Reef Lighting - Old School vs latest tech....thoughts

[Rocky Mountain Reef]

They all work. I’ve used all of them or at least tested them.

I love Radions but Mobius sucks. They are basically a no go from me simply because of Mobius. Nothing like 100% lights at 2am!

Time will tell how they hold up but the new Gen 2 Nicrew lights punch way above their weight class. Best bang for your buck right now IMO

Don’t go off manufacturer claims for spread though. You’ll need more than you think

Mobius is half decent, but I have one XR15 that keeps disconnecting from Mobius and intermittently comes back on. COME ON! their support can't figure it out.

 

[twiatr2001]

I've had this and was successful with a complete factory reset and then updating legacy devices through the mobius app.

 

[Michael71]

Im in the minority on this but,my pick would be halides with T5 filler. It's been ran and proven for decades and I'm getting great results. Here is a corrent pic of my tank. It's been running since September.

How are you finding availability of the metal halude bulbs and ballasts.

 

[rtparty]

Mobius is half decent, but I have one XR15 that keeps disconnecting from Mobius and intermittently comes back on. COME ON! their support can't figure it out.

The foundation of Mobius is horrible and has been from the beginning. They’ve tried to code around it but the only real fix is a total redo from the ground up. I was told they were doing this but that was a few years ago and we still haven’t seen it so I doubt it’s happening

 

[twiatr2001]

I believe Ecotech has posted something about this issue on their Facebook page in November of 2024, that this issue has been resolved.

 

[RBarth]

The singles? I designed them and had a 3d buddy on the forum make them for me. I initially wanted them for torches. To keep them far from the glass, and angled inwards. And I used double magnets vertically so snails can’t rotate them, and also thinking long term when torches become top heavy. The plug spot is also locking so frags can’t fall out.

I had 6 made to relocate my torches but after they arrived I found they are perfect for acros

If you are interested let me know and I can put you in touch with my buddy

Can I get contact info on these racks? Thanks!

 

[56longroof]

How are you finding availability of the metal halude bulbs and ballasts.

Reefbrite has ballasts and bulbs. Radiums and Ushio bulbs are readily available too. Plus Aqua Bright Solutions has there own brand too. I feel alot of the availability rumors are overstated. There are still plenty of options out there.

 

[VintageReefer]

Thats looks great vintage, thanks for the share

@VintageReefer I would definitely be interested in those frag racks.

Dm @stoney7713
He brought the idea to life. I’ve been using them and they are high quality. I’m buying more and would recommend them

 

[VintageReefer]

Can I get contact info on these racks? Thanks!

Sorry! Couldn’t multiquote. Send dm to @stoney7713 for the single rack

 

[twiatr2001]

I've used him before, he does great work, Thank You!

 

[drdavethedude]

I love the radions myself, I have had good luck with them, they are all on mobius platform and have never had an issue with the app, but that's me, I run all gen4 radions on all my tanks. I'll include some recent pics.

how deep is this tank and what is the intensity set at?

 

[VintageReefer]

I love the radions myself, I have had good luck with them, they are all on mobius platform and have never had an issue with the app, but that's me, I run all gen4 radions on all my tanks. I'll include some recent pics.

First of all, nice meat! I’m envious, I can keep any coral, except acantho. They just don’t make it more than a few months for me. The gold/orange is incredible.

Second, you like radions because you run gen4 which many say is the last good version they made.

 

[twiatr2001]

I have to check the depth to be exact, but I wanna say it's about 3.5ft deep and the radions are set at 66% intensity I believe, hard to keep track of four tanks, LOL! Thank you for the kind comments, yes the gold/orange has been in there for about 8 months right now, it has some green and brownish spots on it randomly in places, this coral did not initially come with these spots they developed in the tank and I'm sure the lighting has something to do with it, but nutrition does as well, I do spot feed these every time I do a water change and I also have a slurry of food that gets feed daily as well, feeds both fish and corals.

 

[X-37B]

Well I run 3 xr15 blue gen 5 on my ext 50. Only reason why is I had 5 when I took my 80g system down. They grow coral well, if you run enough of them and not to deep, imo.
I have only ran then on 16" tall systems. My current ext 50 and my old 80 growout are same depth.
AB+ worked real well on this 80g system.

 

[twiatr2001]

So I only have one xr15 g4 on that tank and it even has a diffuser on it, I haven't measured par but, I run AB+ modified with no red/green at all and have a ramp up and down with 100% blues, I believe photo period is about 2.5 hrs total at max intensity which is 66% if I'm not mistaken. BTW, I too believe that the gen4 was their last best light, I have 6 brand new ones sitting around for my 310 gallon build, but I've been busy with life and 4 kids.

 

[VintageReefer]

I've been busy with life and 4 kids.

How do you do it lol
I have two and my butt is kicked

Used to look forward to all sorts of things. Now it’s naps hahah

 

[twiatr2001]

I look forward to naps as well, i just don't get them, LOL!

 

[Danjoethepirate]

Best of both worlds, geissemann stellar and gen 5 xr15 pros, on a 24 inch deep tank. The spread on the xr15's is good, the punch on them at 85% is plenty for this depth. I can grow sps from top to bottom.

 

[bobnicaragua]

Best of both worlds, geissemann stellar and gen 5 xr15 pros, on a 24 inch deep tank. The spread on the xr15's is good, the punch on them at 85% is plenty for this depth. I can grow sps from top to bottom.

That is a gorgeous SPS tank. Way to kill it!

 

[OriginalUserName]

Thanks 37B.. your system is looking good for 9months in. My tank is going to be 32x32x20 deep. So 98 gallon display.

FWIW on my new 36”x36”x19” I’ve gone with an XR6 blue and a AI blade grow. (Maybe a glow too).

I really wanted more than just a single source of light. I had good luck with my AP700 and T5 combo before my crashes so the blades provide that extra coverage.

The main factor for me was mounting. Mounting on a deep tank is tricky with a pendant but the radon mounts are awesome for this application. Mobius is not the greatest but so far easier than the Kessil software.

I did love my old halide light but the heat and whatnot made it not worth it in the end.