Too Much Light??

[Silverback]

Is there such a thing??

Some of the reference books that I've been reading advocate up to 10w per gallon, yet most of the set ups on here don't seem to get anywhere near that.....

Is photoperiod also something that should be limited??


Karl

[kim]

Depends on what you keep.

kim

[ickypimp]

if you go in for the watts per gallon sort of thing i am running ~7.5 watts per gallon

[fishflop]

when you calculate watts per gallon, do you include all lights or only the white light? I have 2x96 actinic & 1x150mh. Does this mean that I have 11.4w per/g or 5w per/g? I recon that it is a total of ALL lights...yes?

[simon garratt]

Hi fishflop. yes you include all dedicated marine type lights. Even actinics which peak in the 420-500nm range where photosynthisis is at its most potent.

the watts per gallon thing is a bit missleading though as it doesnt take into consideration depth. so bare that in mind.


as per kims comment though alot depends on what it is your keeping.

regards

Si.

[Silverback]

Depends on what you keep.

kim

Working on the premise then that the inverts will want strong light levels for the sybiotic algae to get what they need, would say 3 400w 10k or 14k lights be too much on a tank with 30 inch depth?


karl

[kim]

Depends....how long is it ? 60 cm, 240 cm....

If you were fanatical about SPS for example, many would want 1,000 W per 1 m2 of tank area. That replicates midday lighting conditions on the surface of a reef. Might be overkill, depends on your view and whether you will be keeping reefcrest creatures. They are all different....

kim

kim

[Silverback]

thanx Kim

Tank is still in the conceptual stage, but is likely to be 150cm long (might be able to stretch that to 180)

Sorry to pose so many questions, but.....

If I started out using lower wattage lighting, then wanted to crank it up, would it simply be a question of changing bulbs, or are there ballast related issues??

Karl