Taotronics TT-AL09 on 34g Cube

lewisrhoades · 07/05/2015, 10:16 AM

Hey guys I recently purchased one TaoTronics TT-AL09 led light for my 34G solana but I'm having doubts about it upon receiving it. It seems very bright compared to my old light even on it's lowest setting. I was hoping someone has experience with these lights on smaller setups like mine and can give me some advice. The tank right now has 3 zoa/poly frags, some star polyps, and one hammer coral frag with about three heads. I bought the light for dirt cheap so I wont be too upset if it turns out to be too much. Any help would be appreciated greatly.

karimwassef · 07/05/2015, 10:23 AM

I bought some and they were cheap. Don't worry, they won't last too long. 6 months tops.
My corals liked it. It was bright, but not halide bright, so I don't think there's a risk there.

They use very cheap power supplies that burn out the LEDs with dirty current output at high voltage. The strings are set up in long series with no fuses or resistors. So one LED and the whole line is gone. There's only a few lines total.

I bought mine two years ago, so maybe they're better now. Just sharing my experiences.

lewisrhoades · 07/05/2015, 10:32 AM

I've read a lot of mixed reviews on them, some saying they're the best lights for the price and others saying you might as well light $100 on fire. It sucks being a broke college student because I want beautiful corals and a nice setup but that costs a lot of money. What light would you recommend on a cube setup like mine?

PeterHall · 07/05/2015, 10:35 AM

Mine are running great after 1.5 year's.

If you're worry about them being too bright raise it off the water level a bit. I think mine are about 8-10 inches off the water and running around %50-%70. I grow things on the sand bed at 28 inches deep. At %100 they can be too bright for some corals.

I would set them to the lowest setting when the fans kick on which is around %20. Leave it there for a week or two and increase them a tad. Keep increasing till everything seems happy.

karimwassef · 07/05/2015, 10:46 AM

Honestly, if you can build things, you'll be able to save a lot in this hobby. You can make a decent 300W LED for less than $150 but you'll need hours of your own time (or be really good at it) to get it. This assumes you have basic tools or access to basic tools.

Check out the DIY forum. It's the only way I could afford a reef in college. I used to call it a home-depot reef (it was the 90s) because almost everything came from a hardware store.

lewisrhoades · 07/05/2015, 11:15 AM

PeterHall- my tank is 20" deep and I have about a 2" sandbed. Should I start them off at 20% and slowly ramp over the next few weeks and observe the coral reaction? Also did you hang your lights or mount them somewhere? My tank is rimless and I can't drill in the ceiling so I'm kind of lost on placement.

Karimwassef- what do you think would be a good wattage setup for a 20x20 cube like mine? I might have to look into building one.

karimwassef · 07/05/2015, 11:43 AM

I had a single 250W MH pendant on my cube in college. That was all the lighting I had. I got the ballast and pendant from a hardware store. The high K bulb was a budget squeeze.

You can probably make a 200W LED fixture work.

PeterHall · 07/05/2015, 11:52 PM

Here's a picture of how I hung mine. Basically a square frame suspended from the ceiling that I mount everything. You also use L brackets if the tank is next to a wall and hang the light from there. Or bend some metal conduit,mount to the stand and hang your light.

%20-%50 would be fine starting points. I think mine are set for around %60. Tweak it as you will.

lewisrhoades · 07/06/2015, 11:42 AM

I'm thinking about building a shelf over the tank and hanging it from that. I've see some people do it but I'm afraid I would need a massive shelf to center the light since my tank is 20x20.

07/05/2015, 10:16 AM	#1
lewisrhoades Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2015 Location: Olathe, Kansas Posts: 103	Taotronics TT-AL09 on 34g Cube Hey guys I recently purchased one TaoTronics TT-AL09 led light for my 34G solana but I'm having doubts about it upon receiving it. It seems very bright compared to my old light even on it's lowest setting. I was hoping someone has experience with these lights on smaller setups like mine and can give me some advice. The tank right now has 3 zoa/poly frags, some star polyps, and one hammer coral frag with about three heads. I bought the light for dirt cheap so I wont be too upset if it turns out to be too much. Any help would be appreciated greatly.

07/05/2015, 10:23 AM	#2
karimwassef Registered Member Join Date: May 2004 Location: Dallas, TX Posts: 11,033	I bought some and they were cheap. Don't worry, they won't last too long. 6 months tops. My corals liked it. It was bright, but not halide bright, so I don't think there's a risk there. They use very cheap power supplies that burn out the LEDs with dirty current output at high voltage. The strings are set up in long series with no fuses or resistors. So one LED and the whole line is gone. There's only a few lines total. I bought mine two years ago, so maybe they're better now. Just sharing my experiences. __________________ Failure isn't an option It's a requirement. 660g 380inwall+280smp/surge S/L/Soft/Maxima/RBTA/Clown/Chromis/Anthias/Tang/Mandarin/Jawfish/Goby/Wrasse/D'back. DIY 12' Skimmer ActuatedSurge ConcreteScape

07/05/2015, 10:46 AM	#5
karimwassef Registered Member Join Date: May 2004 Location: Dallas, TX Posts: 11,033	Honestly, if you can build things, you'll be able to save a lot in this hobby. You can make a decent 300W LED for less than $150 but you'll need hours of your own time (or be really good at it) to get it. This assumes you have basic tools or access to basic tools. Check out the DIY forum. It's the only way I could afford a reef in college. I used to call it a home-depot reef (it was the 90s) because almost everything came from a hardware store. __________________ Failure isn't an option It's a requirement. 660g 380inwall+280smp/surge S/L/Soft/Maxima/RBTA/Clown/Chromis/Anthias/Tang/Mandarin/Jawfish/Goby/Wrasse/D'back. DIY 12' Skimmer ActuatedSurge ConcreteScape

07/05/2015, 11:43 AM	#7
karimwassef Registered Member Join Date: May 2004 Location: Dallas, TX Posts: 11,033	I had a single 250W MH pendant on my cube in college. That was all the lighting I had. I got the ballast and pendant from a hardware store. The high K bulb was a budget squeeze. You can probably make a 200W LED fixture work. __________________ Failure isn't an option It's a requirement. 660g 380inwall+280smp/surge S/L/Soft/Maxima/RBTA/Clown/Chromis/Anthias/Tang/Mandarin/Jawfish/Goby/Wrasse/D'back. DIY 12' Skimmer ActuatedSurge ConcreteScape

07/05/2015, 10:32 AM	#3
lewisrhoades Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2015 Location: Olathe, Kansas Posts: 103	I've read a lot of mixed reviews on them, some saying they're the best lights for the price and others saying you might as well light $100 on fire. It sucks being a broke college student because I want beautiful corals and a nice setup but that costs a lot of money. What light would you recommend on a cube setup like mine?

07/05/2015, 10:35 AM	#4
PeterHall Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2014 Location: Pacific Palisades, CA Posts: 199	Mine are running great after 1.5 year's. If you're worry about them being too bright raise it off the water level a bit. I think mine are about 8-10 inches off the water and running around %50-%70. I grow things on the sand bed at 28 inches deep. At %100 they can be too bright for some corals. I would set them to the lowest setting when the fans kick on which is around %20. Leave it there for a week or two and increase them a tad. Keep increasing till everything seems happy.

07/05/2015, 11:15 AM	#6
lewisrhoades Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2015 Location: Olathe, Kansas Posts: 103	PeterHall- my tank is 20" deep and I have about a 2" sandbed. Should I start them off at 20% and slowly ramp over the next few weeks and observe the coral reaction? Also did you hang your lights or mount them somewhere? My tank is rimless and I can't drill in the ceiling so I'm kind of lost on placement. Karimwassef- what do you think would be a good wattage setup for a 20x20 cube like mine? I might have to look into building one.

07/05/2015, 11:52 PM	#8
PeterHall Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2014 Location: Pacific Palisades, CA Posts: 199	Here's a picture of how I hung mine. Basically a square frame suspended from the ceiling that I mount everything. You also use L brackets if the tank is next to a wall and hang the light from there. Or bend some metal conduit,mount to the stand and hang your light. %20-%50 would be fine starting points. I think mine are set for around %60. Tweak it as you will.

07/06/2015, 11:42 AM	#9
lewisrhoades Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2015 Location: Olathe, Kansas Posts: 103	I'm thinking about building a shelf over the tank and hanging it from that. I've see some people do it but I'm afraid I would need a massive shelf to center the light since my tank is 20x20.