Kessil Spectral Controller X

[Clinton D Toney]

Am I the only person that has this? Can someone please help me setting up a light cycle? I have a 75 gallon tank, I would like help with a light cycle for my Zoanthids and SPS. I am a new reefer and i am learning. I have 2 A 360 we's .live rock of course, 2 clownfish, a blue tang, 2 damsels, 75 total clean up crew, arrow crab, 8 shrimp, a bristle worm that i don't want please refer to the arrow crab. I also have 2 feather dusters and a few turbos. I have one Mandarin fish. Like I said im new at this and want to learn. But, most of all would I would like help with the lighting. I have a Carbon/ GFO reactor, HOB Protein skimmer and a HOB filter that I run Carbon and zeolite in one side and phosguard in the other. I test my water parameters with a red sea kit and my Sg with a milwaukee sg digital refractometer and phosphates with a hanna digital meter. Any and all pointers will be greatly appreciated. Thanks in Advance.

 

[Daniel Waters]

No need to overthink it.

For duration, an 8 hr to 12 hr period is fairly common. Pick a starting time / ending time that fits best with your schedule. Your fish will adjust accordingly.

As far as the actual schedule, you don't have to ramp the lights up and down or adjust "color". With the kessils, you can pretty much set it to what you like visually and work out the needed intensity and duration. However, most people like to do a dawn / dusk effect and ramp the color up throughout the day. That's perfectly fine also but not critical.

Unfortunately, I can't guide you on intensity or duration within your photo period without more information. If you're keeping sps, you will likely need higher par values for at least a good portion of your photo period, so you will want to have some period near maximum intensity. But this really depends on your fixture mounting height, the type of coral, and the coral placement. Your zoas and any lps will likely be fine at lower intensities, say 100 par as a general target. I think 200 par is a good target for most sps (actually I think sps do well with higher light but i think they can do fine in 200 par). With only 2 kessils on a 75 gallon tank, you're not going to be getting anywhere near 200 par except maybe higher up. If you don't have a par meter, you could can consult BRS videos on the kessil 360we. Go to about 6 minute mark on the video for par numbers for 2 fixtures. It gives measurements for 6" there for 2 fixtures and measurements at 12 and 18 inches further along the video.

As far as how to actually use the controller, I'm not familiar with the new X controller. I didn't realize it could also be used on the older kessil we models. You don't have to worry about programming green, red, or violet channels, as that is only applicable to the newer kessil X models.

 

[Clinton D Toney]

No need to overthink it.

For duration, an 8 hr to 12 hr period is fairly common. Pick a starting time / ending time that fits best with your schedule. Your fish will adjust accordingly.

As far as the actual schedule, you don't have to ramp the lights up and down or adjust "color". With the kessils, you can pretty much set it to what you like visually and work out the needed intensity and duration. However, most people like to do a dawn / dusk effect and ramp the color up throughout the day. That's perfectly fine also but not critical.

Unfortunately, I can't guide you on intensity or duration within your photo period without more information. If you're keeping sps, you will likely need higher par values for at least a good portion of your photo period, so you will want to have some period near maximum intensity. But this really depends on your fixture mounting height, the type of coral, and the coral placement. Your zoas and any lps will likely be fine at lower intensities, say 100 par as a general target. I think 200 par is a good target for most sps (actually I think sps do well with higher light but i think they can do fine in 200 par). With only 2 kessils on a 75 gallon tank, you're not going to be getting anywhere near 200 par except maybe higher up. If you don't have a par meter, you could st kait consult BRS videos on the kessil 360we. Go to about 6 minute mark on the video for par numbers for 2 fixtures.

As far as how to actually use the controller, I'm not familiar with the new X controller. I didn't realize it could also be used on the older kessil we models. You don't have to worry about programming green, red, or violet channels, as that is only applicable to the newer kessil X models.

Thank you. I have watched that video. you have provided me with a starting point.

 

[Daniel Waters]

Thank you. I have watched that video. you have provided me with a starting point.

Sure thing. Feel free to ask more questions. I wasnt sure if your issue was more on the technical side of how to actually use the controller or more on recommendations on intensities and duration.

In general, corals can be very adaptive to light. I grew an acropora under probably 150 par under a kessil light. This was before I even knew how to measure intensity or the different light requirements of different corals. The acro looked amazing but it did take it 12 months to color up, whereas it may have done it quicker with more light (but maybe not). When I kept zoas and lps, I always liked how they looked under deep blue color. So I would compromise on my lighting schedule in that I'd have most of my photo period under the deeper blue color but I would keep about a 4 hour period in the middle of the day at higher intensities and more white color because I liked seeing the fish with the whiter tank color. This way I figured my higher light corals got some fuller spectrum and higher par period and I got to enjoy the tank at the deeper blue colors the rest of the time. Just don't feel compelled that you need to hit each color or anything like that. Just because it's available doesn't mean it's necessary. And don't feel like you have to run your intensity at 100% all the time. Higher is not always better. Even lower intensities can work for higher light corals if you have adequate or extended duration at the lower par values (within reason). Just don't expect an acro to thrive at 50 par regardless of how long your photo period is. If you want some general guidelines for par ranges for types of corals, there's plenty of good posts on this topic in these forums. And it's just not about par either, so don't get caught up on a number (it's more about being in an acceptable range). Quality of light, flow, tank stability, nutrients, and so forth are all just as important as lighting in having thriving corals.

 

[alfpiccolo]

Hello Daniel, I am trying to find the answer to what color best for coral growth specific to Kessil 360 light. Does all blue (0% color) actually helps with coral growth and white (>40%) color only provide visual for human eye enjoyment?

 

[Daniel Waters]

Hello Daniel, I am trying to find the answer to what color best for coral growth specific to Kessil 360 light. Does all blue (0% color) actually helps with coral growth and white (>40%) color only provide visual for human eye enjoyment?

@alfpiccolo
No, that is way too simplistic of a statement, and I'm not going to get into too much detail in this post. Corals can certainly benefit from non-blue spectrums. Some spectrum areas are obviously more important than others but that does not mean corals can not utilize those wavelengths. While the deeper blue and violet ranges may look dim to our human eye, they certainly are utilized a great deal by corals, but this does not mean blue is for growth and other light is for visual appeal only. Additionally, some spectrum ranges such as the red might help in coloration of certain corals that all blue spectrums may not bring out (note: kessils older lights do not have specific red LEDs but their white LEDs will have all spectrums in it so you get blue, green,red spectrum etc.. from the white LEDs in the fixture).

The kessil logic is designed to provide you a range of spectrums that will grow corals. The 40% color setting still has all the same blues on that it does at 0% color but is simply adding in more of the white LEDs so the overall tank color blends together to look less blue. As such, the 40% color setting would probably provide more growth over time than the 0% setting but there are so many other factors affecting coral growth besides light that I wouldn't overly focus on just light. With the kessils, I'd just pick a color setting I like the most and use that for the majority of my viewing time. Personally, I'm not sure I'd run my tank at 0% color all the time as there is virtually no whites / non blue spectrum with that setting. However you don't have to worry about trying to hit various color % just for the sake of it. For the most part you can simply pick the color you like and just focus on the intensity setting. If you want maximum par, this is usually around the 50% to 60% color setting. But par can be over rated and shouldn't be the only focus. It's more important that you are simply in a proper par range for the corals you are keeping, and most corals can handle a wide range of light. If you're keeping lps or softies, you won't need much par at all. If you're doing clams or acropora, you might need to focus on par more to be sure you are providing enough.

For my kessil lights, they are usually around 25% color because that's what I like, but I have T5s providing the majority of my par and I have a couple of full spectrum bulbs, so I know I am getting some spectrum in all the critical areas.

Hope that helps

 

[alfpiccolo]

@alfpiccolo
No, that is way too simplistic of a statement, and I'm not going to get into too much detail in this post. Corals can certainly benefit from non-blue spectrums. Some spectrum areas are obviously more important than others but that does not mean corals can not utilize those wavelengths. While the deeper blue and violet ranges may look dim to our human eye, they certainly are utilized a great deal by corals, but this does not mean blue is for growth and other light is for visual appeal only. Additionally, some spectrum ranges such as the red might help in coloration of certain corals that all blue spectrums may not bring out (note: kessils older lights do not have specific red LEDs but their white LEDs will have all spectrums in it so you get blue, green,red spectrum etc.. from the white LEDs in the fixture).

The kessil logic is designed to provide you a range of spectrums that will grow corals. The 40% color setting still has all the same blues on that it does at 0% color but is simply adding in more of the white LEDs so the overall tank color blends together to look less blue. As such, the 40% color setting would probably provide more growth over time than the 0% setting but there are so many other factors affecting coral growth besides light that I wouldn't overly focus on just light. With the kessils, I'd just pick a color setting I like the most and use that for the majority of my viewing time. Personally, I'm not sure I'd run my tank at 0% color all the time as there is virtually no whites / non blue spectrum with that setting. However you don't have to worry about trying to hit various color % just for the sake of it. For the most part you can simply pick the color you like and just focus on the intensity setting. If you want maximum par, this is usually around the 50% to 60% color setting. But par can be over rated and shouldn't be the only focus. It's more important that you are simply in a proper par range for the corals you are keeping, and most corals can handle a wide range of light. If you're keeping lps or softies, you won't need much par at all. If you're doing clams or acropora, you might need to focus on par more to be sure you are providing enough.

For my kessil lights, they are usually around 25% color because that's what I like, but I have T5s providing the majority of my par and I have a couple of full spectrum bulbs, so I know I am getting some spectrum in all the critical areas.

Hope that helps

Thank you Daniel. I have a Reefer 170 and currently running with one A360WE only. Start to add SPS to the center and top part of the tank. and want to make sure I have enough light for the coral I recently purchased. Hear about the need to add T5 for covering all those shadows created by the single pug source light. Is that true? of should my 360 good for my 170 already? My SPS s are only in 1" plug only.

 

[Daniel Waters]

Thank you Daniel. I have a Reefer 170 and currently running with one A360WE only. Start to add SPS to the center and top part of the tank. and want to make sure I have enough light for the coral I recently purchased. Hear about the need to add T5 for covering all those shadows created by the single pug source light. Is that true? of should my 360 good for my 170 already? My SPS s are only in 1" plug only.

A reefer 170 is approximately 24" x 20" x 20" I believe. One kessil A360we can certainly light that area for lps and soft corals. For sps, you most likely would need to focus on placing corals in the center and probably in the top 8" of the tank. You can consult the BRS video for their par numbers if you don't have a means of measuring par yourself (link to video at bottom). As I said before, it's more about being in an adequate range and not a specific number. For softies and lps, the one kessil will be fine. For higher light corals, you will be limited in your placement.

All point source lights will create shadows. Shadows provide a nice contrast. Some people like the large contrast, some people don't. If you're growing corals from frags, shadows aren't really as much of a concern. As a coral begins to grow, parts of the coral may shade itself from light. If you place corals underneath certain rock ledges, you will notice a shadow being created from the point source light. Sometimes less light can be good as you can place corals that prefer less intense light in those areas or corals that like more indirect light (my acans I used to keep preferred indirect light and colored up better in lower lighted areas for instance). Imagine a large montipora plating coral growing out and just one led puck giving light from above. That large plating coral would shade anything below it. Situations like this would require more led pucks spread across the tank or a light with more diffusion (such as t5s or an led with a diffuser or a panel style led). The extra pucks or diffuse light creates light coming from multiple sources and angles, effectively allowing light to reach more parts of a growing coral. Situations like this is one reason people like t5s or like using multiple LED units because it will decrease the shadows.

So do you need T5s? Probably not right now, but you'll understand more about shadows as you spend more time growing corals. Would t5s be a benefit or additional kessils? Sure. But corals will also benefit from stability, proper flow, feeding, proper water chemistry, and solid husbandry practices. I'd tell you get all those things mastered and worry less about your lighting right now. I've had more sps die from alkalinity swings than not providing enough light (and I'd say more people have baked corals from too much intensity versus killing them from not providing enough light). If you're trying to grow sps, you will probably need to be running your light at 75% to 100% intensity for at least a few hours of your photo period to give you the light levels you will need for those sps. But even then, sps is very broad. Some sps need more lights than other sps. Some sps will do fine at lower levels as long as you have a longer photo period. It really depends on the coral and your tank.

Hope that helps!

 

[alfpiccolo]

A reefer 170 is approximately 24" x 20" x 20" I believe. One kessil A360we can certainly light that area for lps and soft corals. For sps, you most likely would need to focus on placing corals in the center and probably in the top 8" of the tank. You can consult the BRS video for their par numbers if you don't have a means of measuring par yourself (link to video at bottom). As I said before, it's more about being in an adequate range and not a specific number. For softies and lps, the one kessil will be fine. For higher light corals, you will be limited in your placement.

All point source lights will create shadows. Shadows provide a nice contrast. Some people like the large contrast, some people don't. If you're growing corals from frags, shadows aren't really as much of a concern. As a coral begins to grow, parts of the coral may shade itself from light. If you place corals underneath certain rock ledges, you will notice a shadow being created from the point source light. Sometimes less light can be good as you can place corals that prefer less intense light in those areas or corals that like more indirect light (my acans I used to keep preferred indirect light and colored up better in lower lighted areas for instance). Imagine a large montipora plating coral growing out and just one led puck giving light from above. That large plating coral would shade anything below it. Situations like this would require more led pucks spread across the tank or a light with more diffusion (such as t5s or an led with a diffuser or a panel style led). The extra pucks or diffuse light creates light coming from multiple sources and angles, effectively allowing light to reach more parts of a growing coral. Situations like this is one reason people like t5s or like using multiple LED units because it will decrease the shadows.

So do you need T5s? Probably not right now, but you'll understand more about shadows as you spend more time growing corals. Would t5s be a benefit or additional kessils? Sure. But corals will also benefit from stability, proper flow, feeding, proper water chemistry, and solid husbandry practices. I'd tell you get all those things mastered and worry less about your lighting right now. I've had more sps die from alkalinity swings than not providing enough light (and I'd say more people have baked corals from too much intensity versus killing them from not providing enough light). If you're trying to grow sps, you will probably need to be running your light at 75% to 100% intensity for at least a few hours of your photo period to give you the light levels you will need for those sps. But even then, sps is very broad. Some sps need more lights than other sps. Some sps will do fine at lower levels as long as you have a longer photo period. It really depends on the coral and your tank.

Hope that helps!

Thank you so your kind and prompt reply. This helps greatly! I am relative new to the hobby with only five years of experience and just start adding SPS to my tank. Your encouragement and direction helps me to focus on the other factors other than the light.
I was also confused on what color or intensity I should be running but with your help, I will try slowing ramp up to the 75% to 100%. (been running only up to 70% afraid that I may baked my corals.

 

[becks]

How does the cloud function work when you program the controller? can you have random clouds during the program? can all the lights ramp down and up between 0-10% or is it just the new version of the 360?