (advertised as 120 degrees), so you can basically have them sitting on top of the tank rim if you want. They also have Bluetooth/app control and programming.

Someone already mentioned Quanta. They have a Reef Daylight bar, as does Orphek and (I think) Reef Breeders. They have varying methods of control (or lack thereof) and vary in price, but they ALL share the same narrow lenses. If you want good spread and color blending, they really need to be mounted 10" or more above the water line. If you can get them up high enough, they are all good options too.

I've only seen the marketing spectrum for the $159 Fluval Sea Marine 3.0s. Have you seen them tested? If not, I can grab one.

Regarding price, there's also the $45 Luxcare that may offer similar performance. But the challenge I have with both of these offerings is their need to be low-mounted. My Mitras and Uno Pro are mounted 11" above the lid, and that's super nice for viewing and maintenance. Where possible, I see high mounting as a lensed bar benefit.

Regarding the Quanta Pros, Luca offers two daylight variants (Reef Crest Daylight and Tropic Sun) and his bars offer more diodes per inch than any lensed bar (multi-colored dual-diodes under each lens).

but they ALL share the same narrow lenses.

The Quanta Pro does not share the same lenses as Reef Breeder (populargrow) and Orphek. Quantas ship with 105° lenses.

 

[Hooz]

I've only seen the marketing spectrum for the $159 Fluval Sea Marine 3.0s. Have you seen them tested? If not, I can grab one.

Regarding price, there's also the $45 Luxcare that may offer similar performance. But the challenge I have with both of these offerings is their need to be low-mounted. My Mitras and Uno Pro are mounted 11" above the lid, and that's super nice for viewing and maintenance. Where possible, I see high mounting as a lensed bar benefit.

Regarding the Quanta Pros, Luca offers two daylight variants (Reef Crest Daylight and Tropic Sun) and his bars offer more diodes per inch than any lensed bar (multi-colored dual-diodes under each lens).

The Quanta Pro does not share the same lenses as Reef Breeder (populargrow) and Orphek. Quantas ship with 105° lenses.

I'm only basing my opinions of the Fluval lights on the published spectrum, diode color/counts and my own personal experience using the Nano 3.0 on one of my own tanks for a year. I still have the light in a box in the closet, it'd be kind of cool to see the actual spectrum tested. I switched to other lights because I couldn't get the PAR I needed without running the whites higher than I like. More than half the diodes in the fixture are "white", so you give up a lot of PAR if you don't use them. On that tank I didn't have the option for adding more lights (small cube tank) or I might still be running them.

I will say that the color rendering with the whites turned up were pretty spectacular, though. For a FOWLR tank with some coral, or a situation like the OP's preference for a white tank, they would make a pretty stellar option. And they'll still grow coral just fine.

Mounting height is a personal thing. I like lights that I can mount lower so I get less spill into the room. My tanks are in the living areas and are mostly viewed from seated positions. The other option is to use lazer beam lights mounted high up. For a 90 degree lensed light to cover a 24" area, it needs to be 12" above the water line. The 105 degree Quanta would help a bit. That'd get the same 24" coverage at a height of about 9.5". That's not too bad.

My one and only issue with the Quanta bars is the lack of any sort of dimming or control beyond just an on/off timer. If one bar isn't enough power (or the complete color mix you're looking for), but two is too much, your only option is to raise the lights. And, again, we're back in to the non-optimal height and extra light spill situation again. If there is ever a controller introduced for the Quanta bars, the game will certainly change.

 

[Hooz]

This is the diode count for the 48" Fluval Marine 3.0. There's a lot of white, but that blue spectrum is (should be) pretty darned fat.

I've always been curious what the "pink" channel actually measured color-wise. But I'm thinking it has more to do with color rendering than with the "deep red" chlorophyll peak. I always set it as the same level as my whites due to that (perhaps incorrect) assumption.

 

[oreo54]

This is the diode count for the 48" Fluval Marine 3.0. There's a lot of white, but that blue spectrum is (should be) pretty darned fat.

I've always been curious what the "pink" channel actually measured color-wise. But I'm thinking it has more to do with color rendering than with the "deep red" chlorophyll peak. I always set it as the same level as my whites due to that (perhaps incorrect) assumption.

Pinks are usually blue led with red phosphors.
Some are RGB chips with green tuned way down or so I suspect.

Anyways an example. Sadly sometimes goes by the name of " full spectrum.

Less red and more blue you get purple.

 

[telegraham]

Mounting height is a personal thing. I like lights that I can mount lower so I get less spill into the room. My tanks are in the living areas and are mostly viewed from seated positions. The other option is to use lazer beam lights mounted high up. For a 90 degree lensed light to cover a 24" area, it needs to be 12" above the water line. The 105 degree Quanta would help a bit. That'd get the same 24" coverage at a height of about 9.5". That's not too bad.

This is why I use reflector or tighter-lensed lights. Less, or no, spill and no glare at a maintenance-friendly 11" over the lid. Anything over 120° is a no for me.

My one and only issue with the Quanta bars is the lack of any sort of dimming or control beyond just an on/off timer. If one bar isn't enough power (or the complete color mix you're looking for), but two is too much, your only option is to raise the lights. And, again, we're back in to the non-optimal height and extra light spill situation again. If there is ever a controller introduced for the Quanta bars, the game will certainly change.

Bars are fun in that they are easily angled, so spill at the same maintenance-friendly height is a non-issue. As for dimming, I know that was an intentional design choice and something that's not needed by many. Raise 'em, angle 'em, ramp the mains, and power up the bars.

But, no need to wait! I've dimmed my AliE and Orpheks, I have a 0-10V driver and BT controller for the Quantas, but I always go back to simple on/off. I get that some want it, it's easy enough to do it if that's what you need, but dimming bars ain't for me.

 

[Hooz]

But, no need to wait! I've dimmed my AliE and Orpheks, I have a 0-10V driver and BT controller for the Quantas

Do tell! My intention if I went with Quanta (or any bar, really) was to use them as my mains, so dimming and control would be huge.