I am planning to do mix reef on reefer 170. Dimension: 24(L) X 20 (D) x 20 (H). I am debating should I go with 1 Kessil 360 or Hydra 26HD or 2 Kessil 160. I am leaning towards 2 Kessil 160 as it would have the best coverage and eliminates any shadowing effect, but I think it would be an overkill for mix reef of this size. Please let me know what you guys thinks.
Lighting for Reefer 170
- Thread starter Bioree
- Start date
DEATH BY SNU SNU
Guest
Ecotech Radions ftw
DEATH BY SNU SNU
Guest
It's always better to have two different light sources to eliminate shadowing. so 2 x 160 would be better
DEATH BY SNU SNU
Guest
or two ai primes
Flagg37
Guest
You can always turn the intensity down. Also, you'll want to play around with how high to mount them above the surface of the water. Higher gives more even dispersion but you'll have more light spilling into the room. BRS investigates did a full test on the 160. It would be worth a watch.
kinetic
Supporting Member
I have a newly setup Reefer 170 and I'm running a Hydra 52 HD. It seems pretty overkill now that I look at it. The light spilling over the edges is a lot, and I'll have to bring the light pretty far down and crank the intensity back. The good news is if I ever need super high light, I will have plenty with minimal shadowing from the 4 pucks. But anyway, I still don't have any corals / livestock, nor have I gotten a PAR meter to try it out, so I have no idea.
The Hydra 26HD was my first choice, but I got the 52 on Amazon new for the same price somehow. I know a lot of people with a Reefer 170 using the Hydra 26 without issues (they keep anemones, sps). The two pucks on the Hydra 26 help with shadows.
I don't know much about Kessil. TBH the tank is pretty small. Not sure if you'd really need 2 lights unless you have wall to wall corals, with some huge tabling ones up top.
The Hydra 26HD was my first choice, but I got the 52 on Amazon new for the same price somehow. I know a lot of people with a Reefer 170 using the Hydra 26 without issues (they keep anemones, sps). The two pucks on the Hydra 26 help with shadows.
I don't know much about Kessil. TBH the tank is pretty small. Not sure if you'd really need 2 lights unless you have wall to wall corals, with some huge tabling ones up top.
sfsuphysics
Supporting Member
A single Radion XR15 PRO is cheaper than 2 Kessil A160s, and comparable to a a Kessil 360 while being at the same power output. Just some food for thought.
Wow you got a crazy deal on the Hydra 52 than. Please let me know how the par reads for the Hydra.
What is your experience on the radion? Is it comparable to the Hydra 26 in terms of eliminating shadowing effects? I know that if I run one kessil it will lot of shadowing because of my rock work.
sfsuphysics
Supporting Member
No personal experience with them, BRS did do a nice video on the XR15, the first part of the video is with a single XR15, then they show multiple ones, but the idea of shadowing is going to happen regardless since the light will come out as more of a cone of light since it's centralized.
kinetic
Supporting Member
Yeah, I thought they messed up on the price, or accidentally put the wrong description/box on the Amazon for sale page. I thought, worse comes to worse, they send me a Hydra 26 HD, and I just have the light I was going to get anyway, or I could just return it without any penalties. Best case, I get a Hydra 52 HD for the same price as a 26. Glad it worked out! When I bought it, there were only 3 left in stock. The next day, there were none left at the price and it shot back up to the normal price. Crazy.
So I finally got my display tank and filled with water, rock, and sand. My rocks have no real shadows anywhere, so the coverage is pretty good already. We'll see when I add corals, but I think with 4 pucks, the coverage is great.
Once I can borrow the BAR PAR meter, I'll have all the numbers!
Here's Dave Fason who is running a NanoBox Quad over his tank (he is actually the owner / maker of the NanoBox LED lights):
https://www.nano-reef.com/forums/to...spar-readings/?do=findComment&comment=5556348
His lights are pretty nice. I think it comes with a BlueFish controller. You can get pretty custom looks with them, and they're of the highest quality LEDs. He's been making these things for years. I was going to buy one for my tank, but ended up with the huge deal with the Hydra 52. Just an option to look into. But cool to see his PAR readings.
Thanks for sharing. The pictures from his corals are amazing.
Want to share more? I am curious. I read on another forum is that 2 160 is almost the same as 1 360. I might be wrong but would love to hear your thoughts.
Hi Flagg37 - I saw the video but I think BRS did it on the 360. It's impressive how much par one little light can put out. But of course, radion is still king of par.