Is My lighting enough for SPS

[philly]

i have a 48 inch long 90 gal.

My lighting

The state of the art Lunar Aqualight is a compact light fixture with a Blue-Moon-Glow LED light which creates rhythmic glitter and shimmering effects while promoting spawning cycles on corals and other reef life. These fixtures allow you to recreate the effects that both the sun and moon have on sealife. Includes: two 65 watt 10,000K Daylight and two 65 watt True Actinic 03 Blue compact lamps as well as four 3/4 watt Lunar Blue-Moon-Glow LED lamps.

i know that i can get every coral exept sps, but i want to make sure

if i cant do u think a plant growing metal halide lamp would work?
if so what wattage?

 

[revhtree]

You only have about 2.8 watts per gallon. IMO that amount of lighting would only be enough for softies. And given the dimensions of the tank, it would be even worse because of it's depth.

 

[lando]

Agree with the Rev. If you plan on SPS or clams, you will really need MH lighting for a 90 gal. They are pretty deep. You would have a tough time getting 260 watts of CF to penetrate. I would stick with mushrooms, polyps, some zoos and the like. You can still certainly have a beautiful reef tank without SPS.

 

[philly]

i got a yellow fiji leather which is doing great as well as a slipper tongue coral which is also doing great.

im going to get zoos, polyps, toadstool, xenia, and lps corals

thanks for the info


by the way, do u think if i get mounting legs and take out the glass top, with it help with penetration, and im also going to stik on the dual florence lights that came with the aquarium

 

[sicklidkid]

im going to get zoos, polyps, toadstool, xenia, and lps corals

Is that enough light for LPS corals? I thought they would need more than that...

 

[SaltwaterTeen]

Yea, deffinately not enuff light. In my 55 gal I have 550watts, which is like 10wpg! I do believe you should have mh for a 90gallon, but my 55 could hold sps, and lps corals. Just havent added the right chemicals yet

 

[philly]

how many watts per gallon do i need for lps

how many watts per gallon do i need for sps

i have 2.8 according to revtree

 

[Salttanker]

In my opinion, I would say for corals the rule of thumb is between 5 and 7 watts per gallon. Just get a MH retro 250W to run in conjunction with your lunar lights. This will help.

Mike

 

[lando]

5-7 watts/gal. is a bit on the high side for softies. I only have about 4 watts/gal of CF and I have a number of different corals and all are doing great.

 

[clowninround]

I agree with you, I had just under 4 watts per gallon until recently and my corals did great (mostly softies). Infact I added on so that I have 7 watts per gallon and I am currently acclimating my corals to it. I only have them on 4 hours a day, and it was to much for some of them, had to shade them. Now I am wondering if they will be able to handle it .

 

[sicklidkid]

For some LPS, i think you could get bye with 4-5 wpg? Someone correct me if i am wrong.

 

[lando]

I have just under 4 watts/gal. and have an elegance, torch, hammer, pineapple, three trumpet colonies and a small brain (coral, that is). They are all doing great and flurishing under my lighting. I do go topless on my tank and keep my acrilic lamp cover free from salt creep. All is happy and healthy.

 

[srgetz]

They are all doing great and flurishing under my lighting

Yea, your tank looks great lando. If you don't mind me changing the subject a bit, how do you maintain your Ca level and what level do you achieve? Also, what is your water change regimen?

 

[Salttanker]

I suppose the level of wattage could depend on the dimensions of the tank itself, and what you would want to keep in it. 5-7 watts per gallon was a "guess" range that I have seen many people use.

Mike