Before you start choosing your lighting, know that there are several:

• T8 and T5 fluorescent tube (neon)
• LED lamps
• Compact fluorescent lamp
• HQI lamp

The power of the lighting will depend on the population that is in your aquarium.

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Understanding marine lighting:

Spectrum:

The spectrum is a set of colored rays emitted by a light source. It is presented in the form of a graph which represents the light energy diffused according to the wavelength of the different visible colors.

Lumen :

Lumen units (lm) describe the brightness of light and are therefore decisive when choosing LED aquarium lighting. On the other hand, watts represent the power consumption of the bulb, regardless of brightness.

To get a general idea, a marine aquarium requires 50-70 Lm/L.

Kelvin :

This unit is used to indicate the color temperature. 
When these are the hot zones, the value will be low, while for the cold so-called blue zones, the values ​​will be higher.

Color temperatures of 6,500 K to 10,000 K reproduce the solar spectrum of the tropics. A stronger color temperature of 20,000 K is appreciated by corals.

Lux :

The lux is the unit of illuminance, in other words the light intensity received by a surface.

The color rendering index:

It is the ability of a lighting system to restore more or less the color of the elements it illuminates. This data is important and does not depend on the color temperature of the lighting.

Tip: choose an IRC between 80 and 90 for better color rendering.

Colors :

For the health of plants and fish in the aquarium, it is necessary to use different colors of light. 

Blue:

Blue light is recommended in saltwater aquariums. In fact, blue LEDs are best suited to the properties of seawater. Blue light produces a specific spectrum to promote growth and health. - is a plant. Additionally, the different colors provided by the blue LEDs will fluoresce on the coral.

Note: blue lighting is strongly recommended, as it produces a spectrum specific to good growth.

White :

The combination of blue and white lights form the reef lights. This combination of colors forms the color rendering index, or CRI. IRC is used to better enhance the color of the coral in the tank. The combination of white and blue tubes creates the optimum seawater temperature.

What should I choose for my reef aquarium?

It is advisable to use powerful lighting of the HQI, T5 and LED types, with high color temperatures (14000 K).

Hanging ramps are a good way to light up your bin.

Place your lighting correctly:

For best results, the aquarium light should be placed very close to the water surface, preferably at the front of the aquarium.

Hours of use:

On average, the lighting of an aquarium is 8 to 12 hours, in order to adapt a biological rhythm according to your aquarium.

Note: if your tank is too bright, you risk having algae appear in your water.

Lighting maintenance:

For the tubes, you can change the bulb every year.

Warning: to avoid burns, you must remove the bulbs when the lighting is off.

For LED lamps, as a general rule, an LED ramp can be changed within 4 to 7 years, this light source requires less intervention, because the drift of the light emitted over time is low.