Surfer801
New Member
- Joined
- Mar 25, 2020
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- 3
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- What state or country do you live in
- Utah
Hello all,
I am currently working on planning for my Waterbox 60.2 (24w24d18h) tank and trying to determine what kind of corals would best suit my setup. I am running a Radion XR15 Blue and recently took PAR readings at three different light intensities (100%, 75%, 50%).
From what I have researched, it seems that SPS generally do better with high par (250-350), while LPS/Softies generally do better with lower (50-150). Optimally, I would love to keep a mixed tank with LPS and SPS, however, I am struggling to know what to do within the moderate range (150-250 PAR). I realize this is a little rigid, though I just want to ensure that I give my corals the best chance possible.
I took measurements at 50% and 75% light intensity and got numbers that hold the 50-150 PAR range much better at 50% intensity. My question is this: Will I be able to find SPS and LPS corals that do well in this 150-250 range, or do I have a better chance of just going with the 50% intensity and running an LPS/softie tank? I've posted my PAR readings below for all coral-friendly areas in my tank at the 3 different intensities. As you can see, the blue-labeled, questionable zone (150-250 PAR) is considerably larger at 75% and 100% light intensities, while the green-labeled, 50-150 PAR, covers almost all areas at 50% light intensity.
Bonus question if anyone knows the answer. I used an Apogee MQ-510 Full Spectrum LED PAR meter to take these measurements. I have read that older meters can give 10-20% lower readings on blue/UV spectrum lights. As my light is a Radion XR15 Blue, Should I worry about this skewing my readings, or am I safe trusting these numbers?
Thanks in advance if anyone cared to read through all of that, and can provide some helpful advice
PAR breakdown:
Optimal SPS (250-350): ___________
Do corals generally do well within 150-250? ___________
Optimal LPS/Softie (50-150): ___________
PAR tested on High (100%):
290 275 275
256
245 237 235 230
213 220 200 200 200
199 195 192 190 188 188 185 180 175 175 175 175
170 166 155 154 151
150 135
115
70
Medium (75%):
218 215 206 205
195 185 185
171 157 188 175 154 164 155 168
150 145 138 131 145 141 142 140 145 150
123 120 112 105 115 105 115
85 63
Low (50%):
165 155
130 137 134 128
124 107 121 105 107 103 100 110 100 102 100 107 110 105 121 105 115 116 105
91 98 93 92 80
75 70 71
30
I am currently working on planning for my Waterbox 60.2 (24w24d18h) tank and trying to determine what kind of corals would best suit my setup. I am running a Radion XR15 Blue and recently took PAR readings at three different light intensities (100%, 75%, 50%).
From what I have researched, it seems that SPS generally do better with high par (250-350), while LPS/Softies generally do better with lower (50-150). Optimally, I would love to keep a mixed tank with LPS and SPS, however, I am struggling to know what to do within the moderate range (150-250 PAR). I realize this is a little rigid, though I just want to ensure that I give my corals the best chance possible.
I took measurements at 50% and 75% light intensity and got numbers that hold the 50-150 PAR range much better at 50% intensity. My question is this: Will I be able to find SPS and LPS corals that do well in this 150-250 range, or do I have a better chance of just going with the 50% intensity and running an LPS/softie tank? I've posted my PAR readings below for all coral-friendly areas in my tank at the 3 different intensities. As you can see, the blue-labeled, questionable zone (150-250 PAR) is considerably larger at 75% and 100% light intensities, while the green-labeled, 50-150 PAR, covers almost all areas at 50% light intensity.
Bonus question if anyone knows the answer. I used an Apogee MQ-510 Full Spectrum LED PAR meter to take these measurements. I have read that older meters can give 10-20% lower readings on blue/UV spectrum lights. As my light is a Radion XR15 Blue, Should I worry about this skewing my readings, or am I safe trusting these numbers?
Thanks in advance if anyone cared to read through all of that, and can provide some helpful advice
PAR breakdown:
Optimal SPS (250-350): ___________
Do corals generally do well within 150-250? ___________
Optimal LPS/Softie (50-150): ___________
PAR tested on High (100%):
290 275 275
256
245 237 235 230
213 220 200 200 200
199 195 192 190 188 188 185 180 175 175 175 175
170 166 155 154 151
150 135
115
70
Medium (75%):
218 215 206 205
195 185 185
171 157 188 175 154 164 155 168
150 145 138 131 145 141 142 140 145 150
123 120 112 105 115 105 115
85 63
Low (50%):
165 155
130 137 134 128
124 107 121 105 107 103 100 110 100 102 100 107 110 105 121 105 115 116 105
91 98 93 92 80
75 70 71
30
