Acclimating Coral to LED?

[Isoprene]

I have a 55 bowfront thats been up for about 9 months now. Everything is doing well and growing at a slow to moderate pace with a 2 bulb T5 fixture (yes i know its a low amount of light).

Due to the low lighting I upgraded to a 24 bulb Cree DIY LED fixture a LFS employee built for me, no dimmers, blues on one driver, whites on the other. I can only control the amount of time I have each type of bulb on with timers, no other adjustments. I have the fixture mounted 10 inches above the tank and its stationary (its a wooden fixture I built myself ill post pictures when I get home tonight). I have zoas, palys, and some LPS, one or two sps montiporia corals from high-mid, medium, to low in the tank, nothing is up really high due to aquascaping.

My question being due to the variety of coral and the extreme light upgrade how do you think I should acclimmate my corals to the new lgithing? How many hours or white/blue or should I just start it right out at 6/12? The LFS thinks 2 hours a day for a few days then 3 a few days so on and so fourth until I hit 6 white / 12 blue.

Im just worried about bleaching out (i think thats what its called) my corals. Basically burning them with too much light all of a sudden.

Any thoughts, opinions, advice is appreciated. Thanks

 

[Kbra]

I have a 55 bowfront thats been up for about 9 months now. Everything is doing well and growing at a slow to moderate pace with a 2 bulb T5 fixture (yes i know its a low amount of light).

Due to the low lighting I upgraded to a 24 bulb Cree DIY LED fixture a LFS employee built for me, no dimmers, blues on one driver, whites on the other. I can only control the amount of time I have each type of bulb on with timers, no other adjustments. I have the fixture mounted 10 inches above the tank and its stationary (its a wooden fixture I built myself ill post pictures when I get home tonight). I have zoas, palys, and some LPS, one or two sps montiporia corals from high-mid, medium, to low in the tank, nothing is up really high due to aquascaping.

My question being due to the variety of coral and the extreme light upgrade how do you think I should acclimmate my corals to the new lgithing? How many hours or white/blue or should I just start it right out at 6/12? The LFS thinks 2 hours a day for a few days then 3 a few days so on and so fourth until I hit 6 white / 12 blue.

Im just worried about bleaching out (i think thats what its called) my corals. Basically burning them with too much light all of a sudden.

Any thoughts, opinions, advice is appreciated. Thanks

I think a dimmer would be very useful with LEDs. Can you add one without too much effort?

 

[Isoprene]

I can but don't want to if i don't have to. I have heard and been told that dimmers cause problems (I don't know what) and I want a system that runs and lasts for as long as it can. I also don't know anything about wiring or anything like that so im very weary of adding anything to what someone else already built.

 

[WillKatt]

Normally I would say to acclimate with raising and loweing the fixture. However if you can adjust with height perhaps you can get some varying degrees of light diffuser.
It may work to get several very thin sheets of plexy glass from home depot it pretty cheap. You could sand them with some fine sand paper each more than the next. then start with the one that diffuses allot of light after a week or two move to one that diffuses less, so, and so on until you are no longer using the plexigalss.

Just an idea.

 

[redfishbluefish]

I put up a couple temporary fir strips on the sides of the stand, all the way to the ceiling. They were marked every three inches. The lights started at the top (as seen in the picture), and every week I lowered them three inches. Even doing this, I still lost three large colonies.

 

[Isoprene]

Wow, that is worrysome, I have a glass top I can put on it that will help diffuse some light early on and I have tons of sheets of acrylic i can use to help diffuse the light. That is a good idea kalgra thanks, right now its about the only option I have. Anyone have any other ideas?

 

[redfishbluefish]

The other way I've heard about is taking a couple layers of regular screen (maybe five or six layers) and pull a layer off every week. The screen diffuses the light and acts as the "dimmer." Maybe google it to find details.


EDIT TO ADD: HERE's a link that may be useful.

 

[Isoprene]

thanks! if anyone else has any idea please let me know, i appreciate the help very much

 

[Reef Breeders Verified Sponsor]

Use a dimmer, if it wont dim, you lose one of the benefits of LEDs: color control on demand, and it is harder to acclimate your tank