The tank is a 48x24x30 150g with a 55 sump and UV light canister. It has 180 lb of live rock most up top some in SUMP. The light was being held up by salad dressing bowls (he was a chief as well) on a warped piece of acrylic (I'm assuming warped by the heat of the bulbs). Anyway I paid a friend to build a canopy for this thing to sit on top of. Going to get it 8 inches from the water to help keep the heat from the water and might even add PC case fans to the side of the canopy (I'm a computer geek so I can wire that up).
Now the question is light. How long to leave it on? What bulbs to run at night and what to run in the day? The light I got from him was massive. 4 t5 on each side 2 halogen and 5 large blue LED. Its a ADV plus series Metal Halide Model MHADVP-48 config MH250 / T5HO. It works but this thing puts off a ton of heat.
Either way I want be sure I am not giving the coral too much light and have no damn clue if I should just run the blue LED at night. The T5 give off a blue glow too they aren't giving off white light the halogens of course is where the real light comes in. I don't want to over power the tank with light and I also don't want to rob the tank of light and how long to use the light. I have a hammer coral, rose bubble tip anemone, some kind of frog spawn, and other very small coral frags I got dirt cheap at my pretentious LFS.
I did dip and was going to put it in a QT tank but my LFS told me that QT for coral was not needed just dip and add. I will say I call them the pretentious LFS because everything they have is really top end stuff and fish I have gotten there through the years have all been really awesome quality nice fish. Thoughts on putting corals in a QT tank or just dip and go?
So again QT new coral? How long for lights on and what lights to run at what time with my current light?
Also I am tech geek and have 3 kids who have no clue what a light switch is let along how to use one so I was looking at the Radion LED but after 45 mins of reading I still couldn't figure out what damn light I needed and how many so if someone has a suggestion a nice LED that will work so I don't have to use my current 6 switch space heater I am all ears on that. I got this tank cheap enough I have no issue putting some $ in the right lights.
Now the question is light. How long to leave it on? What bulbs to run at night and what to run in the day? The light I got from him was massive. 4 t5 on each side 2 halogen and 5 large blue LED. Its a ADV plus series Metal Halide Model MHADVP-48 config MH250 / T5HO. It works but this thing puts off a ton of heat.
Either way I want be sure I am not giving the coral too much light and have no damn clue if I should just run the blue LED at night. The T5 give off a blue glow too they aren't giving off white light the halogens of course is where the real light comes in. I don't want to over power the tank with light and I also don't want to rob the tank of light and how long to use the light. I have a hammer coral, rose bubble tip anemone, some kind of frog spawn, and other very small coral frags I got dirt cheap at my pretentious LFS.
I did dip and was going to put it in a QT tank but my LFS told me that QT for coral was not needed just dip and add. I will say I call them the pretentious LFS because everything they have is really top end stuff and fish I have gotten there through the years have all been really awesome quality nice fish. Thoughts on putting corals in a QT tank or just dip and go?
So again QT new coral? How long for lights on and what lights to run at what time with my current light?
Also I am tech geek and have 3 kids who have no clue what a light switch is let along how to use one so I was looking at the Radion LED but after 45 mins of reading I still couldn't figure out what damn light I needed and how many so if someone has a suggestion a nice LED that will work so I don't have to use my current 6 switch space heater I am all ears on that. I got this tank cheap enough I have no issue putting some $ in the right lights.
