Growth led vs aquarium led

[sde1500]

I know it is not ideal! It's not supposed to be!!!

Also, what depth is the bottom chart referring to? and there is no relative intensity scale. . . what is "sunlight on the reef" peaking at?

Not saying you are wrong regarding the chart, just difficult to extrapolate conclusions without knowing the data points.

Bottom chart is target spectrum for a reef tank. Provided in the article I linked earlier on reef cleaners

 

[MoshJosh]

Bottom chart is target spectrum for a reef tank. Provided in the article I linked earlier on reef cleaners

I get that, I am saying the chart's Y axis is not labeled so comparing it to the other spectral chart is relatively useless. Again, I am not saying it is not correct or not comparable, just that I can't extrapolate much information without knowing the variables and factors (namely the Y axis. . . ).

 

[MoshJosh]

Bottom chart is target spectrum for a reef tank. Provided in the article I linked earlier on reef cleaners

Also per the article:

This spectrum is represented in the Figure 4 and corresponds to the existing light at about 5 meters depth. This would be the type of lighting pattern you would use if you were trying to replicate nature in your reef tank.

 

[MoshJosh]

Is This the light you are thinking of? I'm not really an expert on light, but just compare spectrums. Theirs:

Light on the reef:

Also also. . . again from the article:

Figure 6 (the chart you posted) shows what the reference light spectrum would look like for reef tank application. HQI bulbs, fluorescent tubes and commercially available LEDs fixtures are designed to provide this spectrum to a greater or lesser extent, with slight modifications. Taking this spectrum as a baseline, if we wish to recreate shallow areas or even intertidal pools, it is recommended to increase the content of green, yellow and red colors. In the case of recreating deeper areas, we can reduce the greens, yellows and reds as much as necessary, without limiting the health or growth of the corals, giant clams and invertebrates.

 

[MoshJosh]

AGAIN: I am NOT saying you are incorrect, or that the charts and assertions made in the article are incorrect. Rather that your initial post comparing the spectral graphs is not a complete picture and (after looking at the article) not really a informative comparison.

 

[ca1ore]

Too lazy to read through the entire thread, but I'd imagine many folks have made the point that not all fixtures are created equally. I have, for example, used the no frills grow lights on my ATS for years. Generally, I get about 18 months from them before they crap out. I would also point out that it's not usually the diode that goes, rather the electronics. Some stuff commands a premium based on brand name of course. Whether it's 'hocus pocus' or not depends, I suppose, on the buyer. I bought Gen4 Pro Radions in early 2017, have run them 10 hours/day since then without so much as a hiccup. That strikes me as pretty good value for $$. Buy cheap; buy thrice.

 

[sde1500]

Also also. . . again from the article:

Figure 6 (the chart you posted) shows what the reference light spectrum would look like for reef tank application. HQI bulbs, fluorescent tubes and commercially available LEDs fixtures are designed to provide this spectrum to a greater or lesser extent, with slight modifications. Taking this spectrum as a baseline, if we wish to recreate shallow areas or even intertidal pools, it is recommended to increase the content of green, yellow and red colors. In the case of recreating deeper areas, we can reduce the greens, yellows and reds as much as necessary, without limiting the health or growth of the corals, giant clams and invertebrates.

Thing is not many here are looking to recreate that. Most are focused on corals, so providing light in spectrum they don’t use is a waste.

 

[oreo54]

Thing is not many here are looking to recreate that. Most are focused on corals, so providing light in spectrum they don’t use is a waste.

Thing is.. they use all of the spectrum. Maybe parts more and parts less.
Next though is other functions besides photosynthesis.
They are very adaptable as well.

Lighting the Aquarium Part 7-Photosynthetically Usable Radiation •Orphek

Lighting the Aquarium Part 7: Photosynthetically Usable Radiation By Dana RiddlePhotosynthetically Usable Radiation (PUR) is a portion of the spectrum...

orphek.com

Historically and a bit arguable one of the best spectrums to grow corals.
Unfortunately there is a par vs spectrum debate involved..

comparing single spectrum colors is a bit problematic.
Like it is known pure 660nm in a high enough par will bleach corals.
Add blue, green ect and the "playing field" shifts.