Swapping 90 watt LEDs - Do I need to Acclimate?

[SPSReeferMI]

Hello,

I was lucky enough to pick up three Kessil A360x lights for my reef. While I did not 'need' them, I wanted something more than what I was getting with my Hydras. My tank is a Waterbox 170 (which is about 130 gallons in just the tank. The dimensions are 55L x 26D x 24H. Presently I have 3 AI Hydra 26's inside the Aquatic life hybrid 48" fixture (pic below). I'm running the 3 hydras on a schedule very similar to AB+ and my T5's are 3 ATI Blue+ with 1 Actinic. I get about 400 par 6" below the surface and about 200 par on the bottom.

Question: If I'm measuring similar par readings between the AI Hydra 26 and the Kessil A360X, can I safely swap them or do I need to acclimate them over time? If so, how much time would you recommend - a matter of 2-3 weeks? Finally, how much of a drop in par would you recommend? I suspect that spectrum will play a role here as well, but that's more difficult to measure with my Seneye.

Thanks for your help!

 

[dwest]

Hello,

I was lucky enough to pick up three Kessil A360x lights for my reef. While I did not 'need' them, I wanted something more than what I was getting with my Hydras. My tank is a Waterbox 170 (which is about 130 gallons in just the tank. The dimensions are 55L x 26D x 24H. Presently I have 3 AI Hydra 26's inside the Aquatic life hybrid 48" fixture (pic below). I'm running the 3 hydras on a schedule very similar to AB+ and my T5's are 3 ATI Blue+ with 1 Actinic. I get about 400 par 6" below the surface and about 200 par on the bottom.

Question: If I'm measuring similar par readings between the AI Hydra 26 and the Kessil A360X, can I safely swap them or do I need to acclimate them over time? If so, how much time would you recommend - a matter of 2-3 weeks? Finally, how much of a drop in par would you recommend? I suspect that spectrum will play a role here as well, but that's more difficult to measure with my Seneye.

Thanks for your help!

Checking the before and after par was smart. I doubt if there is any rule of thumb in this situation. However, if it were my tank, I would still acclimate to the new lighting. You might have an acclimation mode on your controller. If not, I would probably start at about 60% on the kessils, assuming you were at 100% on the old lights. I make all my changes slow and the fastest I would change is 5% every couple of weeks or so . Most reefers would likely ramp up faster. Whatever you do, keep a sharp eye on your corals. Nice tank.

 

[Waters]

IME, unfortunately the change in spectrum needs to be acclimated even if the PAR is similar....especially with LEDs. I have come to learn that anything with LEDs requires a slow change, as @dwest stated. When I acclimate LEDs I normally do intensity changes at roughly 2% per week....I have never tried to acclimate spectrum only but I would assume you could make those changes quicker than intensity changes?

 

[SPSReeferMI]

Checking the before and after par was smart. I doubt if there is any rule of thumb in this situation. However, if it were my tank, I would still acclimate to the new lighting. You might have an acclimation mode on your controller. If not, I would probably start at about 60% on the kessils, assuming you were at 100% on the old lights. I make all my changes slow and the fastest I would change is 5% every couple of weeks or so . Most reefers would likely ramp up faster. Whatever you do, keep a sharp eye on your corals. Nice tank.

IME, unfortunately the change in spectrum needs to be acclimated even if the PAR is similar....especially with LEDs. I have come to learn that anything with LEDs requires a slow change, as @dwest stated. When I acclimate LEDs I normally do intensity changes at roughly 2% per week....I have never tried to acclimate spectrum only but I would assume you could make those changes quicker than intensity changes?

Thank you both. It’s in line with what I figured was the best plan. I’ll update this thread once I come up with my final plan.