fishkeepersaltnfresh Posted April 30, 2021 Share Posted April 30, 2021 Hi All, I have a 29G long tank. The diomensions are 30L x 12W x 18H. I currently have a black box LED light. Corals are doing OK. I want to upgrade to get a light which will allow me to control the Blues & Whites separately. I am on budget. I came across Hipergero 30W & the Nicrew 50 W on Amazon. These fit my budget and will definitely be an upgrade over what I currently have. I do not mind losing some real estate on the sides of the tank if the light spread is not good there. I am also looking for lights with a mount. I have mostly LPS, Zoas & mushrooms along with a orange Monti which is on top of the rockscape & in the center of the tank. I am tempted towards Nicrew 50 W because it mentions a maximum spread of 24 x 24 inches.... but Hipergero has got better reviews... What are your thoughts.... Any comment is highly appreciated. Quote Link to comment
Clown79 Posted April 30, 2021 Share Posted April 30, 2021 Is it the regular nicrew or a reef nicrew? Quote Link to comment
fishkeepersaltnfresh Posted April 30, 2021 Author Share Posted April 30, 2021 15 minutes ago, Clown79 said: Is it the regular nicrew or a reef nicrew? I am referring to this one: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B083XYR64W/ref=emc_b_5_t Quote Link to comment
Jakesaw Posted April 30, 2021 Share Posted April 30, 2021 1 hour ago, fishkeepersaltnfresh said: Hi All, I have a 29G long tank. The diomensions are 30L x 12W x 18H. I currently have a black box LED light. Corals are doing OK. I want to upgrade to get a light which will allow me to control the Blues & Whites separately. I am on budget. I came across Hipergero 30W & the Nicrew 50 W on Amazon. What black box are you running? Most of them have 2 channels you control for the Blue vs White intensity. My viparspectra has Blue & White channels you control independently with a timer to turn on and off for each channel at chosen intensity. About the same price as the Nicrew. Either Quote Link to comment
fishkeepersaltnfresh Posted April 30, 2021 Author Share Posted April 30, 2021 22 minutes ago, Jakesaw said: What black box are you running? Most of them have 2 channels you control for the Blue vs White intensity. My viparspectra has Blue & White channels you control independently with a timer to turn on and off for each channel at chosen intensity. About the same price as the Nicrew. Either Mine is a Koval brand off Amazon. Quote Link to comment
Jakesaw Posted May 1, 2021 Share Posted May 1, 2021 When people refer to " black box " lights it's usually referring to the 165 Watt reef lights imported with a separate Blue & White channel. Pros Can grow most any coral ( is my understanding ) Can adjust Blue & white channel independantly Should cover your 29 gallon standard aquarium ( mine is over 10 but will be 20L soon ) Budget friendly ( 79- 140 depending on brand / feature. / build quality ) If I want a more attractive smaller light at some point in the future, I have a frag tank light. cons - Have to hang light - You need to make a DIY mount to hang / or attach from ceiling. Lager footprint is not as attractive as smaller tank mounted lights for home display in common areas As a fellow budget reefer, I was looking at Hipargero for first light, but found used Viparspectra ( 1 plug with Timer / digital controls / remote ) Set it and forget it. If I want to bump up the blue or white or change on / off times, I just grab my remote and adjust the settings and put remote away. There are more aesthetically attractive lights ( that cost more ), and I'd like ( not need ) a ramp up option but weighting the pros and cons I'm happy I went this route for my first tank. Gets me into hobby to learn without light being a limiting option for coral growth. If I choose to upgrade light, I can recover most of my cost or use it as a frag tank grow light. 1 Quote Link to comment
fishkeepersaltnfresh Posted May 1, 2021 Author Share Posted May 1, 2021 29 minutes ago, Jakesaw said: When people refer to " black box " lights it's usually referring to the 165 Watt reef lights imported with a separate Blue & White channel. Pros Can grow most any coral ( is my understanding ) Can adjust Blue & white channel independantly Should cover your 29 gallon standard aquarium ( mine is over 10 but will be 20L soon ) Budget friendly ( 79- 140 depending on brand / feature. / build quality ) If I want a more attractive smaller light at some point in the future, I have a frag tank light. cons - Have to hang light - You need to make a DIY mount to hang / or attach from ceiling. Lager footprint is not as attractive as smaller tank mounted lights for home display in common areas As a fellow budget reefer, I was looking at Hipargero for first light, but found used Viparspectra ( 1 plug with Timer / digital controls / remote ) Set it and forget it. If I want to bump up the blue or white or change on / off times, I just grab my remote and adjust the settings and put remote away. There are more aesthetically attractive lights ( that cost more ), and I'd like ( not need ) a ramp up option but weighting the pros and cons I'm happy I went this route for my first tank. Gets me into hobby to learn without light being a limiting option for coral growth. If I choose to upgrade light, I can recover most of my cost or use it as a frag tank grow light. I doubt mine has that ability. hence was looking for an upgrade without breaking the bank. Quote Link to comment
fishkeepersaltnfresh Posted May 3, 2021 Author Share Posted May 3, 2021 Bump... Quote Link to comment
Clown79 Posted May 3, 2021 Share Posted May 3, 2021 Both lights won't provide the light spread you need for the tank. You will need 2. You aretalking significant dark areas. Can't really comment on the light themselves, never used either. I have used Nicrew lighting but not this particular one. 1 Quote Link to comment
LazyFish Posted May 3, 2021 Share Posted May 3, 2021 I use a full spectrum Nicrew not a reef one for planted tanks not that one but they work very well I've had them for years even droped one in the tank a few times it was quickly yanked out and is fine. They seem to be prety durable but as stated the light spread is not that wide on them. The ones I use are full spectrum but have a bit of a yellow tinge to them but it looks very natural for planted tanks. 1 Quote Link to comment
fishkeepersaltnfresh Posted May 21, 2021 Author Share Posted May 21, 2021 I went for 2 Nicrew 50W. I think this should be sufficient for my tank. Quote Link to comment
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