Sissy36 Posted October 22, 2016 Share Posted October 22, 2016 So my light took a swim last night. Fortunately everything is ok, from what I can tell so far. It was a 30" Build My LED. It's kind of a blessing in disguise since I can't find a mount or dimmer for the silly thing. Even with the company. I have a 20g long with mixed Sps and Lps. No acros but I may want to try my hand at it down the road. I will be investing in an Apex, but I'm having trouble saving because, well, things like this keep happening. I will need some sort of mount attached to the tank or a free standing stand preferably. I've been researching and I've noticed all lighting has it's own pros and cons but I can't figure out what I need specifically. I've studied the different lighting and pars but I'm still confused. There are so many options! I've also noticed many people use 2 or more kinds of lighting to get all that's needed. For example Led and MH. I'm ready to invest in some really great lighting now. Dose anyone have advise and/or recommendations? (Or explanations) Thanks! Sent from Sissy's phone Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FarmerTy Posted October 22, 2016 Share Posted October 22, 2016 Having run MH, T5, and budget LEDs, I'm a big fan of running LED with T5 supplemental lighting. That being said, for a 20g, I'd just buy an Ocean Revive T247B fixture with the included legs, throw it over my tank, and be done with it. They are super cheap and what I use on my tank so it can definitely support SPS growth... even on a 29" tall tank. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Timfish Posted October 22, 2016 Share Posted October 22, 2016 Having run MH, T5, budget LEDs, and top of the line LEDs I would have to agree with Ty on the Ocean Revive T247B (even though I prefer not to have any UV/Violet leds). If it helps it doesn't matter what you get and the settings you use there will be animals that won't like it. Also keep in mind coloration in corals is a very complex subject and while spectrum does have measurable effects it has more to do with intensity, nutrients and water parameters. Also keep in mind the terms "SPS", "LPS" and "Softies" are just colloquial terms and don't have any relevance regarding husbandry. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sascha D. Posted October 23, 2016 Share Posted October 23, 2016 I have run T5, PC (Yes PC), and budget LEDs. I agree with Ty. I also run the Ocean Revive lights and they've done everything that I've asked them to do without any problems. The LED fixtures currently on the market run cooler than MH and T5, they'll provide enough PAR to keep anything that you want, and you don't need a controller to run them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sissy36 Posted October 23, 2016 Author Share Posted October 23, 2016 Sweet! Thanks. I looked end up and they seem easy to use. Thanks for helping to explain things to me. I've really learned a lot from everyone. It's good to know all that info. I read the requirements for corals and they give description like low to moderate light and flow and such. I understand all that but I really worry about bleaching certain corals since my tank is shallow. How flexable are those guidelines? I've noticed some resources conflict with suggestions too. Sent from Sissy's phone Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sascha D. Posted October 23, 2016 Share Posted October 23, 2016 Lightning is complicated. It means something different to everybody. One person thinks he's blasting his corals with Marineland LED's and another using 250 MH thinks he's running moderate because his friend is using 400 MH. Not only that, but different lighting methods vary in length or intensity but both might qualify as high light. Someone using MH might only be at full intensity for 4 hours while someone using LED's run full intensity for 8 hours. So what does it mean? Acropora do well in 150+ PAR, which is high light to me. If you put it in moderate light (100 PAR), it probably won't die, but it won't color properly or may appear faded. If you take a moderate light coral and put it in high light, then nothing much will happen. If you take a low light coal and put it in high light or a high light coral in low light then it will bleach and die. These opinions are assuming you light adjust properly. Sent from my SGH-T989 using Tapatalk 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sissy36 Posted October 23, 2016 Author Share Posted October 23, 2016 Lightning is complicated. It means something different to everybody. One person thinks he's blasting his corals with Marineland LED's and another using 250 MH thinks he's running moderate because his friend is using 400 MH. Not only that, but different lighting methods vary in length or intensity but both might qualify as high light. Someone using MH might only be at full intensity for 4 hours while someone using LED's run full intensity for 8 hours. So what does it mean? Acropora do well in 150+ PAR, which is high light to me. If you put it in moderate light (100 PAR), it probably won't die, but it won't color properly or may appear faded. If you take a moderate light coral and put it in high light, then nothing much will happen. If you take a low light coal and put it in high light or a high light coral in low light then it will bleach and die. These opinions are assuming you light adjust properly. Sent from my SGH-T989 using Tapatalk 2 Awesome explanation! That's what I needed. I'm going to print that out and keep it next to my tank lol! There is so much out there but it seems it's never in one place. Thank you!Sent from Sissy's phone Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sissy36 Posted October 23, 2016 Author Share Posted October 23, 2016 Ordered my light! Get it Tuesday. Will everything be ok for that long with a little light from a window? Nothing is opening. What can I use instead? Sent from Sissy's phone Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FarmerTy Posted October 24, 2016 Share Posted October 24, 2016 Ordered my light! Get it Tuesday. Will everything be ok for that long with a little light from a window? Nothing is opening. What can I use instead? Sent from Sissy's phone I got one you can borrow if you'd like until yours gets here Sissy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sissy36 Posted October 24, 2016 Author Share Posted October 24, 2016 Ordered my light! Get it Tuesday. Will everything be ok for that long with a little light from a window? Nothing is opening. What can I use instead? Sent from Sissy's phone I got one you can borrow if you'd like until yours gets here Sissy.That would be awesome, thanks so much!Sent from Sissy's phone Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
saltwater snoopy Posted October 25, 2016 Share Posted October 25, 2016 very cool hope you got your light, all very good advice, i have a little of mix mostly do to the cost when i can ill upgrade, i wanted to stay away fm MH or anything tube wise above a t5 for two reasons the Heat an electric use, ive got a budget full spec or blk box led, and a 50" quad row blue an 10k, and a 24" T5 little 2 bulb all do one or more things well and dont get too hot, im still tuning stuff in but forsure its less electricity an much cooler Sent from my SGH-M919 using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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