Par meter

[Hilltopreef90]

If you only have soft corals and lps do you really need a par meter ?
What benefits do they provide as far as being worth the cost ?
If I place corals in the recommended par areas will it give them that much better chance of staying healthy and growing

 

[blaxsun]

No, but I like my Neptune PMK module since it graphs and logs my PAR readings.

 

[mdb_talon]

Even with a par meter and using accepted standard for where to place certain types of coral you still have to make judgement decisions based off looking at the coral and how they do in my opinion. There are plenty of exceptions to the guidelines. However I do find one useful mostly because I have several tanks and at times am moving things back and forth between tanks. I have mapped out the par values across all my tanks and can easily move them to similar lighting levels anywhere else without me needing to judge the lighting levels by sight (which once I got a par meter I realized I was very poor at doing so).

 

[Avengerx77]

Following along!!! I am interested as well on knowing if it is worth the cost of a meter for a dominant soft/LPs coral tank. Also, where is a good place to get reference on the recommended PAR reading for each type of corals?

 

[Hilltopreef90]

Even with a par meter and using accepted standard for where to place certain types of coral you still have to make judgement decisions based off looking at the coral and how they do in my opinion. There are plenty of exceptions to the guidelines. However I do find one useful mostly because I have several tanks and at times am moving things back and forth between tanks. I have mapped out the par values across all my tanks and can easily move them to similar lighting levels anywhere else without me needing to judge the lighting levels by sight (which once I got a par meter I realized I was very poor at doing so).

Is the Neptune

Even with a par meter and using accepted standard for where to place certain types of coral you still have to make judgement decisions based off looking at the coral and how they do in my opinion. There are plenty of exceptions to the guidelines. However I do find one useful mostly because I have several tanks and at times am moving things back and forth between tanks. I have mapped out the par values across all my tanks and can easily move them to similar lighting levels anywhere else without me needing to judge the lighting levels by sight (which once I got a par meter I realized I was very poor at doing so).

is the apex pmk par monitoring kit by Neptune good to use to measure my par ?
Any recommendations on best par meter to purchase?https://www.saltwateraquarium.com/apex-pmk-par-monitoring-kit-neptune-systems/

 

[mdb_talon]

Is the Neptune

is the apex pmk par monitoring kit by Neptune good to use to measure my par ?
Any recommendations on best par meter to purchase?https://www.saltwateraquarium.com/apex-pmk-par-monitoring-kit-neptune-systems/

Just from a quick look at that link it definetely seems like the real deal, but other than that I really got no idea I did not even know that was an option until you linked it

 

[PeterC99]

If you are content with your reef with the way it is now, then there is no need for a par meter.

If you plan on taking your reef to the next level, I definitely recommend getting a par meter. Know they are expensive but there are ways to rent or buy used. I bought a used one at a decent price and now share it with my friends.

If you are guessing your par levels then odds are you are guessing wrong. I got a real eye opener when I checked lighting levels with a par meter.

 

[Lavey29]

If you are content with your reef with the way it is now, then there is no need for a par meter.

If you plan on taking your reef to the next level, I definitely recommend getting a par meter. Know they are expensive but there are ways to rent or buy used. I bought a used one at a decent price and now share it with my friends.

If you are guessing your par levels then odds are you are guessing wrong. I got a real eye opener when I checked lighting levels with a par meter.

Good suggestions. Were your guestimates on the low or high side pre par check? Just curious because I am going off internet par readings for my size tank with same lighting set up to guestimate my par levels.

 

[DCR]

I don't have any experience with the Apex, but I would go with the Apogee 510. I don't think you really need or want to have your sensor in the water 100% of the time with potential biological growth over it. Also the ability to easily test different areas of the tank with a portable unit is very valuable.

 

[Gtinnel]

I used to always just go by how the corals look to determine if my lighting was correct but I eventually bought a used apex pmk. I was hoping to find that my par was drastically different than what I expected (just to justify the cost of the meter mostly), but in my case it was fairly close.
I don't leave mine in the tank all the time I just use it to check values then take it back out like a traditional par meter. The biggest downside to the pmk is that the values don't update immediately, so you have to leave the meter in place longer to get your reading. It's considerably quicker if you login trough local, but still not instantaneous. I've heard the display gives the immediate reading but I don't have one to verify that claim.

 

[PeterC99]

Good suggestions. Were your guestimates on the low or high side pre par check? Just curious because I am going off internet par readings for my size tank with same lighting set up to guestimate my par levels.

I was significantly off to the low side. Figured the top of my aquarium was 350, turned out it was 260. Slowly cranked up my Radions to 80% Light Point Intensity. The top of my aquarium is now 600. Arcos are growing very well and getting much better coloring.

 

[Lavey29]

Wow

I was significantly off to the low side. Figured the top of my aquarium was 350, turned out it was 260. Slowly cranked up my Radions to 80% Light Point Intensity. The top of my aquarium is now 600. Arcos are growing very well and getting much better coloring.

Wow 600 is blazing. Are you using Xr30?

 

[PeterC99]

Wow

Wow 600 is blazing. Are you using Xr30?

Yes Radions XR30s. Big fan!

 

[z-reefer]

Yes Radions XR30s. Big fan!

just curious as we have similar sized tanks, how high are your rations mounted above the water?

 

[PeterC99]

just curious as we have similar sized tanks, how high are your rations mounted above the water?

10 inches off the water line.

 

[Lavey29]

10 inches off the water line.

And you run 80% schedule or 80% intensity?

 

[hexumjunkie]

Following along!

 

[Hilltopreef90]

If you are content with your reef with the way it is now, then there is no need for a par meter.

If you plan on taking your reef to the next level, I definitely recommend getting a par meter. Know they are expensive but there are ways to rent or buy used. I bought a used one at a decent price and now share it with my friends.

If you are guessing your par levels then odds are you are guessing wrong. I got a real eye opener when I checked lighting levels with a par meter.

I was surprised as well, my tank seemed really bright yet the corals on the bottom and closer to the sides were barely getting any par at all. I was also surprised at using different settings and how much difference a template setting geared for sps. I figure my corals are tired of being moved around and I’ve checked and rechecked my par settings and they aren’t too high or too low so I’ll leave everyone alone and see how they do.
I don’t regret getting the par meter at all, except I spent several days messing with the lights and corals trying to get the par just right.