LED Suggestion (advice)

aveda6

aveda6

Newbie Reef
Location
nashua, nh
Hello,

I am looking to upgrade my 150watt Metal Halide lights to LED and I'm looking for some advice. Currently, my set up is a 29 gallon biocube (the one with the metal halide kit). It's been up and running for many years but the lighting is slowly dying (the coolings fans have stopped working, the attachment tot he cube is broken, etc) plus I want to change to LED. I have routinely changed my bulbs so no issues there.

I have mostly mushrooms, soft corals and a few fish. I constantly battle bubble-algae and aptasia (although I know lighting doesn't really impact that, I'm just trying to give a sense of the tank).

I've been looking at two options that are quite affordable:

OceanRevive Arctic S-026
Current USA Orbit Marine 18-24

From reading online it seems that if I go with the Current strip I will need two strands instead of one due to the low wattage LED. The OR's seem to have a better set of LED's but no options (no moonlight, etc). I'm not too worried about multiple options but I do want to get a decent set.

I'm definitely open to other suggestions. The idea is to expand on the coral supply eventually (but first I have to get the algae and aptasia under control). The mushrooms have thrived but I need something else in the tank.

One other question for anyone that runs Biocubes. Do you run the system with the glass cover on or off (especially with the LED strips). I've always had the cover on but I was reading online that the glass can significantly block light transmission (my cover is not crystal clear by any means). I'm more worried about evaporation but I can top off if it's better for the tank.

Thank you,
james
 
I have two OR arctic so26 on my 90g. I will be running three on my 180g when I put it in service. These lights are really good for the price. I have had a lot of different LPS, SPS, clam, anemones thriving under them. You can certainly get a lot more bells and whistles with other brands but that all comes with a price. The slimmer profile of the Ocean Revive will probably serve you well on the biocube. Running the halides with a glass top probably built a lot of heat? It won't be nearly as hot with the LEDs. Unless the top is completely sealed I don't think you lose to much efficiency with gas exchange as others think. So I will leave that decision up to you on running with the glass top or not. You will lose some PAR trying to shine through dirty glass though. That's my two cents.
 
Any light is good. All has pros and cons to them.
I would suggest keeping lids off of any saltwater system. The co2 exchange is far better with no lid.
 
Thanks...Yes, the halides produce quite a bit of heat. I run a chiller to keep everything perfectly level. I learned years ago that a chiller was well worth the investment (I used to have a larger 55gallon and struggled immensely until I bought a chiller). With that I never have to worry about heat and temps vary by only a degree or two over time. The main difference seems to be that the Current USA can be set atop the aquarium while the OR will have to be hung (not a big deal, just trying to figure out the difference).
 
Wow, I hadn't seen the Kessils before. So, fastrd400, would I hang one above the tank and then remove the glass cover? The HQI biocube doesn't really have a lid (it's just the glass top) so I assume just remove it and then hang the Kessil from a certain height.

Do you know like the N or W versions of the 360? I assume just one, correct?
 
I would do the 360we, it's the newest. I run the 360w's. Check out my tank if you want. You could also look at the new 160we. I'm not sure on the light coverage on the 160 though. With the 360, you will only need 1. It covers 24x24x24 inch area.
 
Okay, thank you all. I ended up ordering the 360we. It looks really nice and with the gooseneck I can attach directly to the biocube which is a nice plus. Not the cheapest option I was looking at but I'm sure it will be a huge step up. I also took the glass cover off so we'll see if that helps.

On the biocube I don't run any filtration or skimmers. I used to run both and never saw an improvement. I think the light will make a big difference.
 
I had a Biocube 14. It was a pain in the ass with the lid on it. I had their protein skimmer that was a pain too. I pulled out some skimmate, but was always needing to adjust the bubble line.

With the lid off and the kessil, there will be no need for the cooler. I have yet to run one on my system and will probably never need one. Good luck.
 
thank you for the advice....I used to have a 55 gallon that was much easier to run than the 29 gallon. The system is so susceptible to minor fluctuations. Even when I do a water change the system doesn't respond well. The corals all close up overnight and don't reopen for 24 hours. That's even with pre-heated and matching salinity water. I've also always battled with Nitrates despite removing all traps. I used to run a filter but found that it just held the nitrates by grabbing all of the "yuck" of the tank. The cleanup crew is unbelievable and the starfish are proliferating like crazy. The bristle stars are starting to take over. Once I have the light up and running I'll post some photos to get some better advice on how to proceed.
 
Yes, the nitrates.
I did a w/c everyday with Rodi and changed filters out too, I could never get below 20ppm. It's the lid, the all in 1 ' s can't breathe.
The co2 builds up in the system and drips back down from the lid into the tank lowering the ph. For the nitrates, I can't explain. I had the same problem that you are stating. Have you researched the 'intank' media set up for chamber #2? I thought it was a very accommodating piece for the system.
 
Funny, I was just looking at the media kit that goes in the back. It seems interesting. I've always had sketchy luck with media. I need to get more proactive with my water changes. I am not as frequent as I need to be. That's my number one challenge. For a while I was getting nitrate build up in the chiller tubing but I have that under control now.
 
I actually got some Onyx lights from RapidLED for my 125g. Love them so far. Great customer service, too. Compatible with Apex controllers, too.
 
aveda6 what is your programming like for your kessil a360 do you make it peak to the max and for how long? I use the standard upside down U, but wondering if you have figured out something better. Thanks!
 
aveda6 said:
Okay, thank you all. I ended up ordering the 360we. It looks really nice and with the gooseneck I can attach directly to the biocube which is a nice plus. Not the cheapest option I was looking at but I'm sure it will be a huge step up. I also took the glass cover off so we'll see if that helps.

On the biocube I don't run any filtration or skimmers. I used to run both and never saw an improvement. I think the light will make a big difference.
Click to expand...


aveda6 what is your programming like for your kessil a360 do you make it peak to the max and for how long? I use the standard upside down U, but wondering if you have figured out something better. Thanks!
 
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