SPS under PC lights

Mik_101 · #1 03-23-2010, 11:30 PM

Just set up a 10g nano tank with a power compact light unit on it witch gives me 3w per gallon. My question is if I can keep some sps corals int the tank up high.
Thanks.

lorenz0 · #2 03-23-2010, 11:59 PM

what fixture is it? watt per gallon is a rule that should be only considered as a urban myth

chris88 · #3 03-24-2010, 12:32 AM

you can keep sps under normal output flor, compact flor, MH, etc. Keep them high up and worry about the other factors that sps are concerned with and the light will be the least of your worries.

StirCrazy · #4 03-24-2010, 01:48 AM

I wouldn't say light is the least of your worries, but yes you should be able to keep them under PCs, but you will not get the color you would out of a more intense light.

Steve

BlueAbyss · #5 03-24-2010, 01:58 AM

I will tend to agree that you could keep SPS under a fair wattage of PC, as long as the colonies aren't too far from the bulb. I will say that there are some that will do better than others... the 'lower' light SPS, like some Montipora and Seriatopora (Birdsnest) will probably be your best bet. Try a frag first... 30W of PC (2 x 15W?) doesn't sound like enough. And don't expect great growth or color.

This is one of those things where more is better... I keep my zoas and macros under 70W metal halide in my 10 gallon.

bauder1986 · #6 03-24-2010, 02:00 AM

Hmm, PC....first off eeww lol.

One thing is find a frag somewhere...just a frag of SPS, go for a forest fire milli or something along those lines and put it up high and try it out.

Second thing is, if you are using PC's please dont use those dreadful 50 / 50 lights, use only straight actinics and straight 14000k or 10000k bulbs. you should have better par with those, and better spectrum.

Third thing is, with my experience with SPS in nanos, your flow, your nutrient cleaning systems and what you should not do for dosing.

Obviosly you will probably have some lower to medium flow LPS and softies so you are gonna have to play with your flow rate and direction to please the SPS and the LPS and softies. Its a pain but there is a way.

Your dosing is a HUGE thing, with a nano and SPS avoid all the nice little products that boost growth, color and what not (coral vit, reef roids etc) stick to simple calcium monitoring, Mg, and Kh and rely heavily on your water changes to provide the essentials for the SPS in a small system.

Have a skimmer on the tank too, bioload or no, it helps alot since SPS are such wimps when it comes to water purity.

StirCrazy · #7 03-24-2010, 04:45 AM

I was thinking about this.. you could actualy make a stunning digitata tank using 3 or 4 different colored digitata and have them intertwine.

Steve

Mik_101 · #8 03-24-2010, 05:47 AM

thanks for the replys guys I do not have a skimmer on this tank but i do regular water changes 3g a week and I do have a 30g filter on this tank. I also do add the nano zeovit system to my tank.

Snaz · #9 03-24-2010, 05:59 AM

I have two 18w PC lights on my Aquapod 12 and my brown digitata grows like a weed. No skimmer and no dosing.

BlueAbyss · #10 03-24-2010, 07:06 AM

What do you have for flow? I'm sort of thinking that you don't have enough flow if all you're running is a HOB filter (specially if it contains any media) for a 30 gallon tank. I run a filter for 20 - 40 gallons (no media, mostly a place to put the heater so I don't have to look at it

) plus a further 100+ gph powerhead in my 10 gallon, and I almost feel like I want more flow. I estimate that I have ~300 gph running around in my tank.