Par Meters??

KING · Apr 7, 2012

i was wondering if there is any par meters for sale that are a decent price? i think it would be something nice to have but im looking online and not really seeing anything. are they called something else maybe? whats the deal with them? :squigglemouth:

Rockadile · Apr 7, 2012

look up apogee par meters. but if you are using LEDs you really need a flux meter.

JackoChang · Apr 7, 2012

You can buy the apogee sensors and connect to your multimeter. There is the SenEye. Sunlight Supply is releasing one this year sometime. In conjunction with the above, think that's your options.

What's a flux meter?

thewackyreefer · Apr 7, 2012

Check out the Seneye.

Mike Cruz · Apr 7, 2012

Seneye is expensive and from the reviews I read, not very good.

I would suggest the Apogee MQ-200, use it on sun mode to measure LED. I got one for $335 shipped at AquariumSpecialty.

The sunlight supply is the same exact one as apogee, just a rebrand, but much more expensive from what I have seen so far.

JackoChang · Apr 7, 2012

LEDTRiC said:
Seneye is expensive and from the reviews I read, not very good.

I would suggest the Apogee MQ-200, use it on sun mode to measure LED. I got one for $335 shipped at AquariumSpecialty.

The sunlight supply is the same exact one as apogee, just a rebrand, but much more expensive from what I have seen so far.

Where are you getting your pricing?

SenEye $189
http://www.seneye.com/store/devices/seneye-reef.html
SunLight $349, $449
http://www.sunlightsupply.com/p-14301-par-meter-with-integrated-or-remote-sensor.aspx
Apogee $339, $389
http://www.apogeeinstruments.com/quantum/

Mike Cruz · Apr 7, 2012

For the SLS unit and Seneye or the AMQ200?

Suneye directly from Seneye
SLS directly from SLS
Apogee from Aquarium Specialty

KING · Apr 7, 2012

im on the apogee site and dont really know what im looking at. there are "meters" "line meters" "sensors" and "line sensors" for sale. there is an MQ and SQ meter with a huge price difference. ive never used one of these so im gathering info..

Mike Cruz · Apr 7, 2012

KING said:
im on the apogee site and dont really know what im looking at. there are "meters" "line meters" "sensors" and "line sensors" for sale. there is an MQ and SQ meter with a huge price difference. ive never used one of these so im gathering info..

Get the Apogee MQ-200, but get it from AquariumSpecialty, it's much cheaper with free shipping. I am assuming you want to measure LED, MH, T5 and the alike, right?

CUNAReefer · Apr 7, 2012

LEDTRiC said:
Get the Apogee MQ-200, but get it from AquariumSpecialty, it's much cheaper with free shipping. I am assuming you want to measure LED, MH, T5 and the alike, right?

+1 I bought the Apogee MQ-200 and it is worth its weight in gold! I use it to measure PAR from my 8x80 ATI Sunpower. I adjust my light to provide a PAR level of 500 at the highest level in the middle of my tank. One thing I noticed right away was my PAR started the day at 560, but later dropped to 440 when the bulbes heated up. When I crank up the fan, the PAR level will increase.

Warmest Regards,
James

KING · Apr 7, 2012

what all do you need with it? or does the "meter" come with everything? yes measuring halides, t5s, leds, PCs.. between me and a buddy of mine we have about 20 tanks and several are reefs so it would be something good to have. plus im opening a store this summer ;-)

CUNAReefer · Apr 7, 2012

Hi King,

Good luck with the new store! The Apogee PAR meter comes with everything you need to measure light levels. You will most likely need to create a wand to hold the light sensor. It makes it easier for measuring different light levels in hard to access areas within your tank.

Warmest Regards,
James

KING · Apr 7, 2012

thank you very much. ive teamed up with a friend that is very experienced in this stuff also and weve been out looking at locations this week. there are no good stores around here at all and its time for one. i see that they have a "wand" for like $50 but that seems like a waste of money when i can apoxy the sensor to a piece of pvc pipe lol. i appreciate the info everyone!

DarkSephiroth · Apr 7, 2012

Rockadile said:
look up apogee par meters. but if you are using LEDs you really need a flux meter.

Why do you need a flux meter instead of par meter?

AFAIK, flux measures the intensity of the bulbs to see if you need to replace it, and par is Photosynthetically Active Radiation, in which how much light the corals are absorbing.

CUNAReefer · Apr 7, 2012

DarkSephiroth said:
Why do you need a flux meter instead of par meter?

AFAIK, flux measures the intensity of the bulbs to see if you need to replace it, and par is Photosynthetically Active Radiation, in which how much light the corals are absorbing.

+1 You set your Apogee PAR meter to "Electronic" and you will be fine.

Mike Cruz · Apr 7, 2012

CUNAReefer said:
+1 You set your Apogee PAR meter to "Electronic" and you will be fine.

Actually Sun mode is perfectly fine for LEDs and MH.

CJO · Apr 8, 2012

Rockadile said:
look up apogee par meters. but if you are using LEDs you really need a flux meter.

Sorry, but that's not correct. PAR is the standard right now.

CJ

KING · Apr 8, 2012

the only LEDs im running right now are on fowlr tanks and for coral night viewing. i grow with MH and T5s still.

thewackyreefer · Apr 8, 2012

LEDTRiC said:
Seneye is expensive and from the reviews I read, not very good.

I would suggest the Apogee MQ-200, use it on sun mode to measure LED. I got one for $335 shipped at AquariumSpecialty.

The sunlight supply is the same exact one as apogee, just a rebrand, but much more expensive from what I have seen so far.

All of the tests ive seen and reviews I've read regarding the par meter indicate the Seneye is comparable to the Apogee meter. And no, less than $200 for a par meter is not expensive...