Is this light really worth it?

[Just John]

I have a Fluval Evo 13.5 gal AIO. The light that came with it isn't super bright, but I have all softies and others say it should be fine for them. I thought I would upgrade the light and bought the Fluval Marine Spectrum 3.0 because it fits perfectly into the hood, which I would like to keep. It does not appear to be any brighter than the included light and so the main difference is that beyond the standard settings for whites and blues, you can also adjust the color mix yourself, but they don't provide any guidance for doing that. It's up to you to figure it out. I imagine they set the included AIO light with a good light mix already, so is it really worth keeping the new one if it doesn't seem any brighter to the eye?

 

[Ron Reefman]

First, "brighter to the eye" is a useless indicator. You really, really need to use a PAR meter. Your eyes adjust the meter doesn't.

The leds in the Fluval fixtures are all in the 0.3 to 0.5 watts and really don't make great intensity. They are OK over a shallow tank, like your AIO, and for fish only or very easy corals. Some corals that need higher PAR can sit on rocks higher in the water and survive.

All the better fixtures use 3 watt and 5 watt leds or pucks with lots of leds packed together. They aren't really made to fit in the hood of your AIO tank. And they are much more intense so they can work of 24" deep tanks and get PAR levels of 150 all the way to the sand.

The issue with the low power leds is they are weak (less intense) to start with and they don't penetrate the water very well. BTW Current led fixtures fall into this same category. Even a cheap Mars Aqua with 3 watt leds will produce way more intense light.

 

[Just John]

First, "brighter to the eye" is a useless indicator. You really, really need to use a PAR meter. Your eyes adjust the meter doesn't.

The leds in the Fluval fixtures are all in the 0.3 to 0.5 watts and really don't make great intensity. They are OK over a shallow tank, like your AIO, and for fish only or very easy corals. Some corals that need higher PAR can sit on rocks higher in the water and survive.

All the better fixtures use 3 watt and 5 watt leds or pucks with lots of leds packed together. They aren't really made to fit in the hood of your AIO tank. And they are much more intense so they can work of 24" deep tanks and get PAR levels of 150 all the way to the sand.

The issue with the low power leds is they are weak (less intense) to start with and they don't penetrate the water very well. BTW Current led fixtures fall into this same category. Even a cheap Mars Aqua with 3 watt leds will produce way more intense light.

Thanks!

 

[ewoolpert]

Anyone have pictures of there fluval with the marine 3.0? I would get rid of the hood but have two young kids and a cat and that would lead to problems. I am looking more to get away from the bright white of the stock light.

 

[Just John]

The original post was from the beginning of April. I am happy with the light and am glad I changed. I took before and after pictures with the lights and you won't see a ton of difference with my phone camera. Here is what I like: Your algae probably looks a really bright green right now. With this light it will be less obvious/darker. That may not seem significant, but it is. You won't constantly notice the the fluorescently bright algae like it was before (below). It drove me nuts.

Also, you can set the color mix as you like it. You want more blue in the daytime? Add some blue. WWC adds a lower lighting "rest" time during the middle of the day, so I added one. If you buy one I can show you how and why I set mine up. I also added a blue light strip from Amazon that I think was worth the money. I keep it on all day. (the description has a typo. It is all blue led's, no whites)



Hood with the light on it
The light visible along the side is not very noticeable except when looking from above the tank.