Nice but my reef is 14 feet by 3 feet in the center of my home. No way plus I said No metal halide
pretty simple answer, I'm not going to do metal halide.If your a 40 year vet why do you need advice? Halides are the answer.
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Nice but my reef is 14 feet by 3 feet in the center of my home. No way plus I said No metal halide
pretty simple answer, I'm not going to do metal halide.If your a 40 year vet why do you need advice? Halides are the answer.
That is the most honest reply yet. Thanks, I have thought of this angle and probably will go this direction. Thanks for your honestyFirst I’m pretty much blind and can’t see your tank setup so I’m asking questions. It sounds like it’s in the middle of the room and open on top to the ceiling? How much higher is the ceiling from the top of tank and how deep is the tank? I ask as you said you wanted to clean up the hybrid mess. The clean route would be kessil a500x units recessed in the ceiling but I don’t know if that’s an option. I’m surprised no one has mentioned Phillips coral care. No fans to deal with which is a plus maintenance wise over a large tank. My recommendation as you will get nothing but our worthless opinions here would be to either hire a consultant or deal with a lighting manufacturer directly. Most lighting manufacturer would be happy to help you plan out a system of this size and probably give you a bit of a discount as you will be buying a few fixtures. Otherwise we’ll be here for six months giving you horrible ideas that you won’t like.
We all try our best. Let us know what you come up with!That is the most honest reply yet. Thanks, I have thought of this angle and probably will go this direction. Thanks for your honesty
2 points on this, first I don't know how well the kessil would work recessed, ( cooling and maintenance) but it's a great idea. The Orpheks Amazonas may olso be an option here.First I’m pretty much blind and can’t see your tank setup so I’m asking questions. It sounds like it’s in the middle of the room and open on top to the ceiling? How much higher is the ceiling from the top of tank and how deep is the tank? I ask as you said you wanted to clean up the hybrid mess. The clean route would be kessil a500x units recessed in the ceiling but I don’t know if that’s an option. I’m surprised no one has mentioned Phillips coral care. No fans to deal with which is a plus maintenance wise over a large tank. My recommendation as you will get nothing but our worthless opinions here would be to either hire a consultant or deal with a lighting manufacturer directly. Most lighting manufacturer would be happy to help you plan out a system of this size and probably give you a bit of a discount as you will be buying a few fixtures. Otherwise we’ll be here for six months giving you horrible ideas that you won’t like.
Yeah why I said I didn’t know if it was an option for him. Only one I heard of was in a ceiling with an air conditioned, semi finished attic that didn’t have insulation above the ceiling. They were supposedly able to access the light from the attic. They were on a smaller tank though so there was only three or four. I recently read about the orpheks too. They sound like a great option. I haven’t heard anything on them as they are new to market. More decent options here.2 points on this, first I don't know how well the kessil would work recessed, ( cooling and maintenance) but it's a great idea. The Orpheks Amazonas may olso be an option here.
Link attached.
Amazonas 960 iCon Aquarium LED Lighting • Orphek
Orphek Amazonas 960 iCon reef Aquarium LED Lighting, 10,000% dimming control system - never offered in the market before!orphek.com
As for fan less light besides the coral care the ATI straton would be a second option
Straton LED - ATI North America
Straton Coral-optimized LED reef light Uniform light distribution The built-in proprietary diffuser blends the individual LED lights, virtually eliminating color separation. The large output area blankets the entire tank with a consistent, uniform output. The light produced mimics the time...www.atinorthamerica.com
I may not have posed my comment how I intended it to be. I was posing those points as questions as far as the recessing the kessils, as it's a great Idea. I just didn't know how well they would work with cooling. Same can be applied to the orphek if it were recessed though. I don't know if there would be sufficient cooling available. I can picture a ceiling mounted frame to match the stand, with the lights in, or a floating canopy to hide them as well.Yeah why I said I didn’t know if it was an option for him. Only one I heard of was in a ceiling with an air conditioned, semi finished attic that didn’t have insulation above the ceiling. They were supposedly able to access the light from the attic. They were on a smaller tank though so there was only three or four. I recently read about the orpheks too. They sound like a great option. I haven’t heard anything on them as they are new to market. More decent options here.
I have 5 G5 xr30 pro covering 72 x 30 and run them perpendicular to the tank which gives me full coverage, just adding a numbers input.need more input, how many to cover the 96" x 36" on a sps dominate reef with lps mix?
Yeah, I think they would overheat unless it was an open area above the ceiling like the one I read about. It was a conditioned space on top of that. They for sure need airspace and probably additional ventilation if it’s hot above the ceiling. Probably the same if they were boxed in an enclosure or soffit. The look would be well worth the effort in certain situations. Personally I don’t like Kessils without supplemental t5 or led bars, but that’s just me. Lighting is a very personal choice. Everyone has different tastes. Having three tanks in one, with different lighting requirements, trying not to spend a grand for either end, having everything match from every angle, and have it look nice and uncluttered is a tall order!I may not have posed my comment how I intended it to be. I was posing those points as questions as far as the recessing the kessils, as it's a great Idea. I just didn't know how well they would work with cooling. Same can be applied to the orphek if it were recessed though. I don't know if there would be sufficient cooling available. I can picture a ceiling mounted frame to match the stand, with the lights in, or a floating canopy to hide them as well.
And this is why I made my first suggestion.If it’s fairly SPS dominant, I’d get 6, mounted sideways (since the tank is so deep front to back), 16” apart (measuring from the center of the light) with the two on the ends being 8” from the side. If it’s more mixed reef, 5, spaced roughly 19” apart (9.5” from the sides). I’m starting to think to get even cover on the end tanks, you may need two XR 15s mounted in sort of an L shape or an XR 30, the 36” width/depth is going mean you’ll have some pretty significant dimming towards the edges if you go with just one XR15.
I agree with this. Xr30s for sure just make sure you get enough of them for enough power.Cool setup!
Halides actually make this the easiest but since they are out....go with the G6. XR30s in the center and 15s on the ends.
You could also do AP9X fixtures in the middle and A360Xs on the end if you want to stick with Kessil
He said he wanted Radions or Neptunes, neither of those are what I would use to light a tank that big (not that they’re in any way bad lights, it’s just the cost), of those two, for a tank with these dimensions, I’d go with the Radions over the Neptunes.And this is why I made my first suggestion.
7k+ to run the radions...
Sorry, I had said XR30’s and you asked how many, but I could’ve been more clear. 5-6 XR 30s for the main tank and either 2 XR 15s or an XR30 for each side tank. So a total of either 5-6 XR 30s and 4 XR15s, or 7-8 XR30s. For the side tanks, I don’t think they’d need the intensity that what I recommended would provide, but given the dimensions I don’t see any way to do less without having some obvious dimming/uneven coverage (you could do different lights for those tanks, but I don’t know that they would look seamless, as you mentioned was something you wanted. Personally, if it were my tank, I’d throw 7-8 Noopsyches on it, you’d get close to the same intensity, spectrum, and spread for about a quarter of the price.6 What ? The end tanks are basically fish only live rock with an anemone. the reef structure in the center is at best 24" front to back and the tank is only 28" deep. just more info, thanks for the input.
There is no chance this is a cost savings change, not looking at any non scientifically tested options, this is a 10 year change at whatever cost, within reason.
I’m with you in the Kessils! I don’t think they make that lamp anymore but I could be wrong. They have architectural track lighting which is basically the same other than the led unit. Those are nice as the track is powered eliminating cords. I don’t know if they’d swap led clusters for some custom units but you never know.My first thought on this was the ceiling mounted Kessils. I for the life of me can't recall what the model number is. I know they work well as CaliKids corals in Concord, Ca uses them to light one of their displays.
Since the goal here is adequate light, Kessil shimmer and visual aesthetics, I think your best route will be to go with Zzyzx advice and get a consultation from a professional lighting designer. They can see the actual space in person and offer you the best options for your needs.
For what it's worth, I love Kessil lights and have them over my own reef. I don't plan to ever go away from them.
Beautiful tank by the way!!
Only problem is they were we not x so the spectrum wouldn’t match any newer Kessils. That’s was my first thought as well until I noticed the we.I'd keep some of the kessils if you really want to have shimmer.
I would not choose either for that reason either. In the end radions required to light this system for an sps dominant reef will be ridiculously expensive. 8 to 12 xr30 depending if they chose to use xr15 for the smaller end tanks.He said he wanted Radions or Neptunes, neither of those are what I would use to light a tank that big (not that they’re in any way bad lights, it’s just the cost), of those two, for a tank with these dimensions, I’d go with the Radions over the Neptunes.