Noob questions

[roccomorra]

Hi all! as I try to firm up my ideas for the reef system I plan to start so many questions are coming from the research I have been doing. In the realm of lighting I have 2 questions;
1. Is it important for the lighting system to mimic the natural daylight cycle as much as possible, or is only par and intensity/spectrum the only concern?
2. If I buy a hang over the tank light for a 40 gallon tank, what is the optimal measurement from the tank surface to mount the light?
3 A 3rd question- the ifs its selling an AIO with the light included, but light by their own admission will only work for soft and maybe some laps, should I just not use that light at all or add a better light with it?

 

[Reef.]

You can have the lights come on and off whenever you like as long as it’s consistent, my lights come on in the evening and go off in the early hours of the night.

The light you buy will have specs to say the best high, some lights are designed to hang lower so the spread of light is at its best to cover the tank, and some are designed to hang higher, again to make sure the light is covering the tank.

Depends what you want to stock the tank with, if softies then it should be fine, but chances are once you start filling the tank you will want more than softies, maybe some LPS too so I would go straight to a better light, rather than spending money on a light that will almost be guaranteed to need upgrading.

 

[Jubei2006]

1 As far as the natural daylight cycle.....depends on you goals. If you want rediculous colors that grow well, it seems that everyone blast actinic (blue colors). The corals seem to respond better to the blue 400 nanometer range with grow. Also that range seems to inhibit algal growth somewhat. It wont necessarily look the most pleasing (like you're snorkeling a reef) but depends on your goals.
2 Lighting height depends on the light. Is it a point source (kessils), or more spread out .
(neptune sky, coral care). Then there are more puck style lamps (ghl mitras). There are differences in intensity and spread that will moreso determine height. BRStv has a great video on the subject for a few different brands.
3 once again deals with goals. Most people with AIO start modding them almost immediately (me included). You can also get some basic gear (40 gallon breeder, decent light, hang on back skimmer, decent powerhead) and have a build that doesn't break the bank and give some nice options later on down the road. Some of the nice AIO are pricey (CADE and reasea come to mind). I could build an awesome 40 breeder reef for that cost and have decent amount left over for corals, rock, and fish. I attached my frankentank that I have maybe have 1200-1300 invest with the tank, upgraded light, skimmer add on, upgraded return pump, powerhead, rock, sand, corals, and a sixline wrasse. The CADE aqaurium of this size starts at about 3 grand. Much nicer tank, stand and such though.

 

[vetteguy53081]

Simulated light is reefing standard and does not need to be copied persay.
Height determined amount of coverage

 

[Spieg]

1) Depends, I believe PAR is important for different types of coral (softies need less, LPS need a little more and SPS usually need the most). Schedule and spectrum are also important so photosynthetic corals get enough light duration and color to feed themselves. but too much of a good thing is usually not good.
2) Also depends on the particular light being used. T5 can be closer to the water than most LED lights, so you need to research specific lights to determine the best mounting height.
3) I'm not a fan of AIO systems in general (much prefer a reef ready tank with a real sump and my choice of lights/pumps/filtration/etc...). Usually too many compromises are made to be adaptable to a wide variety of livestock. As someone already mentioned many people have to modify these systems to make them do what they want (not much savings if you have to replace a lot of stuff).

 

[A. grandis]

Hi all! as I try to firm up my ideas for the reef system I plan to start so many questions are coming from the research I have been doing. In the realm of lighting I have 2 questions;
1. Is it important for the lighting system to mimic the natural daylight cycle as much as possible, or is only par and intensity/spectrum the only concern?

If you want the results to be like what you find in nature you should look for the lighting that will show the results found in nature. Search!
Lighting is mainly intensity and spectrum, roughly speaking. PAR is actually a measure of intensity. Daily cycle is important, normally called photoperiod in the trade. No need ramping or dimming at all! The best aquariums in the world never had those features! Study about the basics of lighting to understand. There is a lot of junk online! Specially YouTube!

2. If I buy a hang over the tank light for a 40 gallon tank, what is the optimal measurement from the tank surface to mount the light?
3 A 3rd question- the ifs its selling an AIO with the light included, but light by their own admission will only work for soft and maybe some laps, should I just not use that light at all or add a better light with it?

Search a lot before you buy anything. Don't buy just because people told you they like their light or something!! Most of the people want to tell you their own lights are great and the best, etc.. We call that confirmation bias. Don't buy because "that store" uses or anyone else in the world told you to buy. Get your search engine running and find what you would like to reproduce first. Find a local store with different lights and go check them out.
Every light will have it's pros and cons. Results will vary and if you want the "best results" you will have to actually see those results first!
There are 3 types: T5s, metal halides and LEDs. All different results.
I personally like the results from metal halides and T5s. The best for what I want to achieve.
Good luck!