acropora and pc lighting???

[secrest]

Is there anyway that i could keep a species of acropora in a 55 gallon tank w/ pc lighting. I have the coralife 4x65. Ive heard conflicting theories. I was told by a few people that if i kept it as close to the top as possible that i would have a good chance. I would really like to keep one but not at the expense of the coral. thanks in advance

 

[hillbilly]

I will bet money it will change from it's bright color to a very dull brown.

 

[Anonymous]

I wouldn't do it because so often people say you can and the we hear that it didn't work.

 

[hillbilly]

I don't think it will work on a 55gal. Not enough punch. If you try it, get a cheap frag. LOL!

 

[secrest]

yeah thats what i was thinking of doing. my lfs has small frags for about 20 bucks right now. Some of them are even brown already so i could just buy them and not have to worry about them changing color. do you think they would be healthy though???

 

[ADS]

Keeping sps w/PC lighting can be challenging. Acroporas in general require more intense light(flow and feeding also will affect coloration).
Montiporas are great corals to start with and will grow under PC lighting depending on the species.
There are quite a few beautiful tanks with a variety of sps under PC/VHO combos. Do a search on sps and lighting.
Some acros(most?) are brown in the wild. The colorful ones are coveted in the trade. A brown frag may always stay brown no matter what light it is under.
Adam

 

[SpicyBalls]

i just recently tried it as well.. i got a seriatopora hystrix, bird's nest, a supposedely easier sps coral. i have about 5 watts per gallon of power compacts.. good water flow near the top.. it didn't last more than two weeks.. but yes, i did the same, i got a small cheap frag for 19.99.. it was a cheap experiment.. doesn't hurt to try with a cheap frag.. i was hoping if that worked i was going to get the pocillopora and maybe some digis.. no acros though as i know those can be tough... so i'm sticking with non-sps for now... good luck..
_________________
BMW 3 Series

 

[Anonymous]

I've tried it with an acro frag way up in the tank uder some pretty strong PC lights (don't remember the wattage offhand though)

It just sat there for months and months, turned brown, and eventually slowly started to recede.

I have had M. digitata hold out and show slight growth under PC, but I just don't think it is worth it to try and keep sps under anything but metal halide. Once I saw how well they can do under proper conditions, I felt foolish trying to get sps to struggle to stay alive under too little lighting.

 

[Anonymous]

unless you have a pretty shallow tank, doubtful you will have a successful SPS... Im sure its all possible reading some of the posts however i think if you want to keep SPS or any living organism you want it to thrive not just live...Id suggest saving up some dough and investing in MH if you want to successfully keep SPS...Id take Laura D's advice and not attempt..trust me if you decide to keep MH you'll reap the benefits vs PC.... Best of luck

I enjoy Acropora very much followed by some Pocillipora and then i have a burnt orange monti i like...i keep all of these under 175W MH in a 20gal tank...

 

[kento]

will T5 lighting work for SPS corals?

 

[Anonymous]

again under shallow conditions im sure it will sufice..trying to do it with a large tank and for the price you'll pay for good PC and T5's, you might as well go with MH...My suggestion is dont short cut lighting...ive tried it doesnt work..better off in the long run with the best lighting you can afford for the critters you want to keep .... This is my opinion with my experience...

 

[hillbilly]

I never understand why some people what to fool around with something as important to their corals as lighting. Get good MH lighting when you set up your reef tank, and you will never, ever need to ask questions like, " will my crappy PC, T5, NO etc. keep blank coral alive". Sorry, ahhh, just venting.

 

[secrest]

wow hillbilly, it must be really nice to be so well of as to be able to be mad that someone might not be able to afford the MOST expensive lighting available....pitty

 

[hillbilly]

They are not that expensive! If you shop around online, you can find do-it-yourself MH kits as cheap or cheaper than any other type of lighting. By the way, I'm not mad, or rich, I just don't see the point wasting money. Save your money, get proper equipment before you set up that new tank, and you'll be happy, and your corals will be happy.

 

[mattstewart]

man that's a crappy thing to say. I personally think I have a totally sweet reef under PC. I don't have any sps, but who needs them anyway. They're expense, hard to take care of, and there just as much awesome stuff out there that can do well under PC.

 

[ChrisRD]

I don't think anyone meant any harm here. I'm sure most of us would agree that it's possible to have a great reef tank under many different types of lighting, but the topic of the thread was concerning Acropora sp. in which case I agree with the recommendations for MH.

 

[cobra2806]

Secrest, I also have a 55 gal with PC lighting. I purchased my first acro frag about a year and a half ago. At that time I was using 6 PC bulbs. I placed the frag very high in the tank in an area with moderate water flow. I didn't see much growth the first year but I did see some. I then added 2 more PC bulbs to bring the total to 8. In a period of 6 months the original frag is now branched out and at least 10 times the size. I am now keeping 3 other acros one being the Cali blue tort. With only 4 PC's I think you could maintain an SPS provided you maintain healthy water conditions. If you can find a healthy frag go for it. Look for one with the polyps extended. Add 4 more PC's and you can keep about anything.

 

[Len]

I have seen SPS do well under 4x96W PCs (60 gallon). Most of the time, however, I agree that it's better to go with metal halide. More often then not, I hear mediocre results with SPS under PCs. MH, on the other hand, is universally known to be good for SPS corals.

MH is not expensive nowadays. If you are a little handy with wiring, it is about the same price to DIY a MH system compared to a PC system. It is true the finished units usually cost more. IMO, they are worth the price because most, like Sunlight and Aqualine, are very very well built.