As more and more data is released on LED aquarium lights there are still many who strongly believe they cannot grow SPS corals. On paper there should not be a problem, but for some the numbers are not enough. While not a true test, I was curious myself to see what type of coral growth would [...]
As more and more data is released on LED aquarium lights there are still many who strongly believe they cannot grow SPS corals. On paper there should not be a problem, but for some the numbers are not enough. While not a true test, I was curious myself to see what type of coral growth would occur under royal blue LED dominated light that aquarists are quickly falling in love with. Additionally, I hope to highlight the idea of spotlighting. The light shown here is an effective solution for nano reef keepers wanting to keep SPS in their moderately lit aquarium, without the added heat and electrical costs that often accompany other lighting technology.
The light chosen is an unbranded LED Spotlight I received direct from a manufacturer in China. The light screws into your standard household socket and powers a single Luxeon III Royal Blue LED, consuming just 3w of electricity. The light is extremely focused using a tight optic that creates a very clean beam of light.
To observe this I chose a readily available and colorful captive propagated coral–the ORA Red Planet. This coral has been in captivity long enough that we have a good idea of its shape and coloration. It also fluoresces well showing off its red and green pigments under ~450nm LED light.
This ORA Red Planet is being grown under T5s in the aquarium of Mike Clifford.
I could not dedicated a separate tank for the individual coral, so it will receive a bit more than just 3 watts of LEDs. It has been placed in the rear corner of the glassbox where only incidental light spill occured. PAR measurements here range from 20 to a peak of 80 micromoles/m2/sec at ‘mid day’. The coral is attached to the overflow box at 7″ below the surface. The light is clipped onto the edge of the aquarium with the lens just 1″ above the water. This provides a PAR increase of roughly 170 micromoles/m2/sec.
While far from a controlled experiment we love to tinker we’re curious to see how this particular coral grows under this spotlight. Be sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel for more updates.
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