switching MH

[gflat65]

I didn't want to steal fishdoc's thread so...
I am switching from 175W 12K Sunburst to 10K Ushio. The Sunburst should still have a few good months on it (it's only 9 mo old or so). How much should I cut them back and for how long? I run the MH 12 hrs/day and the VHO 14 hrs/day now. Is the schedule listed under fishdoc's thread a good range of acclimation times in my case too?

[Sir Knight]

Yes , in my opinion, the sunburst bulbs have one of the lowest pars of all the bulbs. So, the acclimation method that I outlined for Chris should work for you.

Another way would be to raise the bulbs to say 14" to 16" off the water and lower them 2 inches weekly.

The last method is to put screening( something like 4 pieces of shade cloth and remove a piece weekly for a 4 week period


Hope this helps

[fishdoc11]

Just don't do what I did. Patience is a virtue! Also watch the Paletta blue carefully. Apparently it is a very light sensitive coral. Interestingly enough not only the colony near the top of my tank lost it's color but also 3 frags sitting on the bottom. Also the longer you wait to replace the bulb the more acclimation required.
Chris

[gflat65]

Thanks for the info guys. I'll try cutting back on the photoperiod and using a shading device. :)