Any Unsatisfied Orphek Users?

[twilliard]

I'm sorry but can you PM me as I have no clue on how to do that here
thank you!

 

[Orphek Verified Sponsor]

Here are the PAR charts for the Atlantik compact unit.

This is over a 36 inch x 36 inch grid.

 

[djbetterly]

Thanks Orphek! What about the standard Atlantik?

 

[Orphek Verified Sponsor]

But of course.

 

[djbetterly]

Maybe I'm confused, the version I will be getting is not the B version. So which chart should I be looking at?

 

[Orphek Verified Sponsor]

We currently do not have the PAR charts for the v2.1 but the coverage area is the same with only a bit less PAR. This will still give you a good estimation of the levels in your tank and allow you to be able to plan your layout accordingly.

 

[djbetterly]

That's great. I was told I should start at 12" above waterline at 90% intensity. Should that be my final intensity or should I run in acclimation mode to start?

 

[Orphek Verified Sponsor]

If your tank is existing with lots of corals then we recommend acclimation mode but if it's new then you should determine your light schedule just like you would with any other light source based on your viewing schedule and expectations.

 

[twilliard]

That's great. I was told I should start at 12" above waterline at 90% intensity. Should that be my final intensity or should I run in acclimation mode to start?

Oh my I would start at 14 inches at 50%
Orpheks lights have a tremendous output, just start safe

 

[CastAway]

I just replaced my old Nilus unit with two Atlantiks, 14" off the waters surface and 36" off the substrate. I ramp the white channel to 50% for a three hour peak, and the other three channels to 100% for a five hour peak. It's a lot of light with the best of spectrum.

 

[twilliard]

Can you tell me what channels are what Led's for your fixture.
my channel 2 starts first (blue's) then all other channels 3 hours later to peak at 12 PM and all off at 9 PM

 

[Endoreef]

Replaced 250W MH Radium with 3 Altantis V2 over my 265G all sps tank for 14 months. All channels run at 100%.
Compares to Radium 250 W MH
Color: more pinkish to red
PAR: 20-30% less than Radium 250W in Lumen Max elite pendent.
SPS growth: slower, especially my green slimmer lost growing tips in one month
Controller: loud fans (very annoying), cheap tablet (power supply broke after 4 months)
Ofir said I am the first one who complained about the Atlantis V2. So I switched back to 3x 250W MH Radium again. My green slimmer shows growing tips in 2 weeks.
Conclusion: A good LED light fixture, but still can not beat Radium and T5 in color and PAR.
Just my 2 cent, please don't take it personal.

 

[twilliard]

Nothing personal at all.
Ofir is one of the best people I have ever worked with.
so here is a question..
how long do you think MH lamps will be in production?
The US is going green and forcing the end of production of many power hungry lamps.
I run the Atlantik compact V2 over my tank.
over the last 15 years I have used every lamp type made even back to the T12's
In today's society we have to learn to adapt.
with the Orphek fixture running at 100% I can see why good results were not achieved. Hammered with massive amounts of UV
And also you state less par but you are comparing apples to oranges
So is Orphek really that bad??

No

 

[CastAway]

Can you tell me what channels are what Led's for your fixture.
my channel 2 starts first (blue's) then all other channels 3 hours later to peak at 12 PM and all off at 9 PM

I have the 2.1b's.

Of course I'm just parroting Orphek's description, but channel 1 is an 18k white with a little blue, for SPS growth. Channel 2 is the "blue mix". Channel 3 is a mix of white and UV, purportedly for color in SPS. Channel 4 is a wide spectrum red with blue, a "food channel" according to Orphek. Channels 3 & 4 are supposed to be honed for chlorophyll A and B production.

I am currently combining channels 2, 3 & 4. ramping them up and down together, except for the first and last hour of my cycle which is channel 2 only - all blue. My goal is to increase my channel 1 percentage over time.

In my own ignorance, although I think PAR measurements might provide one good metrics for any single tank, I don't think one can compare PAR measurements from tank to tank, or fixture to fixture. Ultimately, I think it's more about spectrum than PAR. Also, and again I must confess I'm only parroting Orphek, I think there's what we think looks good to our human eye, a pervasive taste for blue for example, and then there's what is best for the coral which might not be the most appealing to us aesthetically. I think it's entirely possible that dimensional growth, and even color, are not necessarily reflective of ideal or more truly natural lighting. For example, I can over-light plant seedlings, which grow explosively yet are spindly, fragile and pale. I can under-light plant seedlings, which may not grow as explosively, but are more hardened or strong and a deeper green. Somewhere in the middle is where I want to be. Translating this to coral may be a stretch, I confess. Beyond light, there are so many other variables that affect coral, and I believe a truly unpredictable and unknown element as well - pure chance.

Although I am a new Atlantik customer, I am a longer standing and satisfied Orphek customer. I have no idea what will become of my corals under these lights. But, I sure like what I see so far!!

 

[twilliard]

Yes I think people underestimate what led chips can provide.
if used wrong they just knock the company who produced them.
what WE see is fit is no where near what the coral needs to thrive

 

[CastAway]

+1
Nothing but respect for the testimony of hands-on-experience though, good or bad. I think Orphek does get a bad rap though, but not rooted in real hands-on-experience. That of @Endoreef is the first critical review based on lengthy experience that I've ever seen. I appreciate it. ;-)

 

[twilliard]

Do you have a link? Would love to read it!


Dedicated Orphek user here

 

[CastAway]

I'm talking about the comments here in this thread, post 32 above.

 

[twilliard]

Oh ok thanks!
but do you find that running the Orpheks lights at 100% would provide an over abundance of UV light?
especially with 3 fixtures?
in my opinion they were not used correctly

 

[CastAway]

I think 100% on all channels for the v2.1b is the ultimate goal, the optimum the light was intended to emit.

The v2's were more PAR however, and it may have been too much. Then again, fourteen months is a pretty long run, and if he was running at peak for most of that time, and only saw damage in his slimmer tips, I'd guess he was pretty close to optimum output. I'd be curious if he had this kind of growth tip loss in the more higher light species.

I mean slimmers have a rep for being pretty durable, so seeing loss in them and not other more demanding species, might be an indication light was not the issue. Way out on a limb here though, as I have not even had a tank for fourteen months, much less SPS corals! LOL