Got My Lights!

My first shock was how tricky lighting is.  In order to successfully grow corals, I will need 10-12 hours of lighting each day.  I think the rule of thumb is 4-6 watts per gallon, but it depends on what is in the tank.  Harder corals will require more light than softer corals.  I looked at lighting systems and considered: Metal Halide, T5 HO compact fluorescent, and LED.

I ruled out Metal Halide pretty quickly.  Although they produce nice, bright light, and create the shimmering reef effect, they consume too much energy!  Easily 250-400 watts for my tank size.  They also produce a lot of heat, and I would probably need to buy a chiller/fan to cool down the tank.

I like the idea of T5 HO fluorescent bulbs.  They are energy efficient (20-60 watts), and come in a range of light spectrum (more on that later).  However, they do not create the shimmering reef effect.

Finally, there are LEDs.  I like LEDs the best because of the low energy consumptions, and shimmering effect.  They are long lasting and run cool.   However, I would require many high output LEDs to create enough light, and they are still very expensive.  I'm sure this will change in the future.

Okay, so this is my basic understanding of the Light Spectrum.  When light penetrates water, red light is first to be filtered out.  As light penetrates deeper, orange and yellow are lost.  It is blue light that penetrates the deepest.  In addition, corals require blue light for photosynthesis.  They call these Actinic bulbs which have a wavelength of 420-460nm.

I figured that I will need a combination of actinic and daylight bulbs.

My second shock was the cost of lighting fixtures.  At the local pet store, T5 fluroscent fixtures will run $200+.  They had LED's for more than $1000!  Geez.

I decided to look at Craigslist ads, and try to find a used fixture to try out.  I ended up buying a 36" quad light fixture. It has two T5 bulbs (39 watts each)  and two Actinic LED bulbs (for each bulb there are 55 LEDs at ~11 total watts).  The T5 and LEDs are on two separate switches.  It is manufactured by a company called "SHKERRY AQUA".  I believe it is a Chinese brand, but I've never heard of them.  I got a great deal, and I'm excited to try it out.  We'll see if it meets my need.

Just LEDs ON

LEDs and T5 ON

LEDs and T5 ON and fixture placed inside canopy