Starting a tank

[wwest]

on saturday june 3rd i setup a 10gal tank. well i had a hood that took two bulbs one per side of the tank. well i went and bought two 50/50 20watt bulbs. got them home and in one box i received a 10watt instead so i took that back and they were out so now i am waiting. however i went ahead with my plans and just put the one 50/50 bulb i had on the right side of the tank. this morning ( 6/6/06 ) when i woke up i noticed that i have algae already starting however its only on the right side..


i now understand why you dont go cheap on lights. i just thought i would share that with everyone..

[gwen_o_lyn]

Well if you just setup the tank, there will be algae no matter what kind of lights you use. And some lights will grow it better than others.

I also see crushed coral for your sand bed- you may wanna do a little reading on having a tank with crushed coral. It wil trap detritus, which will cause higher nitrates. Make sure you are siphoning the rocks very well during water changes.

[wwest]

i have always heard that having "the right algae" is what you want. well if certain lights grew algae at the beginning of the cycle faster wouldnt they grow coraline algae faster as well, cycleing and preparing that tank alot faster?

also i am adding florida crushed coral this week sometime. just havnt yet. :-)

[Rob]

Originally Posted by wwest

i have always heard that having "the right algae" is what you want. well if certain lights grew algae at the beginning of the cycle faster wouldnt they grow coraline algae faster as well, cycleing and preparing that tank alot faster?

also i am adding florida crushed coral this week sometime. just havnt yet. :-)

not really true.. putting your tank through its initial cycle phase is about biological filtration involving bacteria.

and that said, the lighting that grows algae better usually doesn't grow desired coral as well. in fact a sign that your bulbs are going bad is an increase in algae.

[wwest]

So then this raises more questions about lights lol :-) those are 50/50 lights, what type of lights do corals strive from? Can i just pay someone to come fix my light situation lol :-)

[gwen_o_lyn]

For corals, you want either power compacts, VHO's, metal halides, or T5's. I'm not sure what 50/50 lights are. Are they for freshwater tanks? Do a search for "reef tank lighting" and you will found lots of articles on lighting. I'm sure there is a podcast or 2 about lighting.

I don't see your coralline growing faster, but I'm guess you will grow more of a green colored coralline.

[wwest]

50/50 lights are nothing more 50% actinic and 50% daylight in one bulb..

[Rob]

50/50 lights are fine for your tank..

the point i was getting at was the lights that produce optimal algae growth are usually lights at a temp of 6500K, and while 6500K can be used in coral tanks, people usually agree that above 10,000K provides better growth for some corals.

keep with what you have as it will be fine.. the algae growth is normal.. just don't equate algae growth with tank tank cycle.. they are related but still two different things.

[veriann]

whats the stocking plan?
overall design ideas.

we can help u out ahead of time, makes lite work when the time come!

[wwest]

its just going to be a frag tank.