Light intensity for 2 Hydra 26's in a 13" shallow tank?

[i_declare_bankruptcy]

I have a Nuvo 30L that is 36"l x 11"d x 13"h. I have 2 of the Gen 1 Hydra 26's (little white handheld controller that SUCKS). They are mounted approximately 6-7" above the waterline. The live rock goes about half way up the tank at its highest, so a 12-18" distance from the lights and a 6-13" distance from the waterline. I know the lighting is overkill but I got a deal and wanted an even spread.

When the tank is done cycling I plan on keeping mostly soft corals and LPS, with perhaps some montipora in the future, otherwise no SPS.

I'm really worried about damaging my corals with too much light but I'm unsure at what level to start. I'm wondering how much intensity I should have on this shallow little tank. Below are my current settings when the lights ramp up to full intensity. If you have any tips on ratios between the colors also please let me know! I just picked up some settings that others posted that worked for them.

 

[mcarroll]

Get a light meter – even a basic lux meter like the LX-1010B that I use. (Even a free lux meter app can get you started, but buy a handheld for regular use....the 1010B only costs $10-20.)

Make sure your tank is getting between 15,000 and 30,000 lux and it'll be great. More is OK but not needed in most cases.

 

[DEWreefing]

I would start out slow like 50 percent on blues and 8 percent on the rest

 

[Ron Reefman]

Consider trying the 'canary in a coalmine' approach. Get a small frag of a red cap monti or any other inexpensive plating coral, and set it in your tank as high or higher than all the other corals. Start your acclimatization at a low number and raise it every week. You can raise it a bit faster early on, but get much more careful as you get up to higher power levels. When you raise the light intensity too high, the red cap will start to bleach before any other corals. At that point, dial the power back a bit (10%) and you should be good to go.