2 led lights in the rear is by far enough light. The jar on the right is 1.5 gallons and started 2 days ago, 3 1 gallon in the rear started yesterday, and front left gallon are copepods.
I've been experimenting with culturing phytoplankton and copepods this year. Here is the latest setup I am proposing to use. My goal is to have 2-3 batches of phytoplankton culturing up top (label A in photo), and some fresh saltwater (label B) and a copepod culture (label C) on the lower level. I modeled my phyto containers off of a design I saw at a LFS. I found 4-gallon acrylic containers for $95 online, but was able to make 1.375 gallon glass equivalents with supplies I had on-hand. Each container has a simple LED light that will be on a timer for 16 hours per day. An air pump with a gang valve will supply air to all containers at a controllable rate. Just finished it up this week. Going to get it up and running this weekend. Would be interested in hearing feedback from others with any suggestions to improve the design.