Lighting question

[Little_Smudge]

hey all,

Really just a quick question on my lighting as I’m not sure what is best for my aquarium.

I currently have the Fluval M90 with the lights that came with it, these have the following options:

On - very white no tint of blue
Blue - very dark blue no white
Off - completely off

I have the white lights on from around 1030 until around 2030 then put them into blue for an hour then turn completely off.

Is this the correct thing to do currently, based on the lights I have or I should I leave the blue on?

I will be looking at upgrading once I have the ££ to a more suitable lighting system with a bit more control.

Any help or suggestions would be much appreciated as always

Little smudge

 

[DaveK]

What your doing is a good place to start. as you get into this you may wish to increase or reduce the lighting period. Then make you adjustment and go from there. Usually you want to reduce light if you have algae issues. Typically I have my lighting on about 8 hours a day. This works best for me, but others find different amounts of light work best for them.

 

[Little_Smudge]

Great thanks Dave much appreciated.

The main reason I asked was because yesterday I was at the LFS picking salt water up and they guy said I should just leave it on the blue. I was trying to explain that the blue was very dark and it’s not on a dimmer switch or anythin. Totally confused me as Iol

 

[Uncle99]

That's all you can do with this lighting.
The blue spectrum is many coral photosynthesis and the white to see inhabitants, although corals will use some white.

If I remember you have a few corals, so blue is important.
You have to balance light with time, as too much light intensity helps green algae grow.

I had this type light before, but I have a lot of corals so it would not work.

I went with Visparspectra 165w LED which runs $169 Canadian from the Internet. Very happy with this light. Now I have a ton of light available and can mix intensity of my blues independently, with my greens yellows and whites.

 

[Little_Smudge]

Thanks uncle99 much appreciated.

Yep I have a fair few cocktails now and although they seem to be doing fine, I think I can improve by sorting the lighting out.

Problem with mine it that it’s either dark blue and can see all the different reds, greens, blues and oranges of the corals but can’t see the fish. If I have the white then it’s the opposite.

White light on:


Blue light on:


So for sure I need a balance between these two not only for my visual look but also for the health etc of the corals

 

[Uncle99]

Very nice tank, some good growth, yup your right, too blue or too white, maybe something in the middle you will like better.
I am using 40% white and 70% blue, but everyone has different tastes
I really like that yellow leather, not seeing many yellows up here in Canada, more brown and green.

 

[SPR]

Great thanks Dave much appreciated.

The main reason I asked was because yesterday I was at the LFS picking salt water up and they guy said I should just leave it on the blue. I was trying to explain that the blue was very dark and it’s not on a dimmer switch or anythin. Totally confused me as Iol

First lesson little smudge to learn. DO NOT ever listen to advice from LFS’s until they have proven themselves to be competent. When they said leave it on blue, ask them why and make a mental note of what they said. Then research it and then you will know they are talking complete rubbish so you will be more cautious when listening to what they, or a particular member of staff tells you.

You are a bit restricted with the lights you have with either just white or blue, so until you upgrade if you happy then I would go mainly white (so you can see the tank!!lol) so the corals get some energy and then go blue because you like blue at night ? That’s basically what I do although I have Hydra 26HD x 4 so it’s a little more advanced and a mix according to RedSea’s Reef Spec settings. I do slowly go ‘blue’ with storm effects from around 7pm and off at 10pm (on at 11.45am). 0 on reds/green as it can encourage algea growth (apparently!)

Ps. Whatever that big yellow coral is on the top right I need one!!

 

[Little_Smudge]

Great advice again guys thanks very much

Yep, learning that very fast lol hence why I came straight on here after he told me that.

I’ll carry on with the 8-9 hours of white and hour of blue then off through the night, for the time being. I’m currently reading up and doing a bit of research on lights etc, mainly so I have a bit more understanding.

The leather coral at the top right has doubled in size since I put him in about 3 months ago. Initially he was on the sand but he closed up a lot so decided to move him around to try and find a better water flow for him. After I build the cave I placed him ontop of it, and ever since he has been fully out every day, with the exception of two days where I believe he was malting skin ( may not be the right term lol) it’s a lovely soft coral and the clowns love it. The male clown is always in it and he doesn’t close up like he did initially when the clowns started going in. I’ll have to get a photo of it

 

[Uncle99]

With that coral out like that you certainly have enough light for the softies.
Plus I see purple algae in your tank.

In reality, you only need blue for corals and white to "see"....everything else is a bonus.