420 or 460 atinics

[t4zalews]

So which one is better, 420nm or 460nm. Of course we are talking about color spectrum's here. the 420nm is blue and 460nm more violet.

 

1)Which one makes coral color come out more?

2)Which one is more beneficial?

 

Any tank pics with your actinics and what kind they are would be awesome.

[evilc66]

420nm is purple/violet, and 460nm is blue. The 420nm will make the corals pop more, and benefit more from it photosynthetically. The 470nm does give a slightly more apealing color.

[masterbuilder]

What evil said.....but....most times and with most light setups...I like 420 best.

[Rocket]

I had both 460 pc and 420 pc. I perfer 420nm with my Mh setup. Color nicely

[kmu]

420nm is purple/violet, and 460nm is blue. The 420nm will make the corals pop more, and benefit more from it photosynthetically. The 470nm does give a slightly more apealing color.

 

 

So the 420nm actinic helps promote better coral growth than the 460nm actinic?

 

Does the 420nm actinic puts out less par than the 460nm actinic?

[Rocket]

So the 420nm actinic helps promote better coral growth than the 460nm actinic?

 

Does the 420nm actinic puts out less par than the 460nm actinic?

 

 

Not sure on the par aspect, It is the type of radiation that is more important to the coral growth. 420 is almost spot on for the photosynthetic corals to achieve maximum photosynthesis.

 

One thing to understand is that the 420nm will look much more dim than the 460nm bulbs. This is because 420nm light is on the very edge of what we humans can see as light. So if you want a Brighter tank go for the 460nm. If you want faster coral growth 420 nm is best.

 

Here I refer to this article some times: LINK

[JKUNZ]

Not sure on the par aspect, It is the type of radiation that is more important to the coral growth. 420 is almost spot on for the photosynthetic corals to achieve maximum photosynthesis.

 

One thing to understand is that the 420nm will look much more dim than the 460nm bulbs. This is because 420nm light is on the very edge of what we humans can see as light. So if you want a Brighter tank go for the 460nm. If you want faster coral growth 420 nm is best.

 

Here I refer to this article some times: LINK

 

So i'm running a 150w 14k Phoenix with two 420, and two 460...the 420 are from growth and 460 looks basically, right??

[Rocket]

Just about! They are close to the 420 range so 460 still helps corals grow. But some people like the look of the 460.

 

I run 150w 10k ushios with 420 actinic pc's and am very happy with CRI (color rendering)

[JKUNZ]

Just about! They are close to the 420 range so 460 still helps corals grow. But some people like the look of the 460.

 

I run 150w 10k ushios with 420 actinic pc's and am very happy with CRI (color rendering)

 

 

Pics???

[Rocket]

check my 125 tank thread then.

 

I think page 5 has the best shots, and the bulbs have over a 100 hour burn time.

 

This took a lot of effort balancing camera settings but the tank looks exactly like this:

 

[JKUNZ]

check my 125 tank thread then.

 

I think page 5 has the best shots, and the bulbs have over a 100 hour burn time.

 

Just checked er out!! Nice!!

 

I just built a stand for a 135, and finally have the CAD renderings of what the rimless tank will look like. Can't wait!

[geekreef_05]

i think it would depend on the specific bulb. considering that PAR is the standard measurement of useful light for a coral, you should look at PAR values of actinic bulbs from various brands.

 

You'll quickly see that companies like ATI have t5 actinic lights which are higher par than most daylight bulbs. So in theory you could run a 100% actinic tank and still have good growth...

...i know some reefers on here are actually doing that.

[kmu]

i think it would depend on the specific bulb. considering that PAR is the standard measurement of useful light for a coral, you should look at PAR values of actinic bulbs from various brands.

 

You'll quickly see that companies like ATI have t5 actinic lights which are higher par than most daylight bulbs. So in theory you could run a 100% actinic tank and still have good growth...

...i know some reefers on here are actually doing that.

 

 

This info is really interesting since I really like my corals to glow but always limited my actinics because I tought they did not produce coral growth like 10k or 20k bulbs did...