the color, the appearance, the growth,..
10k too white or yellowish is best for the growth
15k blue whitish is good for both color and growth but not the best for growth although you will get a pretty good growth rate
20k very blue, if you like the deep water look then it is perfect for you, it will make the colors of your corals stand out better but for growth is not as good as the 10k
hope this help some one please chime in if i missed any thing
also be aware that the color temp put on is generally just a guess made by each manufacturer. Not all 14k bulbs are 14k at ALL (phoenix 14k is much more blue than a true 14k, for instance)... Many bulbs do not even have an appropriate color temp(their color does not correspond to actual black body radiation). Also the color of each bulb will vary a bit from ballast to ballast.
the color, the appearance, the growth,..
10k too white or yellowish is best for the growth
15k blue whitish is good for both color and growth but not the best for growth although you will get a pretty good growth rate
20k very blue, if you like the deep water look then it is perfect for you, it will make the colors of your corals stand out better but for growth is not as good as the 10k
hope this help some one please chime in if i missed any thing
I like my Zoas to be very colorful. What MH bulb do you recommend? What brand? I have a 150watt sunpod. No actinic bulbs. Do I need one for my corals to color up well??
the better bulbs to buy are the xm, phoenix, radiums
(if you have an electronic ballast), reeflux is good, i like coralvue's 20,000k, and hamilton brand. yes actinics help a lot for coloring up corals.
I will get you some pics of Ian's tank... give me a bit to find the camera charger... the tank is still far from complete though... every time I think he's got it all figured out he decides on a "better" design plan or lighting system. At least he's obsessed with reefkeeping and not what other wives complain about right!!!
hey thanks kayte lol true he could be out doing something elsewhere but is at home wretching his brain trying to think of the best way to set everything up. i still change stuff around here and there. probably every six months or so. I love to change my aqua scape. what is ian trying to frag?