What would you recommend for my photoperiod? What do Red Planets like?
 

Currently I am running a 150W Coralife Aqualight Pro (150W 14K Pheonix + 2-65W UVL Actinics) over my 40g cube-ish tank. I keep mostly SPS with zoas and a couple of LPS. There is, without a doubt, a lot of coral in this tank.

Aside from the odd bad-day-on-the-reef, everything is pretty happy in the tank and everybody has nice polyp extension. There are a couple of SPS colonies (namely a red planet, what I believe to be a tricolour valida, a purple bonsai and purple/blue mystery acro) that just don't quite get the colours that I think they should. While the bonsai is slowly starting to get it's greens back, all of 'em are more on the brown side, particularly the areas that should be purple. I also feel that my growth could be a bit better on some of the other colonies.

The bonsai is was recently moved to about 4" from the surface and is starting to colour up now that it's there, the rest of them are all probably 10" or so from the surface. With the bonsai starting to colour up now that it's being blasted with light it's making me wonder if I am giving all of the colonies enough light...

Currently, my actinics are on at 8:30 am and off at 6:30 pm and MH is on from 10 am to 5 pm.

First of all, who has a Red Planet and how far do you have it from what kind of light? I've been reading many different opinions on this coral and it's placement.

Would you recommend increasing my photoperiod at all with my current set-up?

In my opinion, I don't think you will be able to get the colours you are hoping for under that lighting unless you keep them all near the surface.

I'm with Greg on this one. I have my red planet fairly high up in my tank (probly 6-8" from the surface) under 250W.

whos got a frag of red planet they want to sell me in a few week? i would like to try it out under some LEDs

I figured that was what the answer was going to be. I've talked to a few people in other places who have their RPs in about the same position as mine under 150W MH and they have good growth and colour (nice mix of red/green.. not all red). Weird. I'll try slowly moving the RP up with the bonsai.

The strange thing is though the RP actually started bleaching in the original spot I had it in the tank, about 6" from the surface (Yes, full story comes out). I started it where it is now and them moved it to the high 6" spot a few weeks later. Yes, I understand that more than just lighting can cause bleaching but it was given a loooong acclimation time and other frags that were added the same day were fine. I moved it to a low light area to recover and now I'm moving it back out into the bright light. It's been in a moderate to high flow/light spot for a several weeks now and colour has come back a bit but still nothing of its former glory.

So is colouration only a function of intensity and not intensity+photoperiod?

Paul at Oceanic Corals. I'm sure he'd love to sell you some.

I would lengthen you photo period until you get the colors you want. I just set up a cube with a 150w halide only, and I've thrown in a few SPS as an experiment. If they don't do well then it will become an LPS tank. I've started out at a 10 hour photo period, I assume I'll have to go longer for SPS. Time will tell.

I've got several colonies that are just booming under the 150W, I'm pretty sure a master reefer like yourself will do just fine.

When you say 10 hours, is that 10 hours of your main light or 10 hours of actinic with a shorter main light period?

And again, is coloration a strong function of photoperiod as well?

For now I only have the one light, so that is the MH photo period. On my 180 when I ran 400s 7 hours was enough (but I did 8 trying to push growth, it was a waste of electricity). I switch to 250s and found 9 hours about right. So now it's 150s (I'm feeling a little inadequate) so I thought I'd start at 10 hours. I like the longer viewing period too :smile: Most of the Acros are in the top 1/2 of the tank.

Ask 10 people that question and you'll get 10 different answers. I believe it does. I increase the photo period until the coral lighten to what I want. It remains to be seen whether that with happen with 150s.

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Depends on the colour you're going for - if it's all pink and red, have it up where it will get a lot of light.

If you're going for a very green base colour with a nice pink edge to the corallites, give it an area where it gets less light.

I have my frag under 2x24w T5HO bulbs right now (as I transfer tanks) and it's gone back to the dark green base and red/pink corallites you see in the ORA pictures. I can take PAR measurements for you later, but it's not getting a whole ton of light - the bulbs are crappy Current USA ones, and more than a year old too.

When I place it in the main tank, it'll definitely go in an area of low light so that it keeps it's green base colour.

I like the pink/green mix, that's why I haven't been too worried about it being under my 150W... Except it's been doing more of a fantastic shade of brown... It could be that it is still a bit stressed from when it bleached a bit I'd have expected it to be on the mend by now. I'm curious to see how yours does under the the two t5's. If it holds color under that light I'm going to make myself a cheap little tank for the office!

I'll try slowly bumping up the light to see if it makes any difference. I also wouldn't mind having a longer period as well. With all this dark weather it'd be nice to come home to a bit if sunshine.

Oh, don't feel inadequate because you have a 150w. I'm sure your wife thinks it's cute! And really, it's not the size of your bulbs, it's what you do with them. (at least that's what I tell myself until I can afford bulb enhancement.

I think more accurately if you ask 10 reefers you'll get 13 answer. I'll give it a try as well. Let me know how you make out with the 'little lights'

My colony is 6" from the surface under my t5's which are 8" above the surface. My colony is mostly red with very pale green

Will be putting a chunk of it into my cube which will be 150watt MH and it will be the same distance as my T5's

probably will get alot more green

It sounds like I shouldn't be having too much trouble getting the red planet to colour up.. I guess I'll just have to wait until it figures itself out and decides that brown is last years black and changes into something more colourful.

As for the other colonies, I'll try bumping up the photoperiod by 15 mins each week and see if it makes a change.

I have two frags...one I keep about 6 inches from the top under 250W 14000K Phoenix halides. Its mostly pinkish red color with pale green. The other one I keep about 8 inches from the bottom(24H tank). It is turning mostly a pale green. My light strip is nine inches above my tank. The halides are on from 12:30 to 8:30.

I stand corrected on these 150w bulbs. The JBJ bulbs that came with the fixture did nothing, but since switching to the Phoenix bulbs the light packs more punch than I had anticipated. I've cut back to 9 hours and raised the light for now, corals are lightening a little too quick... good thing you're going slow.

They are definitely deceptive. This is why i've always wondered why people consider them insufficient, especially over a small tank. While I agree I could do with a big kid lighting setup I feel that a 150 should be sufficient in most cases. (and yes I do understand it has to do with how far he light can penetrate through the water column)

I'm planning on upping my light by 15 minutes a week. Am I being too anal about this or can/should I go faster?

I've never had a problem with 30 min increments, but then this little tank thing is totally new to me... and quite surprising!