Shallow Peninsula: Varied PAR + no spill

[HolisticBear]

The tank is a room divider in the living room near a couch. Light spill or a radion in your eye is a concern. I may need to build a light rail like the pic below, but AI + Radion have some tracks that might work work

Goals

• Minimal light spill out of 16" wide tank
• Greatly varied PAR in a shallow tank along it's length
  
• Visual appearance of the lights matters

Thoughts

• Aquatic Life T5 & reuse my GHL Mitras in SPS section
• Aquatic Life T5 & Kessil AP700 mounted low (less spill than GHL)
  
• 3-4 AI Hydras 26 / Kessil A360 / Radion XR15 w/Diffuser

Any other recommendations or tips? Greatly appreciate feedback!

Nice light rail I found on YouTube/R2R:

 

[saltyfilmfolks]

IMO , whatever gets you the most even spread (some do like spot Lights).

But check this rig out.

https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/radion-deshadow-template-oplnions-please.265057/

Small floating canopy’s based on the idea for a larger fixture are a neat thought too.

 

[HolisticBear]

Small floating canopy’s based on the idea for a larger fixture are a neat thought too.

Thanks, great link. I hate point lights, but viewing from couch adds complications. That link seems to imply a ~4" floating canopy makes a big difference.

 

[saltyfilmfolks]

Thanks, great link. I hate point lights, but viewing from couch adds complications. That link seems to imply a ~4" floating canopy makes a big difference.

If you sit on the couch and imagine , or have a helper at the tank , visualize the position of the light and the position of the “lamp shade”. You could use cardboard as a mock up.

In the pic you posted of the bar. Imagine a rectangle over it.


Yea , I have two in the living room. One canopy and one floating canopy.

 

[mcarroll]

Using some math and the angle of your LED's lenses, you can eliminate about 100% of spill.

That doesn't answer direct glare from being able to see the emitters though...

For that you either need to take the lights even lower than the math tells you, so they get below the viewing angle...or you need something like the "light shade" that Salty linked to block that light.

Sometimes a half-inch trim added to the rim of the tank is enough....use your imagination though.

This is (at least) one thing that lights like the Current Orbits that sit on the rim of the tank have...or even Tunze's submersible LED's...have over most other lights....nearly 100% of the light from your emitters goes into the tank – even scatter – and there's little to no chance of seeing the actual emitter. Most lights have to sit significantly up off the water.....which is what creates the problem.

 

[mcarroll]

(BTW.....90º lenses are easy math....mounting height and coverage radius are 1:1. Other lenses are not easy math and make me use a calculator like this: Online Triangle Calculator)

 

[Rakie]

The diffuser almost completely eliminates this problem. Almost. It also is a dramatic upgrade to the radion light.