Lights too strong?

[TheEngineer]

I'm starting to wonder if my lights are cranked up too high. I run a Kessil A360W over a 50g cube (20x20x24") with a DIY UV add-on. I've noticed some of my zoas look great when I first get them, but then slowly start to shrink and ultimately disappear. I always acclimate them to my lights by starting them on the sand and slowly moving them up until they're in the spot I want them in so I don't think it is an acclimation issue.

I noticed the other day a couple frags that I thought were toast which I moved into a darker corner of the tank were coming back to life. I thought it was really odd, but then I started questioning if my lights are the culprit. I run at 75% intensity and 50% color plus the UV LEDs running at 75% (3x3W). The Kessils are not PAR monsters, so it seems odd to me that they would be the problem, but I'm doubting that now.

I know I can just lower the intensity on the lights (and I plan to), but I want to get some opinions too.

 

[Cory]

I'm starting to wonder if my lights are cranked up too high. I run a Kessil A360W over a 50g cube (20x20x24") with a DIY UV add-on. I've noticed some of my zoas look great when I first get them, but then slowly start to shrink and ultimately disappear. I always acclimate them to my lights by starting them on the sand and slowly moving them up until they're in the spot I want them in so I don't think it is an acclimation issue.

I noticed the other day a couple frags that I thought were toast which I moved into a darker corner of the tank were coming back to life. I thought it was really odd, but then I started questioning if my lights are the culprit. I run at 75% intensity and 50% color plus the UV LEDs running at 75% (3x3W). The Kessils are not PAR monsters, so it seems odd to me that they would be the problem, but I'm doubting that now.

I know I can just lower the intensity on the lights (and I plan to), but I want to get some opinions too.

Yeah lights based on nutrients. The more there is the more light they can handle, sort of. I used to have this problem too.

 

[TheEngineer]

Yeah lights based on nutrients. The more there is the more light they can handle, sort of. I used to have this problem too.

Hmmm. That's interesting. My nutrients are pretty low. Just one fish in there right now. Do you have any threads that talk about that?

 

[Cory]

Hmmm. That's interesting. My nutrients are pretty low. Just one fish in there right now. Do you have any threads that talk about that?

Well theres lots of threads ive read where people would talk about sps dying because of abuse of gfo. Im not sure if its po4/no3 related. Or a food issue like phyto/bacteria or plankton. I mean look at the coral reef. It has even lower no3/po4 than our tanks do. The main difference is food, lots of zooplankton and phyto on the real reef. In our tanks though, a study iirc by dana riddle said that our tank water had 1/10 the bacterial count than is in a coral reef.

 

[TheEngineer]

I'm gonna do some digging on that. It would be really interesting if there was some way to quantify light needs versus nutrient levels. (Maybe it already exists)

 

[A. grandis]

Tagging along...

Grandis.

 

[Cory]

I'm gonna do some digging on that. It would be really interesting if there was some way to quantify light needs versus nutrient levels. (Maybe it already exists)

Yeah see if you can find anything. One thing we forget is corals are both photosynthetic and predators. So on a coral reef they are like a combination of plant and animal. In fact they are. So their food source isnt just light. Also I don't believe that photosynthesis can supply most corals with all their needs. Otherwise they wouldnt have evolved a mouth and a method to capture and kill zooplankton. There are a lot of protein and fats in a tiny zooplankton compared to photosthesis.

Ive been reading up of some people dosing an amino acid (protein molecules) called aspartic acid. Some corals recovered completely and others get white growth tips and what appears to be increased growth. They were pretty excited about it.

 

[enzo]

How high is your light set at. I have the same light and I've had the opposite issue where my corals looked like they were looking for more light. Where they stretch out for more light.

 

[TheEngineer]

I run at 75% intensity and 50% color plus the UV LEDs running at 75% (3x3W).

I'm guilty of TLDR too. The light is 10" above the water surface.

 

[enzo]

I had my Kessil a360w 9" off the top my tank is only 13" deep and my color was at 25 and intensity at 100%. But my Zoanthids still stretch for more light, go figure.

 

[TheEngineer]

I don't think stretching is really reaching for light. If you look at some of my zoas individually you'd say they were stretching but it is an entire colony, they just look that way. 100% intensity on a tank that shallow is really high IMO.

 

[saltyfilmfolks]

hows you no and Po. plus alk.
have apr meter or lux. not that that matters really. I think food.

 

[Triggreef]

I don't think stretching is really reaching for light. If you look at some of my zoas individually you'd say they were stretching but it is an entire colony, they just look that way. 100% intensity on a tank that shallow is really high IMO.

Absolutely 100 percent they will reach for light. Turn your uv down to either nothing, or 25 percent i guarantee you'll get much better results.

I have a holding tank next to my frag tank i keep spares in. Lol. Same frags reach for light in there at about half the par that is in my main frag tank. Same water, less light.

And i believe there is also a correlation between nutrients and how much light they can handle. I believe russ talks about it quite a bit and if i were going to heed anyone's advice on growing coral it would be his. Can check the acro grow out challenge of you have a bunch of spare time on your hands.

 

[saltyfilmfolks]

Absolutely 100 percent they will reach for light. Turn your uv down to either nothing, or 25 percent i guarantee you'll get much better results.

I have a holding tank next to my frag tank i keep spares in. Lol. Same frags reach for light in there at about half the par that is in my main frag tank. Same water, less light.

And i believe there is also a correlation between nutrients and how much light they can handle. I believe russ talks about it quite a bit and if i were going to heed anyone's advice on growing coral it would be his. Can check the acro grow out challenge of you have a bunch of spare time on your hands.

weird. Ive never had reaching zoas melt under what i new was too little light. usually shrivel. not saying your wrong just saying its never happend to me that way. usually reaching ones just reach.

 

[Triggreef]

weird. Ive never had reaching zoas melt under what i new was too little light. usually shrivel. not saying your wrong just saying its never happend to me that way. usually reaching ones just reach.

I didn't say melt, just reach.

 

[saltyfilmfolks]

I didn't say melt, just reach.

Wouldn't they reach and if they didn't get enough light die?

 

[Triggreef]

Wouldn't they reach and if they didn't get enough light die?

Depends. I've seen the same zoas reach but still grow and multiply, just not fast. In higher light they'll lay down flat, you can't even see their (stalk?). And multiply like crazy.

Gobstoppers or pink and gold are great examples of that.

 

[Triggreef]

Other things have similar effects on zoas too... low flow gives short skirts, high flow long lashes.

 

[saltyfilmfolks]

Yea but if a zoa doesn't get enough light it should stretch out then die.

I have the same zoas and plays that some are higher on a rock the others on the bottom. The ones on the rock are stretched out.
I have some that aren't streached but are in the shade and the other ones aren't. Wouldn't they stretch out to where the other ones are?

 

[saltyfilmfolks]

the ones I know didn't get enough light didn't stretch. That what I'm saying ,they should have before they died.