lighting for a refugium & helping to keep a mandarin a live

danielrj · May 26, 2014

i have a 150 gal and a 45 gal side by side using the same sump.....The lighting on the refugium i have never use one before do i need to put a light on it and how long does the light need to stay on for 12 hours like the tank or does it stay on 24 hours a day ??? Next is there some thing i can put in the refugium (LIKE REEF PODS) to help me keep a green mandarin in the 45 gal side i have lost two mandarin before and don't want that to happen again i have been in the hobby for 8 years first tank was a 55 gal move up to a 75 gal and now have moved up to the 150 and 45 gal that i had made for me now i have turn to you people to help me with thing that i have never used plz help me .......

Kirk Simon · May 26, 2014

I've been told that the refugium lights should turn on when the lights on the display tank turn off.

danielrj · May 26, 2014

so what do you thank i can add to the refugium to help with a food source for my fish and corals

danielrj · May 26, 2014

the lights that i m using on the refugium are a set of t-5 is that ok or do i need to use led

Kirk Simon · May 27, 2014

If you wish to keep Manderins thriving they will need to have live foods. I'd suggest an area in the refugium that is kept in the dark, maybe something like a black acrylic box with slots the fish can't get into. This would be a safe haven for copepods, and or amphipods to reproduce in. I do light my refugium with LED lights to save energy on reverse lighting during the time the display lights are off. Try that. Good luck

iReef86 · May 27, 2014

I use cheap LED fixture from Home Depot or Lowes. $25 and I was good to go. It even grows macro algae!

gpdno · May 27, 2014

I run to LED floodlights that a got at Lowes for about $30 a piece.
Refugium lights run 18 hrs on and opposite to the lights on the DT. The DT runs about 10 hrs.
This setup pretty much guarantees that all the algae grows in the refugium and not in the DT.