Lighting for 6ft tank

abecker · Aug 26, 2015

My tank is 72"x18"x21". I am looking to change my lighting to either the Kessil A360w or Radion xr30w. Main reason for these is the clean mounting solution to the tank. My tank does have 1 brace in the center which I am assuming would cause some shadowing with the Kessils if I used 3. I will be keeping LPS and soft corals. Does anyone else have a similar setup with either of these lights? Just looking to see what other's experiences are.

tigerdragon · Aug 26, 2015

Prolly gonna need at least 4 of ea to light your tank. Another option if i may suggest is the reef radiance lumentek 240 pro would only need 2 of these for your tank i run this light and a 360 on my 200 plenty of light and getting great growth. Not knocking kessil or radion but fig cost is going to be up there to get adequate coverage

Dan1789 · Aug 26, 2015

Lps and softies you could do 3 radions.

WetWhistle · Aug 26, 2015

Or three AI hydra 52 as a cheaper option then Radions. I have a 180 and they work great with three for anything you want to keep SPS, LPS or soft.

abecker · Aug 26, 2015

Do you run your hydra off of an apex?

Newtybar · Aug 26, 2015

4 xr15w Pro's would probably work too.

WetWhistle · Aug 26, 2015

abecker said:
Do you run your hydra off of an apex?

I do use the Apex with the AWM module to run them.

abecker · Aug 26, 2015

Has anyone tried running 2 XR30W with wide-angle lens on a 6 foot tank?

1stNoel · Aug 30, 2015

abecker said:
Has anyone tried running 2 XR30W with wide-angle lens on a 6 foot tank?

1stNoel · Aug 30, 2015

Hello, everyone.

I am new to reef-keeping. I came across this thread because I purchased 3 Kessils to go on my 220 gallon tank (72" x 24" x 30" tall), placed my first coral in the tank (L.A. Laker zoas), and the lighting makes it seem more like Seattle Seahawk zoas. See attached picture...

I'm sure it's probably noobie user error, but I'm trying to find out how to make it look yellow instead of lime green. Would coral placement affect it (it's at the bottom of the tank)? Maybe the red and yellow portion of the spectrum isn't reaching down that far (30")?

To answer abecker's question, attached is a picture of just one Kessil turned on as I was filling the tank...and another of all three on it it's current state (just finished cycling). I have 2 braces on the tank, so that's the slight shadow you see. Otherwise, light penetration is awesome. Shimmer and color look fantastic. My only concern is how to ensure that a coral I purchase at the store will look the same in my tank.

Ecotech didn't recommend XR15s based on the depth of my tank, but wouldn't provide any specifics as to why I should purchase the XR-30s over Kessils. Since I couldn't really find any bad reviews on the Kessils, and got the "ooooh" factor everytime I mentioned Kessils at a LFS, plus the price difference, I decided to buy the Kessils. Now I just need to figure out how to tune in the color right.

tigerdragon · Aug 31, 2015

Try turning the blues down and bring up whites if you want that type coloring although its the blues the corals use the most and blues penetrate deeper

1stNoel · Sep 1, 2015

Thanks for the reply. I sent an email to Kessil support and received the following response:

"Try not to get discouraged, it is normal for corals to be a bit shocked when moved to a new tank. It should start coloring back up in about a week.

I recommend running the program below in the acclimation mode on the controller, starting at 50% intensity for 14 days, returning to the Quickset program. You should see a change in your coral in the next few days.

Time Color Intensity
8:00 0% 5%
10:00 10% 50%
12:00 30% 100%
13:00 55% 100%
16:00 20% 50%
18:00 0% 0%

Please let us know the results!

Also, the way the A360s are designed, the light will always deliver the best spectrum for coral growth and coloration. The color setting adds and removes some visible, non-usable light, and is primarily for aesthetics. It is the intensity that is key to your coral's growth and coloration."

Hope this helps anyone else in a similar situation. I'll post results in 2 weeks!