Lighting

Lighting is a critical component of a captive ecosystem. The types of creatures we wish to maintain in our ecosystems determine the type of lighting that should be utilized. In general, Polyps, Mushrooms, and Soft Corals require the least amount of lighting, with LPS, SPS, and Clams requiring the most.

A good GENERAL frame of reference in deciding how much lighting you will need for your inhabitants is a wattage-per-gallon ratio of approximately 3-5 watts per gallon, for the lower light corals and the more light-loving corals require between 5 to 8 watts per gallon*.

The ever increasing interest in "light loving" inhabitants such as Small Polyp Stoney corals and clams has continued to fuel the demand for more efficient and higher quality lighting. Corals can often survive in less-than-optimal conditions. However, in order for them to thrive, the aquarist will try to provide the highest quality of lighting possible, and will not attempt to keep "light loving" creatures in less than adequate lighting conditions.

When selecting your lighting there are two main considerations wattage & Kelvin:

Wattage: Most of us can relate to wattage from dealing with light bulbs in normal everyday life.

Kelvin: Simply stated this is the color temperature properties produced by the bulb. Lower numbers such as 4500K lean more to the red/yellow end of the color spectrum. Higher numbers such as 10,000K lean more to the blue end of the spectrum. Your Reef Splendor representative will be happy to discuss these options with you.

There are five main types of aquarium lighting:

1. Standard output Fluorescent
These are the fluorescent tubes that you will sometimes find in ceiling fixtures in schools, office buildings etc. These lamps can be used successfully in fish only systems and come in several different color varieties.

2. Very High Output Fluorescent (VHO)
VHO Lighting is also a type of fluorescent lighting. They are similar to the standard fluorescent tubes but produce a much higher wattage. For instance, a 4' standard fluorescent tube produces 40 watts. A 4' VHO fluorescent tube produces 110 watts. In general fluorescent tubes are cooler to the touch than the Metal Halide. However they do not produce the "shimmer" effect.

3. Power Compact Fluorescent (PC)
PC Lighting is another form of fluorescent lighting. The main advantage of PC lighting is that it is a more compact type of bulb that lends itself to situations where space is tight and another type of lighting isn't feasible.

4. Metal Halide (MH)
Metal Halide Lighting is an incandescent lighting source, similar to the light bulbs that go in a standard lamp. MH provides an extremely intense form of light and are available in a range of color temperatures (Kelvin). MH lighting produces a desirable "shimmering" effect in the tank, similar to what you see on the bottom of a swimming pool on a sunny day. These bulbs become very hot and should always we protected from splashing water to keep them from shattering. Most informed hobbyists agree that the most intense and highest quality lighting is provided by MH lighting.

5. HQI
HQI is a compact double-ended metal halide lamp. From our experience, they produce the highest light output per watt compared to other lamp styles. Lamps are German made top quality 10,000K aquarium bulbs. These bulbs lack the outer ultraviolet (UV) filtering glass bulb that single ended halides come with. They must be used in an enclosed fixture with a UV protective shield. HQI bulbs also burn much hotter, so keep that in mind when setting up your configuration. Fans are definitely recommended.

Reef Splendor offers and stocks MH, VHO, PC and HQI lighting. Your Reef Splendor representative will be more than happy to discuss which of these types of lighting will suit your intended inhabitants and budget.

* Please keep in mind, these numbers are purely a general starting point based on standard aquarium measurements. These are provided merely to give the beginning aquarist a general idea of what they should be considering as they set up their first reef tank.