Lighting a 90

[Melonbob]

Hello all! I'm starting up a new 90g tank, standard stuff. Although I have a good background of the hobby and ran several successful tanks, I've been out of the game for a little over 4 years now. The big change in that time has been the explosion in LED lighting for reefs. I definitely want to go this route, but I don't know where to start. I'd like a single fixture or two that I can suspend from the ceiling, I prefer that look to a canopy on top. Can anyone give me some suggestions?

 

[2XAl]

The big money reputable manufacturers are ecotech and AI. When i finally make the led jump i am going to spend less money and go with a reefbreeders. Quick googling or site search will bring up hours of reading on all 3.

 

[kbuser92]

Maxspect Razer is the only one I know that makes a long, single fixture @2XAl said, Ecotech Radions are about the best and they are the most adjustable. They can also be set up to do cool modes and storms and stuff with the Vortech pumps. AI also has some good lights that can be run through an Apex or Neptune. I personally havethe ReefBreeders fixture (about 5-6 weeks now) and love it. My corals are all doing better than they were with my T5HO and seem to be growing well.

Just be careful to slowly acclimate because you will burn corals very easily with LED's.

 

[Melonbob]

What about Kessils? the A360WE

 

[kbuser92]

Yes, those are good from what I hear, but unfortunately my budget didn't allow for any of those fixtures, otherwise I would have gone with Radions and Vortechs for their wireless communications.

 

[mariobrothersleeve]

What about Kessils? the A360WE

Yes they are great lights. Look under 72 bow and that will give you an idea of what to expect.

 

[mariobrothersleeve]

I found the picture.

 

[fastrd400]

A pair of Kessil A360's or Radion if you can afford them. Kessil is a manual tuning which is super convenient as opposed to the others that are adjusted through their software. I run both these and would not even consider any of the others mentioned.

 

[kbuser92]

A pair of Kessil A360's or Radion if you can afford them. Kessil is a manual tuning which is super convenient as opposed to the others that are adjusted through their software. I run both these and would not even consider any of the others mentioned.

You might consider if your budget didn't allow for a $750 light fixture.

 

[fastrd400]

True. That is why I said "if you can afford them". Though I can find used Radions for 300.00 right now. I also think that BRS is having a sale on Kessil.

As for the price, lighting and skimming are 2 of the most important aspects of a reef tank, so you want to make sure you do it right the first time. Pumps and power heads you can skimp on and get away with, lighting does not afford you that opportunity.

 

[kbuser92]

That's true, but even a nice 4 or 6-bulb T5HO will do a nice job keeping about anything with care and planning.

 

[fastrd400]

That's true, but even a nice 4 or 6-bulb T5HO will do a nice job keeping about anything with care and planning.

True, but he specifically asked about LED. And a four bulb T5 really wouldn't do it anyway, he'd need a 6 bulb fixture minimum and then have to replace bulbs every 6 to 9 months.

 

[kbuser92]

I understand that, but its all a trade off. Unless you can afford high-end LED's, there's plenty of good "value" fixtures or other options all together. I'm not disagreeing that Radions are the way to go by any means.

 

[salt_for_brains]

I had the reefbreeders on my 90g with no complaints. I did change them out for the OceanRevive Arctic SO26's. They are wider and sleeker and fit really nice in my canopy. I picked up the pair for $312 shipped. They are made by Evergrow just like the Reefbreeders. Either light make coral pop and grow nicely. Like any hobby there are always more expensive options like the Radion or Kessil. Affordability wasn't a problem for me but I chose the value fixture route with no regrets.

 

[Melonbob]

I'm definitely wanting to go the LED route this time around. My last tank (look under Bob's Ghetto build) thrived under t5, but I paid 1600 for the fixture, and a couple hundred in bulbs just to get it up and running! And that was only five years ago, how things have changed.

 

[ReeferRob]

I'm 6 months with my new SUPAR CHINA LEDs and I love them. I wish they would have a better sunrise and sunset, but I can't complain. The fish and corals are doing great and I should get my other set up this week so I can set up my 85 MiniReef tank. I don't know what you've budgeted but here's what I have arriving this week.
http://www.aliexpress.com/store/pro...-114pcs-3W-led-maxspect/117944_906647463.html

 

[mariobrothersleeve]

Once again I agree with fastrod. These lights have been tested and do truly preform. Not to many folks here have had the cheaper led lights up for very long. It's kinda hard to make a judgment in 2 months on the true growth of corals since it takes longer than that to see growth.

 

[kbuser92]

Once again I agree with fastrod. These lights have been tested and do truly preform. Not to many folks here have had the cheaper led lights up for very long. It's hard to make a judgment in 2 months on the true growth of corals since it takes longer than that to see growth.

It takes longer to see the long-term effects. My corals have exploded in the couple months that I have had mine. The only difference is the name and some are adjustable to do special effects where many value fixtures cannot be programmed like their expensive counterparts. But they do grow corals every bit as good as Radions and Kessil's.

 

[mariobrothersleeve]

It takes longer to see the long-term effects. My corals have exploded in the couple months that I have had mine. The only difference is the name and some are adjustable to do special effects where many value fixtures cannot be programmed like their expensive counterparts. But they do grow corals every bit as good as Radions and Kessil's.

So this statement says all leds are the same. The only reason they are expensive is because they are program capable with a name? In this case the reef capable leds from Marineland would be high end and they cost less?

 

[kbuser92]

No, Marineland uses 1 watt bulbs where the major makers use 3 watt bulbs. Maybe exact brands of bulbs vary, but as long as they are quality then there shouldn't be any issues.

Keep in mind that EcoTech charges a premium for their products because of the wireless interface. AI, Kessil, EcoTech and Maxspect have also spent a lot of money advertising and programming so they can charge a much higher price per fixture than, say, ReefBreeders or TaoTronics who are more focused on the budget-minded reefer so are marketing lower priced "value" fixtures that do the same thing without some of the bells and whistle.

Its similar to buying a truck. Do you need all the Bluetooth and satellite radio with fancy controls? Or is the plain old Chevy gonna do the job?