Lighting a 96” Long Mixed DT

[Whiskeyboy84]

Ok guys so I am building my first ever reef tank and decided either go big or go home lol so I am having a custom 96”L 24”W 20”D DT built as well as a matching sump optimized for the Triton Method. That being said I was sold on Kessil’s until I have read several reviews and posts about the lights failing at what I would call a premature state. So I am looking for the best lighting option for both esthetics and performance that’s not going to give up on me in a two year time frame.

@randyBRS and @Ryanbrs I was wondering if you guys could weigh in on This As a noobie to the reef keeping world I am researching everything at nausium I have pretty well narrowed the field to either 6 Kessil A360’s or 3 Orphek Panels. I was pretty well sold on Kessil’s until I started reading posts about the lights dropping like flies at the 1.5 to 2 year mark. Any insight would be greatly appreciated!

 

[Dana Riddle]

I'll leave the lighting questions up to the BRS guys per your request but will chime in on water motion. Proper lighting won't do much good if the photosynthetic animals are surrounding by stagnant water. Fortunately, water-moving devices are pretty good nowadays.

 

[Whiskeyboy84]

Lol @Dana Riddle By all means chime in I read your sticky on lighting and getting serious about lighting I follow the BRS guys closely and have watched their Tech videos on these fixtures and being they are a huge distributor hopefully they could lend some insight as to if these are isolated incidents or the common norm with an Kessil. Also Ryan I think it was made an interesting statement about if he were starting a new sps tank the Orphek is the direction he would go which I found interesting since BRS seems to put Kessil’s on all their in house Tanks. As far as flow goes I have that one figured out I think with two 1.5 inch overflow and three 1 inch returns to start. An Abyzz 200 Return pump rated at 4000 gph. A pair of anti synced maxspect Gyres 5000gph and a few small powerheads on the back to really keep the turbulence and flow up

 

[Dana Riddle]

You've definitely put some thought into water motion, which tends to be underrated by many in its importance. I'll let the BRS guys chime in on lighting.

 

[saltyfilmfolks]

The 360 will work fine. IMO you’ll need a few, correct, six . Multiple (3) Ap700 will give you more par availability and flexibility on livestock choices.
The Orphecks will do the same , but you’ll have fewer concerns later on shading as it’s a multi emitter array.
From what I read , kessil has an excellent service program, and I see few actual issues here on Reef2Reef.
Folks here actually rave about it.

 

[Whiskeyboy84]

Lol on BRS site there are a couple bad reviews about the 360’s going out and on Reef Central plus a few guys here have expressed their concerns but the overall consensus is positive still. I like the AP 700’s and have considered them but have read reviews that the App and Master/slave situations are still quirky at times. I like the Orphek just wish they had a better shimmer but I am willing to forego shimmer for reliability, and less shadowing. The 360’s I figured are the cheapest really that I would get out with lol. When I started down this path it was with a brackish tank for my wife and child then I found it helps me with my PTSD symptoms so I started researching Reef and Saltwater Aquarium’s and this brain child has started to come to fruition over the last 6-8 months of endless research and savings lol. At first I was only exposed in person to Current USA stuff and was wowed by the storm effects and lunar cycle at a regular pet store then I found my LFS after finding Reef Central and R2R which I have found to be the most helpful. That’s where I have seen Radions and Kessils’ up close and personal. My LFS loves the Kessils’ but hasn’t had them
In service but about a year and have them on shallow frag tanks so the thermal load I am sure isn’t as hard on them as if they were running at or near 100%.

 

[Whiskeyboy84]

@Dana Riddle just wanted to thank you for chiming in and sharing your knowledge I am currently watching your 2016 MACNA Presentation Lol. I try to be a well versed in knowledge and theory before I get into something I hate the unknowns though lol. I like restoring muscle cars on my own time and I do the entire process myself currently helping my best friends brother in law who just turned 15 do a restomod on a 1963 Ford F100 unibody that we a putting a late model mustang drivetrain in. So I have learned to be resourceful and ask for help is cheaper than the fake it until you make it mentality of so many young people these days.

 

[saltyfilmfolks]

Well, I know the ptsd pretty well myself.

All your choices are solid and will grow coral , I can tag or send you to some of the kessil “koolaide” friends
As far as the warranty concerns go. And a I can send you BRS and another reputable supplier who share the same commitment to service.

As far as the bells and whistles, I don’t actually think about those nor worry about them. I’ve set both my tanks very simply as not worry about them. I think that’s key. Both for the Reef and the reefer. IMO that’s why t5 is better. We can’t really mess with it. Lol.

Honestly, once the lights are on, there’s really not much messing with them needed to be done. You just watch the corals grow.

I would suggest , if funds are there, purchase a par meter. Seneye now is the least expensive, and a simple lux meter is the next best thing. It sets intensity.

My basic philosophy on tank Light choices is , price first, appearance , and last is features. Features last , becuse that just adds complexity. A simple ramp and timer is all you need there. The spectral controll is neat , but unless you know everything about every coral , those choices are unnecessary. It’s why kessil has two knobs.

Other choices for the tank for less cash and similar features are , Reefbreeders Photon series , and the SBreeflight Ultra series.

 

[Whiskeyboy84]

Thank You @saltyfilmfolks I truly am appreciative of your insight! I will likely stick with the A360’s and go with 7 of them to create the light fields if you will for the mixed reef. My wife and I really have different taste in corals lol but we both want clams and a wide variety to bring some real excitement to the tank with visual appeal. Also sticking with the A360’s gives me the ability to swivel and aim the light as well as combine them with T5’s as BRS has done on the BRS160 I am no stranger to fabrication lol so If it comes to that I will enjoy the challenge.

As for the Par meter and all I plan on getting one as well as several other test kits before I even get water in this tank as I don’t like flying blind if you will! These are creatures that God has blessed us with and good husbandry is vital to establishing and maintaining a beautiful aquarium.

 

[jda]

I would not use either of those lights on my tanks, so take this FWIW, but I have seen a few friends of mine with multiple Kessils over their mixed reefs that have been working for at least 2 years (probably more like 3) without any issues. If you decide on the Kessils, or not, I think that their failure rate is not too much different than EcoTech, AI, the Nicer Chinese stuff and probably better than some of the lower-end stuff from China - people seem to be happier about their post-sale support than most other companies.

I would opine that it is safe to make your decision on other factors.