These LED's just aren't cutting it. Or - are they?
 

This will be long and drawn out, but I'll give you the skinny on pretty well what I'm looking at.

I've currently owned a Vertex Illumina 260 48" fixture over my tank for about 6 months now, and I haven't had the kind of growth or coral health from what would be expected to be a high performing fixture.

I have a nano tank beside it that I need to transfer any corals that are starting to bite the dust into to regain their health back, and they are over a simple Par38 bulb. I am going to attribute most of my problems to the lighting, and have considered switching back to T5's, but maybe as a last ditch effort - I'll try something different.

Here's what I'm looking at:

My tank is 60" long, 18" wide, and 16" tall.

The light is currently 9" from the top of the tank.

I have it set as 6W 54RB 52B for 6 hours at peak during the day.

My tank parameters:

0 Ammonia
0 No2
10-20 No3
Phos 0.5
8 Alk
8.1 PH
78 F
1350 Mg
450 Ca
Sg 1.025

I've got a wave maker (WP40) a MP40, with another 1200gph and two input flares at 800GPH. Lots of turn over.

Dose amino's, coral snow, Ca, Mg and trace elements.

Everything is fully automated, and I use RODI water, and I currently house a scooter dragonet, hippo tang, dotty back, fumanchu lionfish, lime wrasse, and a bicolor angel. I feed mysis and krill every other day with nori for the tang (after washing it clean) and spot feed with reef roids and phytoplankton.

Water changes every two weeks.

I don't think I can be any more thorough! Should I keep my lights peaked longer? Shorter? Should they be lower to the tank? Higher? Should they be less bright? More bright?

I'm at a loss! Anyone have any ideas?

Phosphate and nitrate are too high.

Nitrate should at at 0.
Phosphate at 0.02 or less.

ah come on - too easy. My nano tank has higher amounts of both. I run both gfo and carbon, with a fuge crammed full of chaeto and macro algae.

I was never that impressed with the Vertex fixture. When you say corals are declining, what do you mean? Are they bleaching or browning?

hammers bleached, but are coming back - slowly. No growth, nothing fully extending, zoas are melting over time.

sounds like too much light

Id agree. My corals have never been happier since switching to led

i have the sunbrite led and it is amazing i dont know my light is about 5 inches fron water top and everything is great i got a goni that is about the size of a basketball and polyps extend like 7 inches it loves my led

I'll try taking it down by 10 across the blues and see if it makes a difference!

In my experience with LED's (designed and built a full spectrum light for my BC29), if the corals bleach, then its too much light too fast. If they brown out, then probably want more light (or nitrates/phosphates are too high -- or a combo of the two factors).