joshthathobbiest
New Member
Hello all! I’ve had my ~7 gallon cube pico reef for a year now and I’m looking to upgrade my light. I’ve been running a topfin stock light that came with a 20 gallon tall hexagon, but this light really isn't meant for corals and it does grow most of my softies okay but I still don’t get phenomenal color and my lps have never grown to speak of(aside from some leptastrea), not to mention that it seems like the light has been getting harsher with age. I’m operating on a pretty tight budget and as best I can tell, an abi par38(link below) is my best bet, but I have a couple considerations that I need to ask about.
First off, my room gets warm in the summer time. Anyone have any experience on if these lights produce enough heat to really change a room’s temperature? If it only raises it a degree or two then I’m fine, but my preferred temperature is definitely lower than that of our tropical aquatic friends. That said, I’ll only be living one more summer in this house so I can really live with it if I need to.
Second, it seems these lights are STRONG and not dimmable. The natural solution is to raise the light higher, but I live in a garret room and don’t have all that much space between the tank and ceiling. Would it possibly work if I simply experimented with putting coffee filters beneath the light to dim it or might this affect the spectrum somehow?
This is the light I’m considering:
They also have a “tuna blue” with a little more blue/less white. Aesthetically, I prefer a tank that isn’t totally blue, but if the tuna blue seems substantially better for coral growth and coloration then I can swing that way.
Thanks in advance for any help!
First off, my room gets warm in the summer time. Anyone have any experience on if these lights produce enough heat to really change a room’s temperature? If it only raises it a degree or two then I’m fine, but my preferred temperature is definitely lower than that of our tropical aquatic friends. That said, I’ll only be living one more summer in this house so I can really live with it if I need to.
Second, it seems these lights are STRONG and not dimmable. The natural solution is to raise the light higher, but I live in a garret room and don’t have all that much space between the tank and ceiling. Would it possibly work if I simply experimented with putting coffee filters beneath the light to dim it or might this affect the spectrum somehow?
This is the light I’m considering:
They also have a “tuna blue” with a little more blue/less white. Aesthetically, I prefer a tank that isn’t totally blue, but if the tuna blue seems substantially better for coral growth and coloration then I can swing that way.
Thanks in advance for any help!
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