refuge lighting?

[bottom feeder]

Hello all,well Ive recently changed my wet dry which came with the tank out for a 20 gal diy sump/refuge which is working quite nice now.In my fuge I now have chaeto/live rock/mangroves.My question is about lighting on my chaeto,does it require more than 20watt fluoresent to grow? Thanks in advance..........Mike

[nikonosis]

this is the most recommended bulb.
http://www.lightbulbsdirect.com/page...ctors/1P381951

[bottom feeder]

awsome thanks i ordered one today

[ScubaTC]

I bought a 4-pack from local HD a good while back. The specs are:

PAR38
1100 Lumens
23 watt (90 watt equivalent)
8,000 hours

Looks like the part # is 590-472 (back left cover of package).

Would this be just as good as the bulb that is linked in the prior post?

[nikonosis]

welcome

scubatc, what kelvin is it?

[MikeAtJax]

I think you have to special order them at HD. Here is some info http://www.melevsreef.com/fuge_bulb.html. Get the 19 watt at the bottom of the page.

[ScubaTC]

Originally Posted by nikonosis

welcome

scubatc, what kelvin is it?

heh, I knew you would ask.

It's not stated on the packaging or bulb. It says warm white light. Maybe I can find out details online, but I doubt it. Will check. If I am using the wrong bulbs I'd like to know and replace them.

[ScubaTC]

nikonosis - the color temp is n/a. Looking at melevs page that Mike posted the bulb looks like 2700. Think its time for me to order another bulb!

[nikonosis]

If you notice melev posted this on the top of the page

Please read this entire article, as a better bulb became apparent during 2005.

He tested the 2700K bulb versus a 5100K bulb and Fourteen days later, the 5100K bulb proved to be the better spectrum, with more obvious growth..
Please note the 5100K is far less yellow in appearance.

It turns out that Technical Consumer Products is the actual manufacturer of the bulb. You can buy the bulb under the TCP brand name. The part number is 1P3816 5100K.

You can either ask home depot if they can get that specific bulb or you can just buy it here, http://www.lightbulbsdirect.com/page...ctors/1P381951

[nikonosis]

If you want to read the entire thread on RC about it, here it is,
http://reefcentral.com/forums/showth...5&pagenumber=1

[ScubaTC]

Originally Posted by nikonosis

If you notice melev posted this on the top of the page



He tested the 2700K bulb versus a 5100K bulb and Fourteen days later, the 5100K bulb proved to be the better spectrum, with more obvious growth..
Please note the 5100K is far less yellow in appearance.

It turns out that Technical Consumer Products is the actual manufacturer of the bulb. You can buy the bulb under the TCP brand name. The part number is 1P3816 5100K.

You can either ask home depot if they can get that specific bulb or you can just buy it here, http://www.lightbulbsdirect.com/page...ctors/1P381951

I bought 2 bulbs last night from light bulbs direct. Shipping was $3 short of another bulb. lol maybe next time our club can do a group buy to cut down on shipping.

[mpdharley]

I used to use those bulbs for my fuge, but had problems being able to consistently buy them. If I recall correctly, it is recommended that you change them out every 6 months.

For my new tank, I decided to change and went with VHO bulbs (URI AquaSun 50/50 bulbs). I've had much better growth with the VHO bulbs, but for smaller fuges (only needing one of mentioned bulbs), I would probably go with them and just buy a couple at a time.

[MikeAtJax]

It is the 5100K you want. You can see the difference at the bottom of the page.

[dacro]

Mr. TC, we did the same a few months ago...

We continue to experiment with the lighting hours and flow rate, but our fuge in the 180 has really blossomed...

I agree that the cost is a little pricey!