I picked up a torch coral a few days ago and was wondering if having my ai prime 16hd hanging 13-14” off water line on my 32 biocube with my torch coral at the bottom mid of tank running this schedule would be ok or should I lower the light
Torch coral and lighting question
- Thread starter Sexytang
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Hi,
I think the reason there are no answers yet is there are a number of variables which can make this a reasonable light and not a reasonable light. I'm going to try and break those down and give you my best guess.
Looking at your light, and assuming it's this light https://www.aquaillumination.com/products/prime
"With a spread of 24″ x 24″, the AI Prime® 16HD has a peak PAR of 100µMol at a depth of 24 inches, perfect for the small to medium reef tank. Drawing a maximum of 55 watts from the wall, it follows in the family’s efficient footsteps."
I am going to assume this is running the light at 100% since it doesn't say anything otherwise.
Looking at a biocube, assuming it's this cube for dimensions:
It's about 27 inches tall, giving a bit of an assumption you have sand, and the coral on some sort of plug/rock you have probably about 24-ish inches of depth from water surface to the top of the coral.
It's a little tricky to say what we'd expect for PAR at that depth with a mounting height of 13-14”, especially when the site has mounting options for 12” and 18”. I'm not sure if the peak PAR mentioned on the website is measured from the surface of the water, so 24 inches without air between it and the water or 24 inches plus the mounting height. Either way there will definitely be more PAR at 12" compared to 18".
The next question is placement of the light and the coral. If the light is centered on the tank, and the coral is centered under the light there will me more PAR than say the far edge.
With all that said, it might be a little low depending on the torch. Some are used to growing under much higher light than what you would be providing as a base, and others would do fine.
Without a PAR meter it's difficult to really say. The real question is, does the torch look happy where you placed it, is there a gentle swaying random-ish breeze flow around it, is the torch pillowy with no exposed skeleton? If it has those then you're probably fine.
I hope that answer helps.
I think the reason there are no answers yet is there are a number of variables which can make this a reasonable light and not a reasonable light. I'm going to try and break those down and give you my best guess.
Looking at your light, and assuming it's this light https://www.aquaillumination.com/products/prime
"With a spread of 24″ x 24″, the AI Prime® 16HD has a peak PAR of 100µMol at a depth of 24 inches, perfect for the small to medium reef tank. Drawing a maximum of 55 watts from the wall, it follows in the family’s efficient footsteps."
I am going to assume this is running the light at 100% since it doesn't say anything otherwise.
Looking at a biocube, assuming it's this cube for dimensions:
It's about 27 inches tall, giving a bit of an assumption you have sand, and the coral on some sort of plug/rock you have probably about 24-ish inches of depth from water surface to the top of the coral.
It's a little tricky to say what we'd expect for PAR at that depth with a mounting height of 13-14”, especially when the site has mounting options for 12” and 18”. I'm not sure if the peak PAR mentioned on the website is measured from the surface of the water, so 24 inches without air between it and the water or 24 inches plus the mounting height. Either way there will definitely be more PAR at 12" compared to 18".
The next question is placement of the light and the coral. If the light is centered on the tank, and the coral is centered under the light there will me more PAR than say the far edge.
With all that said, it might be a little low depending on the torch. Some are used to growing under much higher light than what you would be providing as a base, and others would do fine.
Without a PAR meter it's difficult to really say. The real question is, does the torch look happy where you placed it, is there a gentle swaying random-ish breeze flow around it, is the torch pillowy with no exposed skeleton? If it has those then you're probably fine.
I hope that answer helps.
I'm not familiar with individual settings for an AI Prime, BRStv has some good videos on what to look for in lights and settings. One thing is, pick something and stick to it. Use PAR to give you an idea of there is enough light. You probably want around 100 PAR on the sandbed.
Those videos may offer some direction.
I'm currently using two ecotech g5 blue on a red sea reefer 250 mounted 8 inches above the water. I use 50%, no whites, and seneye par meter gives me around 80 to 150 on the sandbed. I've had no issues with torches doing well with those lights.
That said lighting is one factor, a healthy aquacultured torch is generally pretty tolerant of a range of conditions, if those conditions are introduced slowly over time. How does the torch look in your tank?
Those videos may offer some direction.
I'm currently using two ecotech g5 blue on a red sea reefer 250 mounted 8 inches above the water. I use 50%, no whites, and seneye par meter gives me around 80 to 150 on the sandbed. I've had no issues with torches doing well with those lights.
That said lighting is one factor, a healthy aquacultured torch is generally pretty tolerant of a range of conditions, if those conditions are introduced slowly over time. How does the torch look in your tank?
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