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Thread: Lights

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    Lights

    I have a scrubber that is a little over two weeks old using a 7 by 7 screen. I have a brown spot the size of a baseball on my screen due to the light concentration. I'm using one 23 watt CFL 2700K on each side of the screen about 5 inches away from the screen. I'm currently running 18 hours on and 6 off. Should I decrease my photo period or move the lights 6 inches from the screen? Any help would be greatly appreciated!

  2. #2
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    Best is to increase flow. Next you can add iron. Next best is move the light 2" farther away. Last best is reduce light to 12 hours.

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    If its a dark brown I think you want to run lights longer. Maybe 20-21 hrs until you get greener. If light brown then yeah move light back or reduce light.

    Are you using a reflector of any sort? A cheap clamp light from menards will help. I also found a CFL floodlight that is 23w, but unlike others that say is 75w equivalent, this one was 100w equivalent. Still 2700k.

    I have just ordered two LED bars to upgrade two of my four CFL lights. You'll find the link on this site. Havent seen any actual results other than the youtube video posted on the for sale site. Looks solid. A few from this site just bought some but they havent posted any reviews. I'll update the thread once I can compare the two LED bars on one side vs. 2 23w CFLs on the other side. Screen is about 9 x 10.

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    Both of you guys are running screens a little big for your light. Its likely that a smaller screen would produce much better nutrient removal. Try to get closer to 6x6 at the most with the 23W CFL, I was using the 44W CFL with a 5x6 screen a had good results.
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    Hes running one CFL per side while I'm running two per side. 90sq inches of screen means I need at least 90 watts. I'm at 46w per side for a total of 92 watts.

  6. #6

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    Quote Originally Posted by Brent1128 View Post
    If its a dark brown I think you want to run lights longer. Maybe 20-21 hrs until you get greener. If light brown then yeah move light back or reduce light.

    Are you using a reflector of any sort? A cheap clamp light from menards will help. I also found a CFL floodlight that is 23w, but unlike others that say is 75w equivalent, this one was 100w equivalent. Still 2700k.

    I have just ordered two LED bars to upgrade two of my four CFL lights. You'll find the link on this site. Havent seen any actual results other than the youtube video posted on the for sale site. Looks solid. A few from this site just bought some but they havent posted any reviews. I'll update the thread once I can compare the two LED bars on one side vs. 2 23w CFLs on the other side. Screen is about 9 x 10.
    Thanks for your input! I look forward to seeing all the info you have on your LEDs. Please let me know your results. Thanks again.

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    Quote Originally Posted by Brian Fuehrer View Post
    Thanks for your input! I look forward to seeing all the info you have on your LEDs. Please let me know your results. Thanks again.
    By the way, I am using 8 inch round reflectors. One on each side of the screen.

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    Quote Originally Posted by SantaMonica View Post
    Best is to increase flow. Next you can add iron. Next best is move the light 2" farther away. Last best is reduce light to 12 hours.
    Thanks for the info SM! My flow is 300 GPH right now and based on the calculator you provided I think it should be a minimum 240GPH. I'm going to give the iron dosing a try and see what happens. I don't know if this matters but my screen is technically 12 inches long for the purpose of reaching the water in the sump.

  9. #9

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    Quote Originally Posted by kerry View Post
    Both of you guys are running screens a little big for your light. Its likely that a smaller screen would produce much better nutrient removal. Try to get closer to 6x6 at the most with the 23W CFL, I was using the 44W CFL with a 5x6 screen a had good results.
    Thanks for the input kerry. I think the way I worded the question was a little goofy. I have single light on each side of the screen.

  10. #10

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    Quote Originally Posted by Brian Fuehrer View Post
    Thanks for the info SM! My flow is 300 GPH right now and based on the calculator you provided I think it should be a minimum 240GPH. I'm going to give the iron dosing a try and see what happens. I don't know if this matters but my screen is technically 12 inches long for the purpose of reaching the water in the sump.
    A longer screen to reach the water in the sump should not matter very much if you concentrate the light on the effective area. I currently have a longer screen with lights concentrated near the top half. I get algae growth spread out a bit, that's all.

    The point here is that you are not just growing algae, but using the algae growth to use up nitrates and phosphates. Even a thin growth of algae can do this.

    If you have enough light and good flow, it should work.

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