Lighting for 20 gallon long?

ErnBieman

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Hello,

Apologies if this has been covered already (please send link if it has). My son and I have a 20 gallon long that is populated with a few Zoas, some GSP, and hammer coral. The Zoas are going brown. The water is great (we do regular changes and test for close to a dozen parameters). We suspect the Light. We are using a Joyhill (jayhill?) full spectrum light purchased off Amazon. We did notice that this light was too strong and the corals were not opening, so we partially shaded the tank lid. We then found the zoas over-extending to seek light. After playing with the shading, we still have not been able to get the corals to open fully except for the GSP. They are slowly losing their colour - even when adding supplements meant to help with this. We are thinking of changing to a single AI Prime 16HD using a flex mount. Does this seem appropriate? Any other thoughts?

Many thanks,

Ern

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MarineandReef Jaron

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For a long tank like this, I would prefer a longer light than a prime. I would go with an Aquatic Life Edge or Fluval Marine and Reef Strip these will spread out the light better than the single prime. I personally don't use pendents for more than a 24in span so the 30in long tank will likely have dark spots with the prime.

 
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ErnBieman

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For a long tank like this, I would prefer a longer light than a prime. I would go with an Aquatic Life Edge or Fluval Marine and Reef Strip these will spread out the light better than the single prime. I personally don't use pendents for more than a 24in span so the 30in long tank will likely have dark spots with the prime.

Thanks for the feedback. This definitely helps!
 
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kukawskim80

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Hello,

Apologies if this has been covered already (please send link if it has). My son and I have a 20 gallon long that is populated with a few Zoas, some GSP, and hammer coral. The Zoas are going brown. The water is great (we do regular changes and test for close to a dozen parameters). We suspect the Light. We are using a Joyhill (jayhill?) full spectrum light purchased off Amazon. We did notice that this light was too strong and the corals were not opening, so we partially shaded the tank lid. We then found the zoas over-extending to seek light. After playing with the shading, we still have not been able to get the corals to open fully except for the GSP. They are slowly losing their colour - even when adding supplements meant to help with this. We are thinking of changing to a single AI Prime 16HD using a flex mount. Does this seem appropriate? Any other thoughts?

Many thanks,

Ern

View attachment 2952098
AI primes are great. However, with this tanks dimensions you probably would need 2 of them. I would check out light bars instead. Something like the new AI blade or similar models from other brands
 
Nutramar Foods

Polyp polynomial: How many heads do you start with when buying zoas?

  • One head is enough to get started.

    Votes: 27 10.6%
  • 2 to 4 heads.

    Votes: 145 57.1%
  • 5 heads or more.

    Votes: 65 25.6%
  • Full colony.

    Votes: 10 3.9%
  • Other.

    Votes: 7 2.8%
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