Upgrading tank will my Kessils work for it?

sparrow78 · Dec 2, 2021

Hey there fellow reefers! New to the online community but have been in and out of reefing for 15 years. My fiancé and I have recently upgraded to a 125gal (72″ L x 18″ W x 21″ H ). Our plan is to transfer our existing 45 gallon reef into the new tank with our existing lighting. We’re currently running 2 Kessil A80’s and we’re planning to purchase a third to provide adequate coverage but wanted to know thoughts on putting these lights on a larger tank. Below is a picture of the 45gal. Let me know your thoughts, thank you!

Spare time · Dec 2, 2021

You would need 6-8 A80's to light a standard 125. The ideal would be 3-4 a360x or two ap9x OR a hybrid with reef brites or t5

The choose your kessil tab has more info

Kessil LED Lights

Kessil designs and manufactures advanced LED lighting products for the horticulture, aquarium and algae industries.Kessil is leading The Spectral Revolution.

kessil.com

PeterC99 · Dec 2, 2021

Welcome to R2R!

Amazing reef!

What types of corals are you planning for the 125g?

Sean Clark · Dec 2, 2021

I have two A80 lights and can tell you that they do not have the punch to light a tank that deep and support corals, regardless of how many you have. That light is just not intended to reach that deep.

Jedi1199 · Dec 2, 2021

I just got today a pair of Kessil a360x for my 55. I can tell you just from my initial observation that 2 of these will not be enough to cover your tank.

My tank is 48 x 14 x 20 and I have a clear dead zone between them. I would recommend 4 of these for a tank your size.

sparrow78 · Dec 2, 2021

Spare time said:
You would need 6-8 A80's to light a standard 125. The ideal would be 3-4 a360x or two ap9x OR a hybrid with reef brites or t5

The choose your kessil tab has more info

Kessil LED Lights

Kessil designs and manufactures advanced LED lighting products for the horticulture, aquarium and algae industries.Kessil is leading The Spectral Revolution.

kessil.com

Thank you for the insight, looks like I’ll need to do some research on adding new lights.

sparrow78 · Dec 2, 2021

Jedi1199 said:
I just got today a pair of Kessil a360x for my 55. I can tell you just from my initial observation that 2 of these will not be enough to cover your tank.

My tank is 48 x 14 x 20 and I have a clear dead zone between them. I would recommend 4 of these for a tank your size.

dang, definitely don’t want any dead zones. Thank you for the insight!

sparrow78 · Dec 2, 2021

PeterC99 said:
Welcome to R2R!

Amazing reef!

What types of corals are you planning for the 125g?

Hi there! Thank you for the welcome and the compliment on the old tank. We’re looking to do continue on with our lps corals but looking to dabble into some sps

PeterC99 · Dec 2, 2021

sparrow78 said:
Hi there! Thank you for the welcome and the compliment on the old tank. We’re looking to do continue on with our lps corals but looking to dabble into some sps

@sparrow78 - I’ve never used Kessil lights but you have a very impressive saltwater aquarium with those lights. Obviously you are doing something right!

sparrow78 · Dec 2, 2021

PeterC99 said:
@sparrow78 - I’ve never used Kessil lights but you have a very impressive saltwater aquarium with those lights. Obviously you are doing something right!

Very much appreciate that. It was about 6 years of being out of the hobby before setting up this 45gal a year ago.

Jedi1199 · Dec 2, 2021

I have been running my tank with a pair of Wills 135's for the last couple months. I can honestly say that for black box lights they have been doing a good job. I decided to make the upgrade because I wanted more controllability of my lighting.

Visually, the Kessils have about the same intensity as my Wills. I'd have to get out the par meter to give accurate data as to whether or not there is any appreciable difference between the two.

I have only had these lights a few hours and I can say my initial reaction is the Kessils have a more professional level appearance to them. By that I mean, they have more of a look that you would see on a quality coral shop setup. This opinion is based solely on my own visual observation.

The shimmer is quite impressive, and the ability to have a moonlight function and ramp-up/down is also a plus.

One thing that particularly drew me to Kessil over some of the other top brands is the ability to link multiple lights over multiple tanks and run them all independently from a single wifi controller. The wifi dongle allows you to control up to 32 different lights on their own schedule (this is advertised by Kessil)

BRS has many videos detailing the Kessil a360s and give them a very good review.

My main concern was to get a good intensity light, that would allow me the ability to have a realistic morning, noon, evening and night function while also providing an intensity that will allow my corals to thrive and also give me the intensity I need to add SPS corals to my tank.