Increasing SPS growth rate??? Lighting

[Dadany]

At present I have a 250 watt HQI on my 90 gallon corner unit. I also have a dual chamber calcium reactor, however I am only experiencing moderate growth with my SPS. I have 4 different montipora caps (green, green purple rim, red, orange) with a few other acros. These monitporas are rumored to grow like weeds yet mine have not really taken off at all.

I am thinking of upgrading my lighting to dual 400 watt Radiums. I have a few questions that need some answers:
(1) Radiums run on HQI ballast or Pulse Start ballast? I have been told that they run closer to specs on HQI ballasts but also can fire on Pusle Starts.
(2) which of the following would be recommended as a good ballast:
PFO Lighting dual 400 watt,

Sun Systems Blue Wave II MH 400 watt
(they say they are available as pulse start)

Could someone please recommend a good ballast alternative?

I have also considered just adding a single 400watt Radium to the 250 HQI that is already on my tank. What would be the draw backs of just adding one 400 Radium? Would 2X400 watt Radiums be to much lighting for a 90 gallon or would the 250 +400 combo be more that enough to stimulate some growth?

 

[Bleeding Blue]

What are your water parameters like?

 

[Dadany]

all parameters are within acceptable limits:
no detectable nitrates, nitrites
ph 8.3
temp 82

 

[Dadany]

i am also considering adding a 400w 6500k Iwasaki and changing my 250watt 10000k HQI bulb to the new 20000k HQI bulb. The reported high blue of the 20000k HQI should mix nicely to correct the reported yellow in the iwasaki 6500k.

does this combination offer the best results?

 

[wombat1]

I feel Iwasaki 6500K are pretty much the best lighting for your money for SPS corals and clams. Adding a 20000K will add a nice aesthetic appeal as well. I assume your Ca and Alk readings are good...do you have good calcareous algae growth? I have a surge bucket on my tank and feel that it is absolutely essential for good SPS growth. It creates water movement that seaswirls and powerheads are just incapable of making.

Those three things--light, circulation, and Alk/pH/Ca--are all that you need to grow Monti like a weed. Excellent water conditions also, of course.

 

[Bleeding Blue]

What about calcium and alk?

 

[Dadany]

havent tested cal / alk but after adding the reactor my tank has exploded with coraline. so much coraline that i have to scrap the front glass to keep it clean and after not scrapping the side glasses they have been totally covered. i resently gave in and scrapped the side glasses to see how long it would take to recover.

i have also considered the seaswirls to increase circulation or a closed loop. at present i have my return splint down each side on the tank and 3 power heads. i dont think i have enough random cirulation. i would like more but that is after the lighting has been addressed.

has anyone had good results with the 250 HQI 20000k? i have followed the other threads on the topic but none were very clear on the growth rate seen with these bulbs. it seems that they were commenting more on the color of the bulb.

 

[mmilan]

FWIW.Check out AA archives.
Sanjay has a bunch of lighting/ballast comparisons.
I also respect DrMac and sons corals
and he only uses 400w radiums
on blueline e ballasts.
I'm looking into upgrading for the same reasons.
goodluck,mike

 

[wombat1]

I'd say the most important issue to address here is creating random flow in your tank before you upgrade your lighting. Montipora will grow under PC lighting, so your lighting is more than adequate. However, you need strong, random, alternating flows in your tank. Just my 2 cents...
Matt

 

[Dadany]

thanks for your input thus far.

after further consideration, i think i have settled on adding a 250w 6500k Iwasaki and changing my 250watt 10000k HQI bulb to the new 20000k HQI bulb. The heat from a 400watt bulb maybe create additional problems that i want to avoid.

now i have to figure out the best way to mount the 6500k so that i dont get that funny spotted effect over my tank. there is limited space under my hood, considering it is a corner unit.

 

[Unarce]

Wombat is right on the money with his input. Surge and turbulence are essential for SPS coral growth. Adding a 20k will actually slow down the growth that you're already not pleased with. What you're planning to do would be the correct spectrum for low light or deep water corals. Stick with 6500k with some actinic supplementation if you want to maximize growth along with proper water movement.

 

[Anonymous]

I have both those ballasts and they both are fine- no problems.

I would say the number one thing you need to check is alkalinity. If all other parameters are fine and you are not getting growth I'm betting thats what it is. Probably high ph and ca, low alk. Check this before investing in new lights.

 

[Bleeding Blue]

I have to agree with Wombat, Reefnutz, and Dan. Also, I would add that it is not a race to see how fast corals will grow. If all of the water parameters seem correct, you get the correct amount of turbulance and water movement, and your corals seem to be open and growing, it might be time to just sit back and enjoy your success.

Mike

 

[Russ1]

Adequate lighting, random water movement, Calcium 450+, and in my opinion and often overlooked is alkalinity. Test you calcium and alkalinity frequently and adjust your reactor as necessary.

 

[Dadany]

i will check the alk tonight.

i gather that yall dont think the 250w 6500k Iwasaki and changing my 250watt 10000k HQI bulb to the new 20000k HQI bulb is a good move.

i dont want to mislead you. i am having growth from my monitipora caps and the other acros. i just dont have amazing growth. i am trying to optimize every area and i am beginning with lighting for my 90 gallon.

i will then turn to optimizing my circulation.

 

[wombat1]

It sounds like your Ca/Alk is OK--if you have great coralline growth that's a good sign. I'd invest that extra money in a seaswirl or wavemaker, or a surge device if you have the space. BTW, how long have you had these corals for, and what kind of growth do you see? It took a while (maybe two months) before I noticed a lot of growth on my monti besides base plating, but then they took off. They grow about 1cm a month or so. Keep in mind that healthy corals in the wild will grow at all kinds of rates depending on where they're located. Any regular growth at all means you're doing something right

 

[Anonymous]

It sounds like your Ca/Alk is OK--if you have great coralline growth that's a good sign

I'm stickin to my guns on this one- you can get great corraline growth with high ca/low alk but the sps don't like it.

 

[Russ1]

I agree 100% with Dan.

 

[golfish]

I've ran 250 watt 10K DE's, 400 watt 12K's, 10Ks, Saki's and Radiums. The Saki's alone make ugly sps, they might grow a little faster but the coral color is lousy. The best combo I have found is the 10K Ushio and 20K Radium ran on the HQI ballast, either the PFO or Blue Wave Sun-Agro 430 ballast.

The Radiums and Saki is also a good combo. I kind of liked the 2x400 watt Radiums and single 400 watt Saki.