Your SPS full spectrum vs blue only par?

[billyocean]

I will add that there are 4 viparspectra 300s over a 125 gallon tank. The lights are hung at 14" and being a panel style light the coverage is pretty uniform with no hotshots due to the height they are hung. Puck style lights come from a smaller/tighter clustered source so there could be a difference there. Measured with my 510 apogee.

 

[WvAquatics]

I understand the spectrum differences and what you are saying. I am trying to merely get a rough idea on how to balance my white par against blue par. I mean, keep blues steady for 12 hours and just ramp up and down the whites? Or ramp up blues with the whites for mid day? And what par values have worked for other reefers.

According to @WWC You run your blues at max intensity the full time. Ramp at your own pace. They suggest 2-5 hours of full spectrum whites and blue. Anywhere in the cycle. They run some full spectrum first 4 hours after ramp up and then blues the rest of their light cycle. Hope this helps!

 

[VintageReefer]

According to @WWC You run your blues at max intensity the full time. Ramp at your own pace. They suggest 2-5 hours of full spectrum whites and blue. Anywhere in the cycle. They run some full spectrum first 4 hours after ramp up and then blues the rest of their light cycle. Hope this helps!

How can they blindly recommend that when they don’t know what fixture you use, how many you have, what mounting height, what size tank etc

 

[billyocean]

How can they blindly recommend that when they don’t know what fixture you use, how many you have, what mounting height, what size tank etc

I'm pretty sure they run radions so maybe it's based off of those...but agreed. Different lights will require different approaches due to varying factors.

 

[billyocean]

At the end of the day it's my opinion that water chemistry, flow, lighting are of importance in that order. Pretty much any reef light these days will offer what most people require.

 

[VintageReefer]

I'm pretty sure they run radions so maybe it's based off of those...but agreed. Different lights will require different approaches due to varying factors.

Probably.

Still there is a important difference between “we run” and “you should”

 

[WvAquatics]

How can they blindly recommend that when they don’t know what fixture you use, how many you have, what mounting height, what size tank etc

Agreed different lights will have different settings. But if you can control each color independently you set them to what you feel is right for your tank. They have the pleasure of having par meters to check there tanks to make sure they hit the right pars and adjust from there

 

[keithw283]

In the SPS dominant tanks really curious how much less par do you run during your blue only hours. Please chime in with full spectrum par vs blue only par that most of your spa corals see. If you’d like add the number of hours for each. Thank you!

I run my acros at 250-300 for 4 hours with a 2 hour ramp up and a 2 hour ramp down. Seem to be getting good growth and color.

 

[VintageReefer]

Realized I never contributed.

I run blue, royal blue, violet 15 hours a day
Red and green I leave at zero

Whites I run 2 hours a day with a peak of 8%

I keep acros in 275-300 par

My shelf can’t be photographed properly. Whatever coating it has comes out looking radioactive in pictures. I give up trying to compensate for the shelf. It not like this in person. But the frags are very very close

 

[Dburr1014]

How can they blindly recommend that when they don’t know what fixture you use, how many you have, what mounting height, what size tank etc

They didn't blindly recommend those settings. Yes they do run the radion.

If you watched the video they state a few times that this is how they do it at the shop. 4 hours full spectrum before they open and blues the rest of the day.

According to WWC this can be run with any fixture and is good for all types of coral.
Some coral need the full spectrum, some not so much.

They explain it a lot better than I do let me see if I can find the video.

Here it is;

 

[areefer01]

I understand the spectrum differences and what you are saying. I am trying to merely get a rough idea on how to balance my white par against blue par. I mean, keep blues steady for 12 hours and just ramp up and down the whites? Or ramp up blues with the whites for mid day? And what par values have worked for other reefers.

You could probably get an idea by watching some of the BRS light test content. While it is somewhat biased towards AB+ favored look and marketing it should give you an idea of the PAR changes when they use their preferred spectrum.

Also if you are in a club or can rent one always a good idea to use a par meter to check. That way you will know based on what you setup.

 

[Hooz]

I've experimented with a bunch of different settings based on everything I've read and watched from every reliable source I could find. I've come up with my "perfect" lighting schedule. I run the same ramps, timings, etc on every tank, regardless of what I have in it. The only thing I change is the amount of whites. I do use whites on every tank, from the mushroom flat to SPS to anemones, but I do run more or less of it depending.

If my white channel runs at 45% for SPS, I run a relative 35% for BTAs and LPS, but only about 20% for my shrooms and the like.

Before people freak out, I run LuxEngine LED pucks in my AI lights (Prime HD and Hydra 26HD). So my red, green and white channel are actually different shades of blue (and cyan in my case), and the factory blue channel is now my white channel.

I work from home, so I run a pretty long schedule. I'm here all day, and I like to look at my tanks. To help lessen potential impact of running a 14 hour schedule, I run VERY long, 2.5 hour ramps. All my blue channels come on at 8:30am, then spend 2.5 hours ramping up to their max. As soon as the blues hit their max at 11:00am, the whites kick in and spend 2.5 hours ramping up to their max. At 1:30pm, everything is at its max for the day, and it stays there for 4 hours. At 5:30pm everything happens the same way in reverse. Whites ramp down from 5:30pm to 8:00pm, then blues ramp down from 8:00pm to 10:30pm when everything goes off for the night.

This has been working really well for me with everything. It gives me a 4 hour peak of "full spectrum" (as recommended by WWC) in the middle of the day while giving me that nice blue view in the morning and the evening.

I set my intensities so that the daytime peak matches my peak PAR goals for the tank. If I'm aiming for 400 PAR max, I set the 4 hour midday peak to 400 PAR and then everything else falls where it falls and I don't sweat it. If you look at the WWC schedules, that's basically how they do it and, if you've ever been to their place and seen their tanks, they are doing something right. I think that's part of the reason that the BRS team was so surprised when they initially went down and took PAR measurements in the WWC tanks and it was super LOW compared to where they thought it would/should be. They only hit max PAR for 4 hours and they're much lower the rest of the time.

 

[MoshJosh]

Full spectrum with heavy blue leave full on 12 hours full off 12 hours.

 

[WvAquatics]

I am looking at the atlas for my next build so that would be full spectrum the whole time. Basic on amd off no spectrum control. But I like a whiter look than the 20k so I think the atlas will be simple on for 12 off for 12

 

[vitaliyphoto]

So in general sense would you guys say that 350 par full spectrum for 6 hours and about 280 of blue par for the other 6 is not too much for them? These are again ReefLed 90’s with two 460nm strips and 2 48” coral plus bulbs.

 

[WvAquatics]

So in general sense would you guys say that 350 par full spectrum for 6 hours and about 280 of blue par for the other 6 is not too much for them? These are again ReefLed 90’s with two 460nm strips and 2 48” coral plus bulbs.

Yes

 

[vitaliyphoto]

Yes

Good to know! It’s so hard to dial things in so everything is thriving

 

[Big E]

I've run white spectrum...........approx 14k to the eyes for 24 years with Halides, T5's and now Orphek leds. Colors have always been great.

There is a TON of blue in there, our eyes just can't see it. Look at any spectral chart when LEDs are set at the same levels of lighting in the past to find good settings. You can find various spectral charts of Halide and T5 bulb combos all over the web.

The amount of blue/purple has always been about visual preference.

The closer to the sun you run your lighting will create the fastest growth.............always been that way, always will.

I'm currently running Orphek Helius program................spectrum is the same for 12 hours. All colors at 78%. My suggestion is to find a good mix with whatever LED brand you have and then slightly adjust blue/violet for visual preference. Run these same settings the whole photo period.

 

[vitaliyphoto]

I've run white spectrum...........approx 14k to the eyes for 24 years with Halides, T5's and now Orphek leds. Colors have always been great.

There is a TON of blue in there, our eyes just can't see it. Look at any spectral chart when LEDs are set at the same levels of lighting in the past to find good settings. You can find various spectral charts of Halide and T5 bulb combos all over the web.

The amount of blue/purple has always been about visual preference.

The closer to the sun you run your lighting will create the fastest growth.............always been that way, always will.

I'm currently running Orphek Helius program................spectrum is the same for 12 hours. All colors at 78%. My suggestion is to find a good mix with whatever LED brand you have and then slightly adjust blue/violet for visual preference. Run these same settings the whole photo period.

So super glad you chimed in Ed!!! I’ve been struggling in lighting department the most. What par are you hitting them with on average?

 

[Big E]

Hi Vitaliy!!!

How are you my friend? I didn't realize that was you

Par is 250-400 range. 300-350 is a good level for almost anything. I keep that at mid level of my system

My peak range goes for about 6-7 hours