Opinion on Double Brights

SeymourDuncan · Oct 1, 2013

I picked up a 25g solana all in one with 2 Marineland Double Bright fixtures.

If you know me you already know I gutted the filtration on the tank for a refugium, lol...however these lights are definitely up for debate on whether or not they are worth using for any time at all.

They are in great physical condition, so selling them won't be a challenge. The idea for the solana is a softie-only seahorse tank. If these lights can provide enough PAR to keep softies then I'm in business. I don't want explosive growth at all, in fact, stunting the growth without killing the corals is my goal. Looking for first hand experience with these. If these are not bright enough then I won't even plug them in.

Thanks a ton!

tupes · Oct 1, 2013

They are bright but just to white. Id prefer to spend the extra money to get something full spectrum.

Sent from my Note II

SeymourDuncan · Oct 1, 2013

tupes said:
They are bright but just to white. Id prefer to spend the extra money to get something full spectrum.

Sent from my Note II

Ok, so effective but unappealing? I like that answer.

Reefing Madness · Oct 1, 2013

I agree. The 1watt LEDs are good enough for some LPS also. But the coloring is aweful. They will work though.

SeymourDuncan · Oct 1, 2013

Ok...for now they will be what I use. I'm not worried about color so much as keeping my seahorses alive that I rescued. No LPS for them. Mainly Kenya trees and stuff like that. Maybe leathers.

Ron Reefman · Oct 2, 2013

I got one 3 years ago from Marineland, free and a banquet gift at MACNA in Orlando. I hate saying negative things about a freebie, but in 18 months the power supply connection on the light corroded away to become unusable. But I had long before moved it from a frag tank where I felt it was less effective than the t5 fixture I had before it, to my refugium. I switched to a Eco Tech Radion for the frag tank and the difference was like night and day! I hope you got a great deal and they do what you need them to do. I have to assume their newer fixtures are better than what they were making 3 years ago? But I never pay any attention to them because the only way I'd try one again is if I got it for the same price I paid for the first one...

SeymourDuncan · Oct 2, 2013

Ron, these were basically free with the tank. I'm putting more into salt than these lights.
They look very well cared for. As far as comparing them to anything like radions I would always choose the radions lol. These double brights retail for like $50 a piece. Not even in the same ball park lol. I would t5 it but I just remembered 18 inch t5s only come in 2 brands that I know of. Odessea and something else. I have an oddesea over my frag tank that is ok. Just not pretty as far as colors go.

Ron Reefman · Oct 3, 2013

Free is almost always a good price! :wink: And it is a smaller and shallow tank, so they could be just fine for most corals. I was just looking at the fixture and I see that they have changed the power cord connection and that was my biggest issue with the hardware. That and the rather shaky legs (if you need to stretch them out much). And the powdercoat peeled off the legs in a year or so, but I moved them a number of times and was adjusting them.

SeymourDuncan · Oct 3, 2013

Ron Reefman said:
Free is almost always a good price! :wink: And it is a smaller and shallow tank, so they could be just fine for most corals. I was just looking at the fixture and I see that they have changed the power cord connection and that was my biggest issue with the hardware. That and the rather shaky legs (if you need to stretch them out much). And the powdercoat peeled off the legs in a year or so, but I moved them a number of times and was adjusting them.

Lol, great. I have an old one and a new one. Luckily I have a trick up my sleeve. Silicone!
I'll put a ring of silicone around the power input or something similar. Thanks for the heads up. They fit perfectly on the tank...but you were right. Very white. Will be upgrading either my 90g and taking one of my reef breeders from that or just leAving the 90 as is and gettin something way different.

I just sold the seahorses (right before I moved them) so te options have now opened for Lps and various other stinging things

I dumped a couple test corals in to see how they reacted to brand new water and very cycled rock. Should be on in a few

SeymourDuncan · Oct 4, 2013

Spotlighty...ehhh. Might have to change em after all...artsy though lol.

SeymourDuncan · Oct 4, 2013

This is on odd question...say I decide to swap out lights...these are intended for planted tanks

Can these support a cactus?! My cats are devils when it comes to house plants and last winter my cactus had to sit In the music studio window. Its 6 feet tall. I'm guessing the answer is no but what the hey right? Haha.

ingtar_shinowa · Oct 4, 2013

I have some Reef Capable LEDs that are a stronger fixture and they are barely adequate to go on my fuge. I don't believe the double bright would be useful for growing anything. Also I don't believe you will sell them easily.

SeymourDuncan · Oct 4, 2013

ingtar_shinowa said:
I have some Reef Capable LEDs that are a stronger fixture and they are barely adequate to go on my fuge. I don't believe the double bright would be useful for growing anything. Also I don't believe you will sell them easily.

I can sell poo to a fly, its in my blood. My mom was a furniture salesperson and I played hookie a lot lol! I have polyp extension on a Kenya tree, which let me tell you is demanding (not)...but the zoa is opened that I put in so we will see if it grows or bleaches out. I did however add the light from the old cube this tank replaced whih is a 16 actual watt cfl fuge light that does great for growth but is yellerer than a Lemon. Combined with the double brights is still...interesting...
I'm just toying around. When Its ready for the goods I'll have the equipment needed, depending on the route I go. I'm watching the algae to non algae ratio for a while to see what I will be up against maintenance wise.

I tried the reef ones before too for dirt cheap and I wasn't sure they were strong enough for my 90 but a pet store has thriving softies under it now lol. Lps too, but mainly low light ones.
Here's a pic of the combo of lighting

Reefing Madness · Oct 5, 2013

Pretty cool shot there man.

Ron Reefman · Oct 5, 2013

In fact that's a very cool photo! I happen to be a fan of most all kinds of dragons and yours are very cool!

And if you like house plants, you are welcome to visit here any time you are down this way. About 12 years ago I moved in with my wife who had just bought a home a year or 2 before we met. The yard was 99.9% grass and virtually no other plants but 2 rows of Washingtonia Palm trees beside the house on either lot line. Now, 12 years later the backyard is maybe 10% grass and 90% gardens and trees and the front yard is 20% grass and 80% gardens and trees. And so much of what I had as 'house plants' (including cactus) in Ohio and Michigan are now out in the yard. And my wife takes care of all of it, including cutting the grass. I cut it once the Monday after I moved in and when she got home from work that day she scolded me and told me never to cut the grass again! I asked if I did it wrong and she said no, but that it was her way of getting exercise and she wanted to do it. I haven't cut the grass in 12 years!

SeymourDuncan · Oct 5, 2013

Thanks guys!
The dragons are hand made from Korea. Dad was in the airforce and he didn't display them at his house...so I asked for em. They have a deep story to them, but I will share the short version.

I originally had a 12g with just the lamp fixture (the yellow one). Well I had no fish or intentions of owning any. Just had some sand and rock cycling. Well I hung up the dragons and the next day someone gave me 3 free sea horses they rescued. Curse? Blessing? Magic? Coincidence? I'll pick answer E: I think too much haha. They really matched the dragons well. I ended up sellin them rather than moving them to the bigger tank since I was aware I was not into long term care, though they rocked. Mainly it was the coral restrictions that kept me from keeping them.

The coolest part was that this tank was what the sea horses were rescued from! The front pane had a small leak on the top seal so the guy resealed it per my advice, though it wasn't the smoothest job it wasn't the worst. If I ever sell the tank I'll make it look nicer but hey...it works great.

Now, into the realm of actual plant life in my house:

I love plants, but so do my cats. Each plant we have tried besides the orchids in our kitchen have been bitten, soiled (the bad kind), or watered (the yellow kind). Between the 3 cats we could go through about 20 house plants in a week. Hanging plants may be an option but at this point we aren't too worried about the indoor plants any more. Our yard however is a rain forest of tomatoes, berries, grapes, cherries, peppers, plums, various mints, and a few other edible greens. I love eating! I love eating for free even more! We try to keep the edible plant ratio much higher than decorative. It actually makes yard work so easy because I just go eat a bunch of food and my yard is nice again...well mostly. I have a limit to the amount of tomatoes I can actually eat. Our yard is a deck, a pool, a tree lawn, an area just large enough for 2 dogs to potty and the rest is yum yums! Mowing my lawn is about a 12 second task. Takes longer getting the mower out than to use it.

I thought about setting up a tank just for a mangrove in the house but by the time its huge I'll have moved to the ocean to advance my career as a reef junkie