Newbie looking for light advice.

[Bepis]

Ok
a) Im looking at Orphek OR3 on Amazon and there seems to be 3 kinds... "blue plus", "Day reef plus" and "UV plus" ... Im guessing Day reef plus is the one I should be looking at and comparing?

b) Would 2 kessil 160s do the trick? ... The thing is that If I get the 360x I would get another one at some point in the future and have the pair to get better spread.
c) Same would be with the Hydra

d) No... is just a regular tank I have had for several years empty

A. The blue plus and reef day plus are meant to be used together to create a optimum color spectrum though beware it’s pretty blue and if control and the ability to change the color is your mojo then the OR3s aren’t the right path.

B.if you willing to spend money on the a360x why not look into a radion xr15
C. Same thing as B

 

[A. grandis]

Hi everyone!
Ive been in the fresh water planted aquarium hobby for a while and now ive decided to jump in the coral hobby.
As for the planted aquarium, light is one of the most important things to consider, and I know same goes to corals.
Ive been reading for days but can Not take a decition, and I dont want to make a mistake.
My tank mesurements are:
30” large, 13” wide and 20” tall
Im thinking mostly keeping corals, and might add one or two fish/ invertebrates in the futuro... but my focal point will be corals.
My budget Is somewhere between 200-250 dollars.
What would be your advice?

Take your time and search more... I mean: take your time!
Everyone will tell you what THEY think is good for them in threads like this.
Go visit some stores and see for yourself, searching for all types of available light, not olny LEDs. Seach also for T5 systems too, for example. Search for qualities of light to keep your organisms, just like for aquatic fresh water plants! Quality matters more than aesthetics! I would prefer million times to invest in a T5 only system for my planted tank then any LED available. Same for my reef tanks! ATI fixtures are the best IMHO.
Good luck and welcome to saltwater tanks!

 

[armandoarturo]

Take your time and search more... I mean: take your time!
Everyone will tell you what THEY think is good for them in threads like this.
Go visit some stores and see for yourself, searching for all types of available light, not olny LEDs. Seach also for T5 systems too, for example. Search for qualities of light to keep your organisms, just like for aquatic fresh water plants! Quality matters more than aesthetics! I would prefer million times to invest in a T5 only system for my planted tank then any LED available. Same for my reef tanks! ATI fixtures are the best IMHO.
Good luck and welcome to saltwater tanks!

Ok now Im reading that there are lots of people Who use hybrid t5 and led with nice results.
This decision will be harder than I tought!!
What would be your advice as for t5?

 

[armandoarturo]

A. The blue plus and reef day plus are meant to be used together to create a optimum color spectrum though beware it’s pretty blue and if control and the ability to change the color is your mojo then the OR3s aren’t the right path.

B.if you willing to spend money on the a360x why not look into a radion xr15
C. Same thing as B

Will one radion xr15 work out?

 

[Bepis]

Will one radion xr15 work out?

Take your time and search more... I mean: take your time!
Everyone will tell you what THEY think is good for them in threads like this.
Go visit some stores and see for yourself, searching for all types of available light, not olny LEDs. Seach also for T5 systems too, for example. Search for qualities of light to keep your organisms, just like for aquatic fresh water plants! Quality matters more than aesthetics! I would prefer million times to invest in a T5 only system for my planted tank then any LED available. Same for my reef tanks! ATI fixtures are the best IMHO.
Good luck and welcome to saltwater tanks!

To answer the first quote yes it will work just the same as 1 kessil a360x.

to address second quote, t5s ate great but they do need to be replaced with new bulbs once in a while and aren’t controllable if that is what our gentleman here wants. Personal opinion of mine is that radions are better than kessils but they are harder to find the right colors/ spectrum

 

[A. grandis]

Ok now Im reading that there are lots of people Who use hybrid t5 and led with nice results.
This decision will be harder than I tought!!
What would be your advice as for t5?

I would use an ATI Sunpower 24" 6 bulb fixture. Get the simple one, non- dimmable.
Your tank is 13" wide. The fixture is 13.4" wide though. I would prefer the 6 bulbs than getting the 4 bulb fixture which is 9.4" wide, specially because you are already missing some area length wise. A 4 bulb fixture is less than I would wish.
You will be so glad to grow your corals without having to figure out what to do to make LEDs work. The quality of an ATI fixture is superb and it will last forever (mine is working for 15+ years). Their customer service is amazing! You will just remove the "light problem" out of your way getting a T5 only system and will be able to concentrate on the water chemistry, flow, and other things.

 

[A. grandis]

To answer the first quote yes it will work just the same as 1 kessil a360x.

to address second quote, t5s ate great but they do need to be replaced with new bulbs once in a while and aren’t controllable if that is what our gentleman here wants. Personal opinion of mine is that radions are better than kessils but they are harder to find the right colors/ spectrum

Radions aren't "better" at all!! They offer different results and T5s are much easier to deal with for anyone! The results from T5s will be amazing! Just with plug n' play. Radions will have shades and the growth will be different and weird, comparing to T5s. Too much money for the Radions to start with.
If anyone worry about changing T5 bulbs every 12 months because of the costs that person shouldn't have a reef tank with corals that cost so much for a 1/2"-1" piece. Just doesn't make any sense.
People NEED to add T5s to Radions simply to help them to work properly.
Radions IMHO are one of the worse fixtures ever invented for aquariums.
But that's just my personal opinion, right?

That's why we need to search before spend that much money in "Christmas lights" for a reef tank.

Go look at tanks with both and you will see the differences in results. Choose wisely and think about the health of your animals.

I don't like this war LED users tend start, against other's opinions. I'm just responding to you because you quote me. "Radions better" ... Try look the results. If you come to choose Radions, or any LED, for any reason I will still respect, but not QUALITY of light.

 

[A. grandis]

Will one radion xr15 work out?

Search man! Don't waste your money.

 

[A. grandis]

 

[NanoReefs]

You could also consider two PRIME 16 HD LED REEF LIGHT - BLACK BODY - AQUA ILLUMINATION.

 

[CanuckReefer]

okay so A. Look into the orphek OR3s B. A single Kessil on a tank like that one fixture won’t do, instead of a A360x I would do 2 a160’s if you decide to go with the kessils. C. Same thing with the AI’ s level and even par relies on on a spread out light which with the hydra 32 is concentrated but with 2 fixtures per say 2 ai primes16 HD’s you’ll have much better spread

D. Big thing I just realized is your tank a 29g Aqueon Tank?

I have heard good things on the Orphek Or3's I was heavily considering them, to supplement T5's... basic with no control ability, but as a startup tank on budget could be a winner.

 

[armandoarturo]

Radions aren't "better" at all!! They offer different results and T5s are much easier to deal with for anyone! The results from T5s will be amazing! Just with plug n' play. Radions will have shades and the growth will be different and weird, comparing to T5s. Too much money for the Radions to start with.
If anyone worry about changing T5 bulbs every 12 months because of the costs that person shouldn't have a reef tank with corals that cost so much for a 1/2"-1" piece. Just doesn't make any sense.
People NEED to add T5s to Radions simply to help them to work properly.
Radions IMHO are one of the worse fixtures ever invented for aquariums.
But that's just my personal opinion, right?

That's why we need to search before spend that much money in "Christmas lights" for a reef tank.

Go look at tanks with both and you will see the differences in results. Choose wisely and think about the health of your animals.

I don't like this war LED users tend start, against other's opinions. I'm just responding to you because you quote me. "Radions better" ... Try look the results. If you come to choose Radions, or any LED, for any reason I will still respect, but not QUALITY of light.

Thank you so much, thats exactly what Im doing... ive gone from a $200 LED to a $500 T5 fixture.
All the information im getting here has been very helpfull. Like I Said before, I rather wait and earn a couple of more bucks and spend my money wisely instead of having to eventually upgrade.
Im now more on the T5 side...
Im guessing 8 bulb would be even better than 6? Or is it too much for my setup?
Or should 6 bulb be enough?
Is it there even too much light at some point?

 

[oreo54]

Thank you sooooo much!! I will spend my afternoon jumping into all the information I can get on this 3 options and see If I can make up my mind and take the best decision.

33gal aquarium.. Shoot for 165 real watts (some leds are rated as to "theoretical watts" i.e 165W black box is actually 110W.

Tuillo says it's ok to use watts.. (for a while).

Define needs/wants first.

 

[armandoarturo]

So, health

I have heard good things on the Orphek Or3's I was heavily considering them, to supplement T5's... basic with no control ability, but as a startup tank on budget could be a winner.

Would it be one reef day plus and one blue plus??
Would that be enough or should i consider more?
Im trying to get all the options in the table so I can compare them all and take a final decision

 

[A. grandis]

Thank you so much, thats exactly what Im doing... ive gone from a $200 LED to a $500 T5 fixture.
All the information im getting here has been very helpfull. Like I Said before, I rather wait and earn a couple of more bucks and spend my money wisely instead of having to eventually upgrade.
Im now more on the T5 side...
Im guessing 8 bulb would be even better than 6? Or is it too much for my setup?
Or should 6 bulb be enough?
Is it there even too much light at some point?

You need to get the fixture that will cover the surface area of the aquarium.
The 8 bulb Sunpower will be 17.5" wide.

Beware of the guys who use too much technical information.
Some of them don't even have nor had a reef tank ever, like Oreo.

 

[oreo54]

You need to get the fixture that will cover the surface area of the aquarium.
The 8 bulb Sunpower will be 17.5" wide.

Beware of the guys who use too much technical information.
Some of them don't even have nor had a reef tank ever, like Oreo.

Excuse me o high priest of halides.
Can you show me where I was in error above?

Fw, sw, people need to define what THEY want first

 

[CanuckReefer]

So, health

Would it be one reef day plus and one blue plus??
Would that be enough or should i consider more?
Im trying to get all the options in the table so I can compare them all and take a final decision

Not sure how many as for your particular size. One of the others here will help you better that way. Just saying all the reviews I have personally seen on the OR3 have been pretty good for a very basic light. As mentioned earlier I am one who likes a blend of both LED and T5, seems to have worked for my own situation thusfar. 90 gallon reef with easy softies.

 

[Bepis]

Radions aren't "better" at all!! They offer different results and T5s are much easier to deal with for anyone! The results from T5s will be amazing! Just with plug n' play. Radions will have shades and the growth will be different and weird, comparing to T5s. Too much money for the Radions to start with.
If anyone worry about changing T5 bulbs every 12 months because of the costs that person shouldn't have a reef tank with corals that cost so much for a 1/2"-1" piece. Just doesn't make any sense.
People NEED to add T5s to Radions simply to help them to work properly.
Radions IMHO are one of the worse fixtures ever invented for aquariums.
But that's just my personal opinion, right?

That's why we need to search before spend that much money in "Christmas lights" for a reef tank.

Go look at tanks with both and you will see the differences in results. Choose wisely and think about the health of your animals.

I don't like this war LED users tend start, against other's opinions. I'm just responding to you because you quote me. "Radions better" ... Try look the results. If you come to choose Radions, or any LED, for any reason I will still respect, but not QUALITY of light.

Dude I didn’t say radions are better than t5s I said they are better than kessils.
I personally use T5s with my radions. In fact if he does go with the T5 option I would suggest the ATI. Another similar option is the Orphek OR3s which I just bought for my 29g. Here are some pics.

 

[Bepis]

Not sure how many as for your particular size. One of the others here will help you better that way. Just saying all the reviews I have personally seen on the OR3 have been pretty good for a very basic light. As mentioned earlier I am one who likes a blend of both LED and T5, seems to have worked for my own situation thusfar. 90 gallon reef with easy softies.

Lol didn’t see this. Yes I have yet to mount them on my tank as I’m still waiting for the mount. Though so far I can say they are insane quality. The metal is super nice and the leds are even stronger than I expected

 

[Bepis]

Thank you so much, thats exactly what Im doing... ive gone from a $200 LED to a $500 T5 fixture.
All the information im getting here has been very helpfull. Like I Said before, I rather wait and earn a couple of more bucks and spend my money wisely instead of having to eventually upgrade.
Im now more on the T5 side...
Im guessing 8 bulb would be even better than 6? Or is it too much for my setup?
Or should 6 bulb be enough?
Is it there even too much light at some point?

Just remember choose wisely as these lights will be the ones you have for years to come