Darren, I found your lighting set up :)

[StirCrazy]

hey check this insain lighting set up out smile.gif

Japanese lighting (http://www.reefcentral.com/vbulletin/showthread.php?s=&threadid=91458)

got a few thousand bucks in your pillow cases that you don't need :D

in all honesty I love the looks of the Japanese tanks they look so cleean and perfect.. they are the "dutch style planted tanks" of the salt water world.

If yyou want to see some pic's of the Japanese style tanks check this out, you might have to scrool through some junk but there is some real nice eye candy photo and some amazing equipment setup shots ;)
Japanese tanks (http://www.reefcentral.com/vbulletin/showthread.php?s=&threadid=53585)

Steve

[ 08 June 2002, 10:25: Message edited by: StirCrazy ]

[Son Of Skyline]

I don't understand how those corals survive under such low lighting!!! tongue.gif

Wow...Electricity must be cheap in Japan.

[Delphinus]

Methinks they don't pay enough for their electricity over there!!!! :eek:

OTOH, I can show those pictures to my wife, and whatever it is I'm trouble for (with three reef tanks it is a given that there is always something or other :D ), suddenly doesn't seem so bad.

Man, what an addictive hobby. :D

[Delphinus]

Actually I know that utilities are not a "walk in the park" over there. Just in awe seeing so many pendents shoehorned into one small space like that.

[DJ88]

Steve,

Been following the Japanese tank threads for a year or more. They were a big part of the design of my current set up. I have thought about individual colored bulbs and nultiple light sources but now that I don't get the paycheques I used to I can't justify it. Maybe once I am back in the workforce. ;)

[StirCrazy]

hey Darren, I was wondering last night about something.. I need your thoughts on it.. or anyone elses for that matter,

if we put a few honken MH on the tank that will take care of all the light the corals need to be happy, would there be any harm in getting cheeper projector type bulbs (halagen or what ever) to creat color accenting?

if there would be no detramental effect aside from extra heat which can be taken care of, it might be a cheep way to creat some wonderfull effects in the tanks.

Steve

[BCReefer]

Just an FYI, my wife is Japanese and I have been there many times myself. Nothing is really cheap in Japan, especially utilities. They have to import almost all of their power or use other means to create it.

I am going there next year and I think I need to spend some time at some LFS.

Cheers,
Patrick

[Delphinus]

My take on that is, IF it's just for "accentuating" AND the heat is of no concern; then go for it. But just be prepared to deal with the heat somehow, and pay the old hydro bill.

I don't think the sprectrum is anywhere useful for photosynthesis. You don't even see halogens used in hydroponics/agriculture situations...

Personally, my "dream" is to be able to use more sunlight than anything else. Either in a south-facing window, a solarium, or greenhouse. Still need to be able to deal with the heat, of course. The one tank I have, that gets sunlight (more by accident than by design, it gets direct sun near the winter solstice, because the rays come in through the south window nearly horizontal at that time of year, and they reach over to the tank on the north side of the room), everything just goes NUTS when the sun is on them. Very pronounced expansion of polyps, stoneys, and anemones. They're definitely at their best for me in the wintertime; and just in a "holding pattern" the rest of the year.

[DJ88]

Steve,

Look like Tony beat me to the punch. ;) So to peak. Did that help at all?

Tony,

I'd love to see some shots of your tank getting hit by sunlight someday.

[BCReefer]

I thought direct sunlight was a big no no since it promoted algae? If this is not so, then i should have set my tank up in front of the window, and still use my lighting as a suplement. I believe that the natural sunlight, even on a cloudy day probably is more powerful and have more good things vs. MH lighting?

Any comments?

Patrick

[Delphinus]

IMO if sunlight causes a nuisance algae bloom in a tank then something in the system is out of balance.

Seriously, the only reason I don't suggest that we all run out and put our tanks in full direct sunlight, is on account that we're more likely to cook our tanks than anything else; if we don't put into place some serious tank cooling.

Some coral prop outfits and wholesalers are in greenhouses where there may be MH lighting but it is supplemental at best. If you're ever in the Detroit area you HAVE to pay Tropicorium (http://www.tropicorium.com) a visit. This place is so neat! It's basically a greenhouse the size of a smallish garden center, but instead of plants, it's full of tanks with corals under various stages of captive-prop. When I was there I was soooo tempted to buy some of their mangroves, but I chickened out on account that I don't know if it's legal to carry mangroves across the border (no idea if they're on CITES or not ... wasn't worth the risk of not knowing.)

But I digress a little, whoops, sorry :rolleyes: ... sunlight in and of itself shouldn't cause a bloom. If it does, then something else needs to be looked at. It may, however, risk heating a tank to unacceptable levels, thus it should not be attempted without a well-thought-out plan.

[Achilles]

I agree with Tony to an extent. I believe that sunlight can cause an imbalance in a system simply because suddenly the system is recieving a great deal more energy than it used to. The system needs to adjust to this influx of energy. Just like adding 400 MH's to a tank that previously had NO tubes... for a while new algaes may pop up, but the system will re-equilibrate given enough time.

One last thing of interest I would like to share, for I to hope to one day have natural light as part of my reef display. I saw this type of light duct on one of Bob Villa's Home Again programs a few years back. It used something similar to a flexible dryer duct to bring light down from the roof into hallways and rooms within a house. Sort of a miniature skylight that you could moderately bend and flex into a position you wanted. They were about 4 inches across and looked perfect for the task. I am concerned about what would be lost (Spectrum etc.) from the light however...

Anyway, all these points are IMO.

Cheers!

Jeff O'Neill