This is my 180 with 3 kessil A360we and they work wonderful but I am waiting on the 60in hybrid t5 fixture to come out to add to it. The 3 kessils do put out enough light for sps and anything else u want to put in there.
Kessil + ?? = Perfect
- Thread starter Mini Coop
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Go with mesh screen. I did mine in 3 sections, as i find the long screens are just cumbersome to work with. Now I can just pull off whatever section I need to. I buy a thin piece of clear acylic or lexan or something similar and cut small tabs out if it (I make them as wide as the edge of the siding plus the width of my glass on the tank). I then super glue those to the edges / top of the screen edging, so the screen sits down into the tank versus sitting on top and the tabs go right on top of the glass and everything is supported
I had three A360s at first but I wasn't getting near enough par on my tank for acropora I wanted to keep. However, my lights are about 13" from the top of the tank, and the wide angle lenses on the kessils really spreads the light out and reduces the par greatly versus a more traditional mounting height. You will want to consider this when you design your canopy, as mounting height really will impact your lighting levels the higher you go. If you're going to stick with zoas, Lps, chalices, and not really acros, I think you'll be in good shape with 3 fixtures. I could have probably managed with 4 kessils alone, but I run my lights towards the bluer color and don't like to get the intensity above 75%, as it (kessil logic) starts turning more of the white leds on or increasing them and makes the tank whiter than I like.
OP
OP
Mini Coop
Valuable Member
Not Hijacking at all! LOVE IT! Thank you so much for the info! I will probably use what I have for now, and see how the halide effects my tank and the heat and all of that since I just dropped a load on a new APEX!!!! (EEEEKKKK - Merry Christmas to ME!!) And will be purchasing new pumps. I will certainly be looking to replace eventually with a 3rd kessil and get a T5 combo. Lots of you have said that this is the perfect combo, and after looking up a ton of videos online, it really is a beautiful shimmer!
Thank you so much - I know how much time it takes to post pics and reply to these threads. I appreciate all of the help and feedback! If you want to follow my build, please do!! I haven't had a ton of followers, but would love feedback as I go through the plumbing and all of that!https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/new-180-build-mini-coops-dream-tank.327141/
Personally if you already have two A360W and a halide I'd see if you can stick with the halide. Maybe get one of the newer cooler bulbs. Personally I'm running a 175 watt over my biocube 29 and joked with another forum person about how I could put a cheek to it. So I tried it. It's warm but doesn't burn. But I'm using all the latest color temperature changing, dimmable, cool running gear. If you already have two a360w's then I'd get another 360 for the center. You'll be able to get the radion close but it won't match the kessil's. The Kessil's a good light and you can daisy chain or individually control them however you want to wire it up in your Apex.
Actually going back and reading some of the other posts I'd agree. Do a T5 retro fit and use the two kessils. There's an awesome new T5 fixture out there that isn't too expensive and allows you to mount your current lights to it.
