Blues - high or low?

[reefOgraphic]

I was wondering if anyone has accumulative insight or verstehen on placement of blue acros?...tort in this case.

I bought an Oregon Tort frag about a year ago and it was pretty washed out when I got it. Owner had 12 watts a gallon, lights 4-6" from water and frag 2/3 up the compact tank. I have a 250 Phoenix, 65 watt actinic running in a 58. Lights are close to water and the tort is 1/2 way down. Within weeks it colored up nicely and has been growing great the last 6 months.

While it's looking nice, it seems to be not as deep blue as it is blue-purple. I've heard blues like more intensity and higher position to keep their coloring but this seems to go against their native environment logically. It had also seen more intense, although much more intense light, and that wasnt working. Conditions are very good and exports are low. Any thoughts on placement to get the blue that it really has?

 

[Top Water]

I have a couple one in high light and other in slightly indirect light both are super colorful but high light is more vivid.

 

[fwadiver]

in nature all these pretty corals are brown, the reason the color looks so nice is because we artificially expose them to more light than they get in the ocean, causing a response to protect themselves from the light. Blues can also be tricky from a water chemistry prospective, have you tried testing potassium and strontium levels?

 

[reefOgraphic]

in nature all these pretty corals are brown, the reason the color looks so nice is because we artificially expose them to more light than they get in the ocean, causing a response to protect themselves from the light. Blues can also be tricky from a water chemistry prospective, have you tried testing potassium and strontium levels?

I have not tested strontium but I dose for it in a combined product. No, on potassium. I will check these.

I have read several posts on placing blues lower (and higher) but I don't think their lighting conditions were fully qualified in their posts. Thanks for all the help.