lighting how long?

[polecat]

i have a 90 gallon rr tank i just set up i have a 2" live sand bed and about 100 pounds of live rock the tank is still cycling i have a nova extreme pro high output t5 lighting system it has 2 switches 1 switch has 2 actinic bulbs and the other has 3 10k lamps and 1 actinic it is going to be a reef tank with fish how long should i leave the lights on for? i am a beginner so i am going to get some easy corals like zoas

 

[NYReefer]

I assume its just rock and sand in the tank?? If so there is really no need for the light right now because it will just fuel aglae growth.. you will most likely have some cyano which grows on the sandbed when u start using the lights.. How long has the tank been setup and do u have testkits and such? I believe i started using the lights about a week or 2 before the cycle was done and I added my cleanup crew and it wasnt for very long 3-4 hrs... now my light cycle is from 1pm to 12 and i have moonlights for nighttime..
Best of luck to you on your new money pit...cough cough i mean tank :splitspin
Remember to be very patient and add things slowly to the tank.. have you looked into a QT tank for the fish??
Sure some others will give their opinions..

 

[polecat]

yes i have all the test kits and i have a qt tank i have a 65 gallon fowlr for about 5 years i want to do a reef with the new 90 gal. it is up since march 11 2009 i leave the 10k lights on from 10 am to 7 pm and the actinic 1 hour before and 1 hour after .is that to long?

 

[NYReefer]

that light cycle is fine.. i dont have any actinics so i just have the mh on for 11hrs and have all sorts of sps and zoas acans and such but when i upgrade that is how i will have it setup.. i had the lights from 12-11 because i like to see the tank lit up when im home but after we sprung ahead i havent corrected it.. it also gets some sunlight for an hr or 2 before the lights turn on..
best of luck to you and just remember to be patient :splitspin

 

[NYReefer]

ps..i would add the cleanup crew and some fish first then wait for an ammonia spike if there is any to pass and then start adding corals but im sure u can get away with a lot more because of the volume in your tank.. also, just a heads up to be aware that some fish will eat coral polyps.. i recently bought a small tibicin angel and he was picking at everything so out he went and hes been living in my qt tank..

 

[ocholoco]

hey

Your light should be on 8-10 hours 10 max. I used to have my lights on 9 hours a day corals were groing but so was algae and other things that made the tank look bad. As of today I run my tank 7 Hours a day and my sand bed is clean.

 

[fallenlordz]

I use 10 hours. Seems to work for me, no algae.

 

[hijinks]

I run my actinics from 2pm-8pm and my MH from 4pm-9pm. Things are growing very well

 

[CancerverO]

I have a TEK 6 bulbs T5s... I run 2 lightbulbs (actinics) from 11 to 8 and full 6 lightbulbs from 2 to 4... looking good and growing.. PS: I have SPSs and a maxima clam..

 

[polecat]

thanks guys for all your help i have some green like trees growing on the glass and the sand bed is a little brown i thought the lights were on to long. i tested my phosphates and they are high 5.0 i will be buying a ro/di water filter

 

[ocholoco]

wow

Your phosphate should always be at 0 or close to 0, You may want to buy a phosban reactor or get Chemipure Elite to get rid of the phosphates. good luck.

 

[NYReefer]

Definitely get the RO/DI and i would also get the phosban reactor like ocho stated..

my thoughts on the lighting is that in the wild they get at least 11 hrs of sunlight especially in the tropics year round but not sure how much of that is direct.. prob 7-8 hrs or so.. i definitely wouldnt run them less than 10 hrs.. JMO

 

[McReef]

I run my actinics from 11 am -11pm and my MHs 12pm-930pm

 

[polecat]

i have alot of green hair alge growing on the glass they look like little trees what makes them grow more the actinics or the 10ks

 

[wschang812]

i have mine on from 2pm-11pm and everything is good. i have PCs and with 9 hours of light, there is no algae growth. i also run a phosphate reactor with ROWA phos.