Diggler's Weird 90 Gallon Reef Tank

[DirtDiggler2823]

The blues bar. I’d try to get one the size of the fixture. A little shorter won’t hurt if price is an issue.

The t5 will likely provide the white side of the spectrum I assume.

Is the blues bar the actinic one? The bulbs in the T5 fixture look to cover the spectrum well, I'm worried about intensity, but if a light bar can provide additional colors that help my corals grow and pop, then I'm all for it. Id also like to keep RFA, so lighting is something I need to make work.

 

[saltyfilmfolks]

Is the blues bar the actinic one? The bulbs in the T5 fixture look to cover the spectrum well, I'm worried about intensity, but if a light bar can provide additional colors that help my corals grow and pop, then I'm all for it. Id also like to keep RFA, so lighting is something I need to make work.

IMO, as you go , you’ll want to swap to ati bulbs.

The Sb “actinic” bar is the same spectrum as the black boxes.

With your intensity you’ll be fine. Get a meter when you can and you won’t have to guess.

 

[DirtDiggler2823]

IMO, as you go , you’ll want to swap to ati bulbs.

The Sb “actinic” bar is the same spectrum as the black boxes.

With your intensity you’ll be fine. Get a meter when you can and you won’t have to guess.

I'll have to rent a meter or something so I can find all of this out.

 

[saltyfilmfolks]

I'll have to rent a meter or something so I can find all of this out.

https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/lighting-upgrade-with-a-lux-meter-saltyfilmfolks.248417/

 

[DirtDiggler2823]

https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/lighting-upgrade-with-a-lux-meter-saltyfilmfolks.248417/

At about 9 inches of height

 

[DirtDiggler2823]

https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/lighting-upgrade-with-a-lux-meter-saltyfilmfolks.248417/

There's also these

https://orphek.com/or-bar-led-light/

 

[saltyfilmfolks]

There's also these

https://orphek.com/or-bar-led-light/

Yup pretty similar.
The main thing you’ll see in these (and every other reef light ) is a slightly diffent mix of Color. The Sb are more purple Royal blue.
No sure about those. Should be in the specs.

 

[DirtDiggler2823]

Yup pretty similar.
The main thing you’ll see in these (and every other reef light ) is a slightly diffent mix of Color. The Sb are more purple Royal blue.
No sure about those. Should be in the specs.

The specs say quite a bit, and I'm trying to learn what I need to interpret them. I also need a better idea as to what I have exactly, and what will change when I swap my existing bulbs out for ATIs. Right now, I should be good for just fish, but the guy I got the lights from said they worked with his SPS, for what that's worth. The light did blind the holy hell out of me when he first fired it up though.

 

[saltyfilmfolks]

The specs say quite a bit, and I'm trying to learn what I need to interpret them. I also need a better idea as to what I have exactly, and what will change when I swap my existing bulbs out for ATIs. Right now, I should be good for just fish, but the guy I got the lights from said they worked with his SPS, for what that's worth. The light did blind the holy hell out of me when he first fired it up though.

Hahahaha.
It’ll take time. Be patient and you’ll get the hang of it.

Here’s two spectrums.
Note where the peak is and how much in each color they stretch.
The SB clearly goes into violet. The razor does not.
Both grow coral very well. But look different
.

 

[Diamond1]

Is the blues bar the actinic one? The bulbs in the T5 fixture look to cover the spectrum well, I'm worried about intensity, but if a light bar can provide additional colors that help my corals grow and pop, then I'm all for it. Id also like to keep RFA, so lighting is something I need to make work.

I would look into changing out your bulbs with ATI Coral plus and Blue plus bulbs for starters (my favorite ATI combo). I like the Purple plus bulbs too, but aesthetically I think the Blue plus and Coral plus combo looks better.
With ATI t5s you'll be spending about 100 bucks on bulbs every 8 to 12 months.

I like the idea of the reefbright bars also. With that you shouldn't have any problem growing most corals.

Your definitely going to have a bit of par drop off under the glass panels on the top of the tank so keep that in mind when placing corals.
Also you need to look into the drivers the led strips use, You have to buy the dimable power supply but you should be able to control them with 0-10v pwm from ree-pi.
https://sbreeflights.com/sb-accesso...power-supply-for-sbars.html#/4-sbar_sizing-24

 

[DirtDiggler2823]

Hahahaha.
It’ll take time. Be patient and you’ll get the hang of it.

Here’s two spectrums.
Note where the peak is and how much in each color they stretch.
The SB clearly goes into violet. The razor does not.
Both grow coral very well. But look different
.

Know anything about Orphek lights?

 

[saltyfilmfolks]

I would look into changing out your bulbs with ATI Coral plus and Blue plus bulbs for starters (my favorite ATI combo). I like the Purple plus bulbs too, but aesthetically I think the Blue plus and Coral plus combo looks better.
With ATI t5s you'll be spending about 100 bucks on bulbs every 8 to 12 months.

I like the idea of the reefbright bars also. With that you shouldn't have any problem growing most corals.

Your definitely going to have a bit of par drop off under the glass panels on the top of the tank so keep that in mind when placing corals.
Also you need to look into the drivers the led strips use, You have to buy the dimable power supply but you should be able to control them with 0-10v pwm from ree-pi.
https://sbreeflights.com/sb-accesso...power-supply-for-sbars.html#/4-sbar_sizing-24

You should Meter clear glass and see how much light might be lost.

 

[saltyfilmfolks]

Know anything about Orphek lights?

Not really. I could look at the specs. To figure out the color.
I’ve never seen a single reason why they are more expensive or better than any other.

 

[DirtDiggler2823]

I would look into changing out your bulbs with ATI Coral plus and Blue plus bulbs for starters (my favorite ATI combo). I like the Purple plus bulbs too, but aesthetically I think the Blue plus and Coral plus combo looks better.
With ATI t5s you'll be spending about 100 bucks on bulbs every 8 to 12 months.

I like the idea of the reefbright bars also. With that you shouldn't have any problem growing most corals.

Your definitely going to have a bit of par drop off under the glass panels on the top of the tank so keep that in mind when placing corals.
Also you need to look into the drivers the led strips use, You have to buy the dimable power supply but you should be able to control them with 0-10v pwm from ree-pi.
https://sbreeflights.com/sb-accesso...power-supply-for-sbars.html#/4-sbar_sizing-24

Yeah, I'm aware that T5 lights need to be replaced every so often. I have 4 bulbs to play with and I'll probably go for the ATI equivalent of what I already have, going forward. I'll look at the Reef Bright bars, but Orphek looks promising as well. Of course I was totally ignorant of all of these options until today when I started really thinking about it. This has been a recurring theme in my reef journey.

 

[DirtDiggler2823]

You should Meter clear glass and see how much light might be lost.

I have a lot of "light" work to do on this now. I intended to have LPS and softies under the glass, and SPS in the center where it is open. Hopefully I can still do that.

 

[DirtDiggler2823]

Not really. I could look at the specs. To figure out the color.
I’ve never seen a single reason why they are more expensive or better than any other.

How much to the reef brites normally run?

 

[DirtDiggler2823]

This whole time I though acans were SPS corals. Apparently they are LPS corals. I should be good with what I have, yes? @Crabs Mcjones @Diamond1 @saltyfilmfolks

 

[Crabs McJones]

This whole time I though acans were SPS corals. Apparently they are LPS corals. I should be good with what I have, yes? @Crabs Mcjones @Diamond1 @saltyfilmfolks

Yes. Acans are lps. Lower light and low to med flow

 

[DirtDiggler2823]

Yes. Acans are lps. Lower light and low to med flow

That's what I was shooting for. I thought they were SPS for some reason.

 

[Diamond1]

This whole time I though acans were SPS corals. Apparently they are LPS corals. I should be good with what I have, yes? @Crabs Mcjones @Diamond1 @saltyfilmfolks

You should be good to go for softies (zoas, leathers and mushrooms etc..), LPS (chalice, acans, blastos, torches etc..) and maybe even some SPS under your current lights with ATI bulbs.
Your wont have much luck with SPS like Acropora but maybe Montipora or Stylophora if you place them right and give them good flow.

One of the things I've learned over the years is a mixed tank is much harder to setup and dial in than an LPS or SPS specific tank. You have to consider lighting, flow and placement for all your corals.