Rathje70 Posted November 26, 2012 Share Posted November 26, 2012 Looking for some advice or past experiences from fellow reefers. I just picked up a Nuvo 16 and plan to stock it with SPS down the road. I know that the two LED lights that come with the tank are not sufficient enough for what I want to do. I have seen others look into the AI SOL and Ecotech Radion, but I am not necessarily looking to spend that kind of money. I was thinking about starting off by buying a Par 38 bulb to supplement the stock lighting but to eventually move to two Par 38 bulbs and get rid of the stock LEDs. Any recommendations on Par 38 bulbs? I know the popular bulbs are the Exoxotic, but are there any alternatives out there at a lower cost. I found these at LED Wholesalers and they look like they would do the trick, any thoughts? http://www.ledwholesalers.com/store/index....p;productId=702 Looking for any recommendations for others who have used Par 38s on their nanos. Also, any good ideas on clamp on fixtures to house the bulbs? Appreciate any feedback! Link to comment
Salty_Snack Posted November 26, 2012 Share Posted November 26, 2012 If you really want sps you'll need some serious lighting. IMO you can't beat the maxspect razor for the $$$. You would need at least 2 par38 for lps and at least 3 for sps. I wouldn't expect the stock lighting to keep lps alive for very long unless you concentrate the light in one section of the tank. Link to comment
Cloudburst2000 Posted November 26, 2012 Share Posted November 26, 2012 I am looking at the Pacific Sun Galileo light for mine, but it is pricey too...a bit over $500. I like that the light is white to match the tank and is actually pleasing to the eye unlike the AIs, IMHO. I have never used Par 38 bulbs but I agree with Salty-Snack that you will likely need multiple units for sps. Link to comment
Rathje70 Posted November 26, 2012 Author Share Posted November 26, 2012 Thanks for the responses. I certainly agree that at least two par 38s will be needed for LPS and SPS. I have seen other Nuvos and similar sized tanks that are handling SPS fine with two of them, so not sure if three will be needed. My plan is to start with two and add on as needed. Any recommendations on bulbs are optic degrees that would work best on a tank the size of the Nuvo 16? Any experiences with the success of par 38s vs. other available fixtures? Link to comment
Salty_Snack Posted November 26, 2012 Share Posted November 26, 2012 If you do go for the par38 bulb you should be aware of the disco effect that most of them have, especially with narrow optics. It's why I prefer to have something like a kessil fixture over a par bulb or DIY led system. The display in the nuvo16 is only about 10" if I remember correctly so stick with narrower optics, 60 or < otherwise you'll have a lot of light spilling over the front of the tank (another common annoyance). Link to comment
Rathje70 Posted November 26, 2012 Author Share Posted November 26, 2012 Thanks for your feedback Salty Snack. What are your thoughts on using a Kessil light to supplement the stock LEDs and eventually move to two Kessils to support SPS and LPS and get rid of the stock LEDs? Do the Kessils provide as much light as the Par 38s? At this point, I am still leaning towards the Par 38s. The light I posted above has 30 degree optics, thoughts? Link to comment
Salty_Snack Posted November 26, 2012 Share Posted November 26, 2012 For the nuvo 16 I would love to have two kessil a150w's. just be aware that the 10k kessils are more like 12 to 14k and the 15k ocean blue model is rather blue, too blue for my taste. But for that kind of cash you could get a maxspect razor with two channel control and built in sunrise sunset/ moonlighting. If I recall the 20 inch razor goes for around 400 and two kessils would be closer to 500, although they will be nice and small and have a much more open air feel to the tank rather than the canopy look of the razor. Link to comment
Rathje70 Posted December 1, 2012 Author Share Posted December 1, 2012 I am going to move forward with getting two 7 LED par38 RapidLED bulbs with 60 degree optics. I am still looking for some clamp on fixtures that can withhold the weight of the bulbs, any recommendations? Link to comment
JCG66 Posted December 3, 2012 Share Posted December 3, 2012 What about the gooseneck from LEDtric Link to comment
Rathje70 Posted December 3, 2012 Author Share Posted December 3, 2012 Thanks JC, I think it would do the trick, but a little expensive for what it is. That will more than likely be what I go with unless I go with this Chinese LED Fixture: http://www.amazon.com/TaoTronics-TT-AL09-D...ords=taotronics Anyone have any experience with these fixtures? Link to comment
JCG66 Posted December 3, 2012 Share Posted December 3, 2012 I was in the same position as you, I bought one of those Chinese made led fixtures and hated it, I saved a little more and ended up finding an AI sol blue on here for 375 best light I've had Link to comment
Salty_Snack Posted December 3, 2012 Share Posted December 3, 2012 The all white rapid led par38 is going to be very... White/neutral. Generally not something many nanoreefers go for since your corals won't "pop" much if at all. Link to comment
Rathje70 Posted December 3, 2012 Author Share Posted December 3, 2012 I was in the same position as you, I bought one of those Chinese made led fixtures and hated it, I saved a little more and ended up finding an AI sol blue on here for 375 best light I've had Which Chinese fixture did you get? What were the issues? The all white rapid led par38 is going to be very... White/neutral. Generally not something many nanoreefers go for since your corals won't "pop" much if at all. I was looking at this bulb....it says it is roughly 17-20k. That is the color temperature I am looking for, do you have experience with these bulbs? http://www.rapidled.com/12-led-par38-bulb-...-color-with-uv/ Link to comment
JCG66 Posted December 3, 2012 Share Posted December 3, 2012 I bought the ocreef 120 watt fixture and its a good price for the fixture but the build quality is crap and I ended up sending it back and bought the AI sol, and honestly it's worth every penny from the quality to the performance of the light Link to comment
Salty_Snack Posted December 3, 2012 Share Posted December 3, 2012 I was looking at this bulb....it says it is roughly 17-20k. That is the color temperature I am looking for, do you have experience with these bulbs? http://www.rapidled.com/12-led-par38-bulb-...-color-with-uv/ A buddy has one of these for supplemental blue/uv lighting. It is very blue for my tastes and IMO not good looking if that is your only source of light, not to mention the decrease in par due to the blue shifted color. Link to comment
Rathje70 Posted December 4, 2012 Author Share Posted December 4, 2012 I was looking at this bulb....it says it is roughly 17-20k. That is the color temperature I am looking for, do you have experience with these bulbs?http://www.rapidled.com/12-led-par38-bulb-...-color-with-uv/ A buddy has one of these for supplemental blue/uv lighting. It is very blue for my tastes and IMO not good looking if that is your only source of light, not to mention the decrease in par due to the blue shifted color. Salty, do you have any recommendations on bulbs given that they would be the main source of light for my tank? I like the bluish color but 20K is way to blue...Somewhere around the 14K range is what I am looking for. Link to comment
Rathje70 Posted December 4, 2012 Author Share Posted December 4, 2012 Salty, after some further research, I am going to take your initial recommendation. I just ordered a kessil a150w 15k. I look forward to setting this light up! Link to comment
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