On the fence

[ZoWhat]

I'm on the fence about buying the $250

Apogee SQ-420 Smart Quantum Sensor​

I mean.... I know it's accurate.

But.... im questioning two things:

1) will this product stand up to years of use, if I only store and check lights 2x a year? Will the sensor go bad after a certain amount if time? Not sure how to properly clean and store it.

2) do I really need it? I have zoas/palys that get a fair amount of almost exclusively 420nm to 510nm blue light. No whites. Maybe a hint of red. Will it end up being an expensive toy where the results are, "well that's nice, but im not going to change my lighting much"

Thoughts?


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[jhuntstl]

$194 on ebay if that changes things for you.

 

[PeterC99]

No right or wrong answer - only different options!

 

[tehmadreefer]

Buy an expensive toy to use twice a year for zoa/paly lighting? Ugh no thanks. I’d say a waste, but to each their own.

 

[blasterman]

I vote for expensive toy without much use.

If you have healthy zoas you already got lighting down.

 

[DeniableArc]

Here in Australia I cannot find anyone that rents par meters. I just can’t justify buying knowing I’d probably only use it once. But it would be a great tool to have.

 

[Gtinnel]

For me it would depend on how often you buy corals.

If you have a fully stocked tank then you probably won't be changing your lighting because trying to adjust your light to make one coral happy my anger another coral in which case i'd say it isn't worth it.

If you are constantly buying new corals then it could be used to determine placement of new corals and probably worth the cost.

Also, for zoas/palys only, its probably not worth it either way IMO because they're pretty easy to tell if they need more or less light.

 

[monkeyCmonkeyDo]

Pass. Waste of $. Idk why i have to keep saying this. Lol.
Dim light. Bright light. I think coral can adapt and tolerate diffrent brightnesses of light. The par meter is just a number for the hard number ppl or number chasers.
My opinion and i mean no offense to anyone who owns 1.
D

 

[monkeyCmonkeyDo]

Spend the $250 on something else related to your fish tank.
D

 

[Daniel@R2R Verified Admin]

I bought one bc I have T5 lighting and will be using it for checking to monitor for PAR decreases. However...that's my excuse. It's a toy that I'll enjoy playing with. LOL