Led w/ t5 supplement setting ajustment

Zazzy · Mar 22, 2018

So I'm looking into adding the aquatic life t5ho 36" hybrid fixtures but I just got a few question that hopefully I can find out today. I've been running 2 Hydra 52 HDs on my 90 reef for a good 6 months and everything is looking great. I have a Walt Disney acro and I've noticed of if it doesnt get direct light from the LED (in this case the back side of the acro), its not growing any polpys on the back and not yellow like the front and sides of it is. This is why I want to supplement T5s (4 ati blue+)

I'll list my lighting I have now but im worried about burning the corals from so much light. How much do people usually tone down their led settings when they add t5 supplements compared to before they had T5s?

Daniel Waters · Mar 22, 2018

I'd look up the BRS videos on the aquatic life fixture and check out their par #s they posted. My guess is you are likely to get anywhere from 100 to 200 par depending on mounting height and measurement depth from the 4 T5 bulbs. Adjust your led % accordingly based on your current par values.

Another option is to drop the led % only slightly and slowly add in the T5s, such as running them for 1 hour and increasing an extra 1 hour each week. Adjust your LEDs each week slightly down if you feel like you'd be getting to much par with both on.

It's better to be on the low side and come up than introduce too much light / par for too long when making a lighting change.