The Puffer Forum

Not sure where you live:
http://www.reefcentral.co.uk/forumdispl ... Reef-Clubs
http://www.essexreefclub.org.uk/
http://www.ultimatereef.net/forums/index.php

all the members of my aquarium society is moving from T5/MH to LED. All my LFS for their display tank also use LED as well, maybe a few using T5. Perhaps this is a regional thing.

Maybe it is. I'm not saying a bunch in my area don't still have LEDs just that a ton of them are going back.
Here's one of the many LED posts at my local forum: http://www.chicagoreefs.com/forums/show ... not-to-LED

IMO LEDs shouldn't be just white and royal blue. Corals use other colors as well for photosynthesis (although small amount), such as green, blue, violet, reds, other spectrums within the different shades of white. These colors are essential for certain colored corals to keep their colors. I think this is the factor that many people have noticed from their LEDs compared to T5/MH. Its hard to bleach corals since LEDs are dimmable. There are a lot of people experimenting from the use of LEDs. Thats a good thing, but it also creates a lot of confusion since reports are different from person to person. There has not been a general consensus like there is for MH/T5. The great MH still wins most POTM on reef forums nowadays.

I have 2 shades of blue, Daylight & pink T5s over my tank.

+1 to PP's comments on heating, especially a reef. Everybody I know wants cooling...even my multi-filered FW tanks are heater-free. Tanks are hothouse folks in relation to Brits however.

Thanks for the links pp. yea we keep our houses around 18c , only tank rooms are warmer but that's because of the tanks

I think I have been having a moment lol. T5s are the skinny bulbs? Mine are t8s I think so either way I need new lighting. The t8s will be fine if no corals are there though I assume? I can replace those at a later date

Yes, very thin. T8s are what we normally use over our FW tanks--useless for corals.

But they are ok for a fowlr for now I assume, will concentrate on live rock etc for now

A light bulb is OK for FOWLR.

Cool, the lighting will wait a couple of months. Now do I tear off the 3d background or leave it so I can lean all the rock on the back without fear, too many decisions for me lol. Now next question what is the best substrate to use? I saw these little worm things popping out the substrate at the sealife centre and they looked soo cool, I wonder if I could buy those. But before I get ahead of myself the tank needs a clean.

Eventually your back wall will be covered with pink coraline algae, anyway.

bertie 83 wrote:Cool, the lighting will wait a couple of months. Now do I tear off the 3d background or leave it so I can lean all the rock on the back without fear, too many decisions for me lol. Now next question what is the best substrate to use? I saw these little worm things popping out the substrate at the sealife centre and they looked soo cool, I wonder if I could buy those. But before I get ahead of myself the tank needs a clean.

Bristle worms maybe?

That'd be my first guess just because they are a common hitchhiker on live rock.

I actually haven't seen any in my tank, or much of any hitchhikers for that matter, kinda disappointed.

I have looked into buying some of the more common hitchhikers like the bristles and others that make a good part of the CUC but haven't had any luck.


This is the sand I used, nothing too fancy
http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.j ... lInUS%2FNo

Lots of cool life growing in our tanks! Those are tube worms.