Info on Lighting

Ryan Thompson wrote: I would like to see this "science" behind the shimmer. It would be very interesting to see how they actually attributed anything to the shimmer. When the surface is rippling I am sure it creates angles that magnifies the light beam. I do not think that happens 2000 times a second as stated earlier but I have no proof of that.

If you are going to quote me, then say you dont believe it, then quote me properly. I said 200x magnification at 10-20x per second. You said 2000 times per second. I told you I was unsure on specific numbers but I never said 2000x per second.

Some science:

"Ripples can act like moving lenses and magnify the light dramatically (up to 15x), creating ver natural-looking patterns of rippling lines of shadow and brightness throughout the tank."

"The flashes typically amplify the light energy by approximately 200% from 1-4 times per second for about 0.1 of that same second. Therefore, for up to half of each second, corals receive greatly amplified light energy."

-Eric H. Borneman, Aquarium Corals, 2001

So this is some pretty good news for you MH owners. I use Lumenmax XL reflectors, and they produce up to 10x the light of just the bulb, from around 100 ppfd to upper 800s and 900s ppfd. So take this magnified value, and then multiply it by 200% and you have some serious light that those corals are getting for up to half of every second, all day, every day. Totalling out (multiplying 800 ppfd by 15x) you can get 12,000 ppfd!!! 15x is probably in a perfect world, most of us aren't there, but even at the "typical amplification of 200%" it is nothing to shake a stick at.

downhill_biker wrote: Ryan Thompson wrote: I don't know where everyone got the impression that T5 can't create shimmer. My PC's on my nano even cast a small shimmer. Granted the MH shimmer is much more pronounced in most cases. So the shimmer argument loses all credibility to me. Ask Keith (chk4tix) if he gets the shimmer with his T5 set up. I bet I know what he will say. The shimmer is caused by refraction of "point-source lighting". The reason T5 can't shimmer is that it distributes light from million different points (well it can shimmer but not as much). If you take a flashlight and shine it through the surface of your tank at night, you will get shimmer. That is because it is a point-source type of light. Have you ever owned MH? You talk a lot of "crud" on MH and I wonder if you have seen both sides of the fence...

downhill_biker wrote: chk4tix wrote: downhill_biker wrote: So this is some pretty good news for you MH owners. I use Lumenmax XL reflectors, and they produce up to 10x the light of just the bulb, from around 100 ppfd to upper 800s and 900s ppfd. So take this magnified value, and then multiply it by 200% and you have some serious light that those corals are getting for up to half of every second, all day, every day. Totalling out (multiplying 800 ppfd by 15x) you can get 12,000 ppfd!!! 15x is probably in a perfect world, most of us aren't there, but even at the "typical amplification of 200%" it is nothing to shake a stick at. Not to get in on this discussion, however, is there any proof that we need to have that kind of lighting power (12,000 ppfd)  to grow corals correctly?  My t5 tank says other wise.  T5 vs. MH it all comes down to personal choice...both have been proven to work.   I dont know if they need it or not. I dont think it hurts anything though, and it probably helps, but the question is...does it help enough to make a difference...maybe. I was just trying to pass on some cool info that I read. I didn't do the research or state the facts, so I cant support the claim with proof. You are right, and Ryan is right, it all comes down to personal preference. Both are proven to work. Reflectors are make or break on many lighting setups. There are so many other factors in a reef tank, that success or failure can not be determined by the type of light you have. Both T5 and MH are setups that have proven themselves.

Mark Peterson wrote: Wow, I had not viewed this thread until now. Somewhere along the way Ashley's question was forgotten and I wonder if she is even following this thread anymore.   Just in case she is reading this, I would ask what kind of coral she is hoping to grow. As you can see from my signature line I used to be a coral farmer. I had a 75 gal tank connected to a frag tank that was about 2'x3'x1'. I was bringing in $400/month, mostly from the coral growing in that frag tank. It had a 400W 20K MH and got a little sunshine too. If I could have had the entire tank in the sun, I would have done it. So to answer Ashley's question honestly, the best light for growing coral is sunlight.  The bulb on my frag tank was quite old so I had it about a foot above the water and grew soft coral around the edges of the tank. Just before changing my plans and moving to St. George to marry a wonderful girl, I was putting together another system which would have more than doubled my operation. Se la vie. I can post pics if you are interested.

If she isnt interested in pics, I am.  Didnt you have any problems with a 400w bulb on that shallow of a tank?  I currently run 2 x 150w mh on my frag tank and have been thinking of upgrading to 250w's but was concerned about the water depth.

Mark   

Edited by Ashley - October 26 2009 at 10:37am

The frag tank will be connected to my bigger tank. the food well i havent really thought of what to feed them yet I wouldnt really know. The flow i will have at leat one powerhead in there, but i was thinkin two would probably be better.

Edited by Ashley - October 26 2009 at 11:06am

The value of LS is all the food it produces for the coral. If the frag tank sand is seeded with LS and pieces of LR from many different sources it can harbor an abundant array of bugs and worms that will feed the coral all night. Some people I know use Ozone or UV to help the polyps extend more during the day, well my frag tank had plenty of polyp extension at night when live food was streaming past. There were all kinds of spawings in this tank and the attached 75 which kept the coral happy, healthy and growing rapidly.

Edited by Mark Peterson - October 27 2009 at 8:10am

wow thats a nice frag tank... The pluming must of sucked doing personally I dont like that part myself takes lots of time....How big is your frag tank? You know what they so tho the more you put in to it the more you get out of it!

awesome that is huge. ppl dont really get the care that you have to put in a tank to just keep it running. Me being 16 and able to take care of a tank is something i am very proud of 

wow thats cool we tried to create something like that for our regular tank but the changes aren't smooth as i wanted lol plus we turn on and off the day time light on at the same time... Josh is more of the handy man who runs the pluming and lighting i just do my best to maintain the tank but i know for sure that we are getting T5's for the frag tank.