amazing growth of sps

[ctenophore]

Showoff..!!

LOL I actually meant it kind of seriously. Would be a useful experiment to test lighting while water chemistry is consistent. Flow would be the only other variable, but I could probably get that fairly consistent too. Artificial vs. sunlight, would be interesting to see.

[Charlie]

LOL I actually meant it kind of seriously. Would be a useful experiment to test lighting while water chemistry is consistent. Flow would be the only other variable, but I could probably get that fairly consistent too. Artificial vs. sunlight, would be interesting to see.

Justin, that would certainly make for an interesting study. I also think that it would make an interesting journal article.

[steveoutlaw]

Instead of a rotating frag plug, how about a rotating fixture? One of those motors that alternates between turning left and turning right.

 

You guys are thinking small again......we need a rotating TANK!!

 

Well, I havent killed any SPS on grill yet, so I may give it a whirl, maybe Steve Outlaw will make some Paly Stew as a side dish to go with the grilled sps frags.. Im just killing off SPS so I can make my own Reactor Media.. Is there a prize for kills it the fastest..?

 

I'm NEVER making that stew again!! I still have nightmares.

[CHUBAKAH]

I think Mark's been away from "our" forum too long. He needs to come to the FFE and get re innoculated

 

Work has been insane for me since Feb, but I do pay attention to whats going on.

 

One things for sure. The marking of these LED's has got some people completely snow blind.

 

I'll agree, they appear to make corals look good, and they save on the electric bill.

 

The end!

 

If i'm reading this right, the corals here in question are in a depth of 12 inches, and you now have better growth with LED's over 400 watt MH's right?

 

Not to be rude here, but who in their right mind puts 400 watts of MH over top of a coral 12" below the surface and expects results?

 

I'd do the grow out against an LED system any day of the week for the right wager.

 

BTW, I'd be there Chip but I am going to be up in NY next week with the wife on vacation. Hoping to check out a store or two while I am there as well.

 

 

 

Edited July 2, 2010 by CHUBAKAH

[ctenophore]

Work has been insane for me since Feb, but I do pay attention to whats going on.

 

One things for sure. The marking of these LED's has got some people completely snow blind.

 

I'll agree, they appear to make corals look good, and they save on the electric bill.

 

The end!

 

If i'm reading this right, the corals here in question are in a depth of 12 inches, and you now have better growth with LED's over 400 watt MH's right?

 

Not to be rude here, but who in their right mind puts 400 watts of MH over top of a coral 12" below the surface and expects results?

 

I'd do the grow out against an LED system any day of the week for the right wager.

 

BTW, I'd be there Chip but I am going to be up in NY next week with the wife on vacation. Hoping to check out a store or two while I am there as well.

 

I have corals that are growing out of the water less than 6" from a 400w MH and they are growing pretty fast. Many corals are capable of adapting to vastly different light levels and grow equally well in all of them, especially sps.

 

I certainly respect skepticism, but it sounds like you've made up your mind based on hearsay. Biopellets because they use MB7 in a way the mfg hasn't intended. LEDs because they are more efficient and make corals look better. If I had reason or means to set up a new tank from scratch, I would undoubtedly use LEDs as a primary light source, probably softened a bit by a single or pair of T5 supplements. Oh and I would liberally pour in MB7 with biopellets and not use zeolites!

[zygote2k]

Mark-

 

Would you also claim BS if I told you that not only was I growing the SPS under LED's, but I was also growing them without the use of a protein skimmer or a refugium? This is the current system on my home tank.

The LED's have much more of a shimmering effect and perhaps this is what is causing the growth spurts in the SPS.

Honestly, before LED's came along and supposing you wanted to grow SPS in your almost standard depth 24" tank, the only light that would penetrate deep enough to grow SPS would be a 400w mh. There are many people here that still use this method and are growing SPS on the bottom.

I can't explain why the LED's appear to work better, but they do and they're cheaper and way more efficient than anything else on the market. I tried them on my own tank and have been converting all of my maintenance tanks and new installs to these bulbs after seing proven results.

Maybe you should put skepticism on the shelf and pick up a PAR 38 instead and see what you can grow.

[steveoutlaw]

Mark-

 

Would you also claim BS if I told you that not only was I growing the SPS under LED's, but I was also growing them without the use of a protein skimmer or a refugium? This is the current system on my home tank.

The LED's have much more of a shimmering effect and perhaps this is what is causing the growth spurts in the SPS.

Honestly, before LED's came along and supposing you wanted to grow SPS in your almost standard depth 24" tank, the only light that would penetrate deep enough to grow SPS would be a 400w mh.

 

Ok, First off I have a LED fixture and they are most certainly NOT the least expensive. If you have enough of the par 38 bulbs to get the same coverage, maybe over a period of 10 years they will show a price saving, but certainly not before then.

 

Secondly, your statement about MH is completely false. I had a 6' 210g tank that had three 250w MH lights on it. That's a 31" deep tank and I was growing SPS and keeping clams on the sandbed.

 

Bottom line is this; MH, T5 and LEDs are all great lighting solutions but lights alone do not make corals grow.

[BowieReefer84]

Rob,

Your tank looks amazing with the LED's. The growth is crazy. However, I recently read an article that stated flow has more to do with coral health/growth than light. Not to say you don't need adequite lighting as well... One interesting statement in the article is that even with higher tank temperatures you can avoid bleaching corals if the flow is great enough.

 

What temperature do you keep your tank set to, and how many times per hour do you turn over the water? Just curious. (trying to copy what works)

 

http://www.advancedaquarist.com/2006/8/aafeature It's a great read.

[CHUBAKAH]

Mark-

 

Would you also claim BS if I told you that not only was I growing the SPS under LED's, but I was also growing them without the use of a protein skimmer or a refugium? This is the current system on my home tank.

 

Not at all, but explains why you have trouble.

 

Look guys, I know there are many ways to skin the cat, and there are many ways tanks can be very successful. It's all about having a stable environment which IMHO is the key to success.

 

There's just no way anyone is going to convince me that you are going to get "better" results growing SPS MH - VS - LED's which is what this tread is implying.

 

 

 

 

 

[zygote2k]

some history first-

On my home system I used a DSB and Refugium with RDP. I dosed 2 part, carbon, and gfo. I did weekly water changes, fed heavily, and watched my corals grow under a 400w 14k mh w/ 2) 32w pc's. My water chemistry was near perfect for over a year. I crowed a great deal during this time about not using a skimmer and having the same results in SPS growth that anyone using a skimmer had.

 

In December 09, I saw a PAR38 at Justin's house. I had just gotten a new tank to match the stand from YBENormal and decided to skip the halide and go with LED just to see if I would get the same results in growth of the SPS. I installed 3) 40 degree 20k bulbs and suspended them the same 8" above the tank. The look was very dramatic and extremely bright compared to the mh. In fact, while the mh was on, I took a LED bulb and shined it from the outside of the tank into the brightest area of mh light and it made it BRIGHTER.

 

March '10- I decided that I didn't like the frankenstein look of the remote refugium and the pipes and wires going everywhere. I had NAGA make a custom sump and I stuffed everything under the cabinet. My sump design had some flaws so I was unable to use a DSB. I filled the area with rubble and sponges instead and a ton of pods. I tried growing Dragons Breath but it dies. There is a tiny bit of chaeto that is clinging to existence, but I have yet to see growth. I have carbon and gfo in the tumbling water area and a Mag5 return.

When I removed the DSB, the No3 shot up to 40 ppm and I decided to run polycaprolactone which has been slowly dropping the NO3 to around 15ppm today.

I have the same K1 and K4 powerheads and the same heater and return pump. I have technically worse water conditions than with the previous arrangement and I have about the same water volume.

I realize that all of these components makes for coral growth, but I have seen a marked increase in SPS growth from the use of LED's alone.

Edited July 2, 2010 by zygote2k

[trockafella]

LOL I actually meant it kind of seriously. Would be a useful experiment to test lighting while water chemistry is consistent. Flow would be the only other variable, but I could probably get that fairly consistent too. Artificial vs. sunlight, would be interesting to see.

 

I think its a great idea, and you have the system to do it in.. Id like to see it happen..!