Please evaluate our Biocube 32, AI Hydra 26 upgrade

[TL Reefs]

We have been working on a solution for the Biocube lighting issue. The 32 gallon tanks with LED lighting will keep softies and LPS alive, and some SPS, but they don't thrive. Removing the lid and adding a Kessil or Hydra works, but leaves it looking "modified." We wanted something that would allow us to grow any kind of coral, and also keep the closed lid. Recently, a customer asked us to install a Biocube for them, but they wanted to be able to keep any kind of coral. This was just the motivation I needed to come up with a solution

There are a couple DIY retro kits that can be installed and I'm sure they work great, but we wanted a solution that uses commercially available lights, such as Hydras. And here is what we came up with:

It is an AI Hydra 26, mounted into the hood. It utilizes the cooling fan on the Hydra to suck air in through the top of the hood, and blow it out the vents in the back. Then we removed the lenses, as they create a hot spot and could possibly melt the splash guard. Removing the lenses also gave a much better spread.

They run cool, with no overheating issues. We did see a 1-2 degree water temp increase with the lights running at 50%, which is manageable IMO.

Now on to the pics!

 

[Crabs McJones]

That's pretty neat! Did you notice par hot spots in the tank being that the light is mounted so close to the waters surface? Usually these lights are mounted anywhere from 8 to 12" off the waters surface for better par distribution.

 

[TL Reefs]

That's pretty neat! Did you notice par hot spots in the tank being that the light is mounted so close to the waters surface? Usually these lights are mounted anywhere from 8 to 12" off the waters surface for better par distribution.

Thanks! It was pretty bright directly under them before removing the lenses. It seems like a nice spread now. Perfect for acros in the center and other lower light corals everywhere else.

 

[TL Reefs]

Here are a couple pictures on our test tank. First picture is with lenses, second is without. You can see the biggest difference on the back wall.

 

[hart24601]

That is nice, well done!

 

[Swav8tor]

I’m trying to do something similar to our 16g bio. Probably with a Prime HD.

 

[TL Reefs]

We now have the hydra 26 running on 2 different biocube 32's. Been going strong for about 6 weeks now. No heat issues, and the light is just amazing.

 

[Katrina71]

How did I miss this??? This is awesome!

 

[Katrina71]

@cromag27

 

[cromag27]

i might try this as well. how did you mount the light to the hood?

 

[hdsoftail1065]

I'm impressed, following to see how they are mounted.

 

[TL Reefs]

Sorry, I don't have any pictures of the mounting. It did require some modification of the AI fan grate, and Biocube hood.

 

[hdsoftail1065]

Oh well, probably best. I'm afraid if my wife seen it one of my hydra 26's would be missing from my tank and her Biocube would have a new look.

 

[Katrina71]

@Darkartist check this out.

 

[Katrina71]

I wanna try this too. I even have a gutted hood. Hmmm...

 

[Darkartist]

I wanna try this too. I even have a gutted hood. Hmmm...

Very nice clean look. I actually found a current usa 18" that fits perfectly under hood. No mods. Just remove old led and your good to go. Can put 2 of them under the hood. Full spectrum. Very very nice and I like the loop system. These lights don't measure up to their claim. "Straight from mouth of sales rep" but they are better the the stock led and 2 will get you very far.

 

[Katrina71]

Mine is old school Oceanic. Compact Florescent.

 

[Swav8tor]

Finally jumped yesterday, went with the AI Prime HD. Using egg crate to keep fish in till I mod the hood! So excited to see some of these corals actually grow and not just survive. My Acans are so fat today sucking up all that light!

 

[cromag27]

looks good! how does it look when you put the light directly on top of the egg crate?

Finally jumped yesterday, went with the AI Prime HD. Using egg crate to keep fish in till I mod the hood! So excited to see some of these corals actually grow and not just survive. My Acans are so fat today sucking up all that light!

 

[Devin McBride]

I dig that, keeping it minimal with the light in the hood. But I upgraded my skimmer to something rated for a bigger tank than my Biocube 32. So I had to removed the lid regardless. But I like this!