Zoos, Palys and button polyps

[Mr_Cool]

Is it possible that the lighting is too strong for these? I upgraded my lights to MH 2 weeks ago. Since then, I've seen some terrific growth from a Kenya Tree frag. I've also notice that my zoos, palys and green button polyps are all opening up more. I think that's great. But, the colors on them seem much duller than they uysed to be.

I know they went too long without enough light, but I wasn't going to buy new PC bulbs that I wouldn't be using after the upgrade. Anyway, would it make sense to try to lower them in the tank and see if they color up better?

I'm running a 250W Reeflux bulb with a CoralVue ballast. I like the look of that bulb, and I've heard lots of people talking about them saying that you don't need to supplement with it. But, I don't know any better 'cause I don't have any experience to compare it with.

Any thoughts on this or how to get some color back?

[slimpknz]

my 12 gallon aquapod uses PC lighting, and I've noticed that frags I swapped with people using MH look different.

Some get more vivd, others become more drab. I think it depends on the zoa / paly.

[prof]

What color temp are the MH bulbs? 20K usually will take care of the need to supplement with actinic. If you have an actinic PC you could add it to the MH and see if that helps the color.

It takes a few weeks for a new bulb to burn in and achieve its true colors. You may just want to wait another week or two and see if you like it then.

If everything is open than they should be happy. I wouldn't be in a hurry to move any livestock unless they are staying closed. You should also give the livestock plenty of time to get used to the new lights.

[Mr_Cool]

Oh, yea. I guess I forgot to mention it's a 12,000 k bulb. It has quite a bit of blue in it, but I like it.

How long does it take for a MH bulb to burn in anyway? They run for 6 hrs. each day as of right now. I should probably be bumping that up a bit, too, huh?