Radions or Orphek Atlantik's?

[Dlealrious]

I don’t disagree with water quality. But I have the same numbers now nutrient wise as when I ran my halides. The only real difference is the lights.
I did notice a short spike in my ALK from 8.5 to 10.6 over 4-5 weeks so I cannot rule that out. My speculation is that the light change stalled growth and the numbers slowly rose.

Corey

Yup your right there, higher intensity will shock coral so you need to keep an eye on the alk so it doesn't spike. Once settled i found all demand went up alot

 

[biecacka]

Do you think that increase over a month is severe enough to cause the issue?

Corey

 

[Dlealrious]

Do you think that increase over a month is severe enough to cause the issue?

Corey

Unsure man, i would just test alk each day to avoid any spikes. There are too many variables in reef keeping I just go by trial and error

 

[biecacka]

I have been testing it daily after noticing the increase over the month. Turned off my CaRx for awhile too. Things might be starting to settle in a little bit as well.
Corey

 

[sawdonkey]

Unsure man, i would just test alk each day to avoid any spikes. There are too many variables in reef keeping I just go by trial and error

Wow! Daily alk testing! That is serious dedication, but in my opinion, overkill. How much is it moving daily? If it’s enough to care about, why? I test once per week and mine travels somewhere between 6 and 9 and my corals don’t seem to care.

 

[smartwater101]

Wow! Daily alk testing! That is serious dedication, but in my opinion, overkill.

Daily Alk testing is pretty common. With auto-testers like KH director/Alkatronic, people test many times a day.

You'd be surprised how much you learn when you have a daily (even hourly) pulse on Alk movement.

 

[vetteguy53081]

My main tank has several Orphek lights. They are really nice and are very capable but also very powerful. They can make your corals glow but can also burn up a coral in minutes. You must start at acclimation Mode.
Radion makes a great light too but my past ones occasionally went into a different mode on their own or lost communication with the Reef Link

 

[Graffiti Spot]

I like the orpek look and the way they are setup and made. I also love the larger fixtures they make. The 500w one looks amazing and the bigger one, just wow, would love to see coral under them.

 

[biecacka]

I ran acclimation mode for 5 weeks.
Orphek suggested 1 week.

Corey

 

[smartwater101]

I will post up something once I get it figured out.



I hear you about the weight, I my retrofit the Orpheks tank mount with 80/20 or just use the 80/20 only.
This is one of the cleanest mount I have seen. This design is by a fellow on YouTube Joe,s Coral Reef. I really like the clean look of his efforts. Here’s a couple of links of his channel and some Screen shots.

What are these cross-bars he is using? I don't think he mentions it in the video.

 

[James001]

I do use a chiller and it keeps my tank temp stable. It's the temp of the fixtures being so hot in the garage I'm worried about. I could do a portable ac but since it's not insulated I feel it would just burn though electricity.

Do any of them use just radions or they all supplement with t5 to get the better spread?

Get the garage better insulated first? Might not be very expensive.

 

[Karl M]

What are these cross-bars he is using? I don't think he mentions it in the video.

I believe he made them from flat stock that can be purchased a Home Depot. Cut, drilling paint

 

[dbq5anlxj]

I recently picked up a couple Orpheks and I like the color and overall look better than my Radions. Software is much better with Ecotech and their customer service is top notch. You really can't go wrong with either one.

Hey. I'm running kessil a360x on my tank, but it does not offer the pop I was looking for. I'm thinking to switch to radion or Orpheks. What's your opinion on this two lights? And which make the coral pop more. thanks

 

[Oldreefer44]

Have owned both. Both work. Currently have Orpheks because they fit my tank dimensions better. IMO, the Orpheks give corals (in general) better "pop" but IMO it also depends on what corals you keep.

 

[Karl M]

Here is a shot of mine. This Is a 60 cube with an Atlantic V4 mounted 13” high.
I have new IM 112 Lagoon coming Monday, I will be using the same light but supplementing with T5.

as far as “pop” goes , i Prefer the Atlantic’s over the Radions because I have much less shadowing. My understanding is that the Kessil’s produce awesome shimmer in the tank though I’ve never owned any.

 

[phil bevilacqua]

If All you’re wanting to do is add some pop… I would add a reef Brite or the Orphic bar. Instead of having to redo everything