Thanks Mike - great post and this provides great additional information.
The recent video with Rico on YouTube is awesome and everyone should watch it who likes this article.
Georgi, Mike has also done a heap of YouTube videos through American Reef. There is one where he goes through a bunch of equipment that he uses to save time. Mike can correct me if I have something wrong but from watching his videos once the tank is established Mike doesn't have much to do. He has connected up all the RODI stuff etc. and his Calcium Reactor is a special type that uses larger chunks of media that takes a long time to dissolve is super simple to clean (I think he has cleaned it once in a year). He feeds often and has a lot of fish. He has always experimented but does have a method and strategy to most things especially with ways he can save time
That is what I learned in those videos at least
Thanks for the video!
Mr. Paletta wrote in the article:
"
First, the best tank I have ever had was the 500-gallon tank that preceded the 1200. It was literally packed top to bottom with thriving colorful healthy colonies and did not require a whole lot of work."
That tank had metal halides and colorful corals!!! The pictures in the article show that!
Why is he promoting LEDs so much and diminishing halides in that video?
Doesn't make any sense! Why does he say corals are brown under halides????
What's going on with Mr. Paletta's talking about lighting here @10:13 ???
We have 150W, 175W, 250W, 400W and 1000W halide options. Each should be used depending on the need for it's application. Also, 10K, 14K, 20K... Not really necessary to use the 65Ks! Metal halides, when well planned and used for that particular system, will give the very best growth AND colors to ANY tank with SPS corals. Sunlight is the very best for colors and growth!!! 6500K bulbs will give you amazing colors and growth as well!!!!
Some of that will depend on nutrient control and export, yes!
This LED promotion isn't cool!! He is totally mistaken going that route! We all know that a 6500K bulb or sunlight will give the APPEARANCE of a brownish (actually yellowish) color by reflection of that spectrum from the source to our eyes. The colors of the corals, meaning their natural pigments, will still be there! Go diving and observe a piece of coral in very shallow water. If it is pink, it is PINK! The green is GREEN!! Normally their colors are even brighter than when you find the same species in deeper waters.
If you choose a metal halide like the Radium with the proper ballast, for example, you will have AMAZING colors and growth. Much better than ANY LED available in the market IMHO! Are you kidding me!? There is an unfortunate misleading in regards to this topic that is going around like a dragon. IMHO LEDs are mostly a hype that many of the relatively new aquarists are grabbing as the best artificial light source available today, but they don't really know any better nor have experiences for comparison. Sad to see Mr. Paletta saying all that, because he knows better!! Brown corals under halides? Not truth, Sr.! Not if you offer the correct intensity and spectrum. The fact that the blue diodes reflect on the corals differently than some of the halide bulbs doesn't mean they are any healthier either. Pure blue reflection to refresh your "blues" taste. The proof of that is in many videos. Not to mention T5s which are one of the best artificial light sources for coloration with tremendous ability for growth and anatomy distribution in shallow reef tanks.
Best of all? Halides/T5s.
Remember WWC systems with halides???? Exceptional colors and amazing growth!!! Much better than with the Radions they are under now IMHO. How is the growth after all the years under Radions?
By the way... I believe "Radion" is a word after one of the very best halides for reef tanks: Radium.
Definitely not a substitution!!
What about Dr. Sanjay's halides?? Were they brown under his halides??? Does anyone agree that he had much better colors and growth with those halides??
Is this video about promoting LEDs and disproving halides? What is this? A club? The information isn't accurate to say the least, with all the respect. I appreciate Mr. Paletta a lot and have been reading his articles for many years since the 90's. Sad to hear such observations. I still appreciate Mr. Paletta for sharing his time passing his tips to all of us.
I would hope there was a miscommunication in the video, although it sounds clear the way he did.
I choose to respect all people who prefers LEDs over halides, T5s or whatever. I just don't think it's fair when companies and people try to paint a bad image of the halides and T5s, saying their LEDs are better. That has been used in the past as a marketing strategy and isn't a true statement.
They have the right to say their LEDs are better, I do have my right to say what I think as well.
Brown corals? Haha!
Peace!
