Photon V2 24" Coverage Question

[AKay3600]

I'll be moving in early May and am looking to upgrade my standard 29gallon reef. I have a photon v2 24" and I'd like to continute to use it over the next tank, at least for awhile.

I really would like to move to a 36in tank but not sure how well it would cover over my 3 favorite choices; Reefer 250, Waterbox 90.3 and Fiji Cube 57. The 57 I am most concerned with as it's a 36x24. Do you think the 24" light would work? Not a big SPS guy but it would be a mixed reef.

My other choices are the Fiji Cube 48 or the IM 50 Lagoon. They are both 30x24 so I feel confident the light would work decently well over those.

So I guess would the light look dumb or be a bad choice over a 36x24x16 mostly LPS tank? Ha

Pic for kicks

 

[Ron Reefman]

I think the 24" Photon is able to cover a 36" tank reasonably well. The ends may have lower PAR, so don't put sps out at the extreme ends!

I have a 16" Photon over a 24" cube and it covers it perfectly. Your difference from fixture to tank is 12", mine is only 8", but that extra 4" shouldn't be a big issue, IMHO.

Good luck with the move.

 

[AKay3600]

I think the 24" Photon is able to cover a 36" tank reasonably well. The ends may have lower PAR, so don't put sps out at the extreme ends!

I have a 16" Photon over a 24" cube and it covers it perfectly. Your difference from fixture to tank is 12", mine is only 8", but that extra 4" shouldn't be a big issue, IMHO.

Good luck with the move.

Thank you very much for your thoughts, been a fan for awhile!

 

[oreo54]

I'll be moving in early May and am looking to upgrade my standard 29gallon reef. I have a photon v2 24" and I'd like to continute to use it over the next tank, at least for awhile.

I really would like to move to a 36in tank but not sure how well it would cover over my 3 favorite choices; Reefer 250, Waterbox 90.3 and Fiji Cube 57. The 57 I am most concerned with as it's a 36x24. Do you think the 24" light would work? Not a big SPS guy but it would be a mixed reef.

My other choices are the Fiji Cube 48 or the IM 50 Lagoon. They are both 30x24 so I feel confident the light would work decently well over those.

So I guess would the light look dumb or be a bad choice over a 36x24x16 mostly LPS tank? Ha

Pic for kicks

Higher you raise it the less par at depth but the better overall coverage l/r.
Major factor here is at what intensity you are running at now, what that par is and do you have room to compensate.

At 90 degree beam angle a 24" light should cover a 36" tank at about 8" height off the water line w/ minimal spill outside the tank.

didn't figure front to back .
At 16" deep and 6-8" high (front of light off the water line distance ) you are only looking at an effective depth of about 22" give or take, so no deep water concerns really.

 

[AKay3600]

Higher you raise it the less par at depth but the better overall coverage l/r.
Major factor here is at what intensity you are running at now, what that par is and do you have room to compensate.

At 90 degree beam angle a 24" light should cover a 36" tank at about 8" height off the water line w/ minimal spill outside the tank.

didn't figure front to back .
At 16" deep and 6-8" high (front of light off the water line distance ) you are only looking at an effective depth of about 22" give or take, so no deep water concerns really.

Right now I have the light about 9in off the tank and I have the blues maxing out at only 40% so I have plenty of room to bump it up if I raise it off the water a bit more. I have never actually tested the PAR in my tank so not sure where it's at. I do plan on renting a meter when I get the next one set up though.

Thanks for the info! So you think if I got the 57 gallon (36x24x16) I would have decent coverage front to back and side to side with the light about a foot off the water? I know I'll have some shadows on the edges but I can stick with lower light corals on the outside and keep the SPS centered more.