Lighting Question

[dabudkrew]

i have 2-96 watts and 2- 55watts bulbs, i curently have antics on my 96, just wanted an opinion on what i should get for the 2 55's, thanks

[apedroza]

I would go for 2 50/50 bulbs or 1 50/50 and 1 10000K bulb

[dabudkrew]

yea i was thinking of 2 50/50, but will there be too much blue light?

[copperband]

no because there will be 2 blue's and 2 daylight bulbs so you would be fine

[copperband]

also corals need blue actinic lighting to survive

[dabudkrew]

but i already have 2 96 watt antics

[MissT]

also corals need blue actinic lighting to survive

nope, they're for aesthetics. (They make 'em look good)

Corals use white and yellow light to grow. The problems with yellow spectrum bulbs in a reef tank are they don't look very good and they produce algae farms. That's why when you have a 10000K bulb and, in the T5 example, it's recomended you change the bulb every 12 months or so. Even though the bulb still fires and looks pretty much the same to us, the "whiteness" of the bulb has burned off and the bulb will start to produce more algae.
Sooooo, I'd put in 2 10K bulbs in the 96w, and actinics in the 55w so you get maximum usability out of your lighting setup. If you can't do all new bulbs, leave one actinic in the 96, get a 10K 96 and do the same with your 55w. Then repeat in a couple months or when you can, switching them all out over a period of time

[dabudkrew]

thanks everyone