AI Vega Color/Blue Owners Thread!

[SteveWong]

AWL = above water line
FTS = full tank shot

(not to be confused with FTW - for the Win)

I struggled with FTS for the longest time...it means something more vulgar in most circles ("f this sh..").

[reefmutt]

Hey everybody, this is a great thread. Very informative, interesting and helpful.
I hope I am not too off topic for this thread, I just know that I will be hitting a knowledgeable crowd here..
I don't own any AI lights but I am about to pull the trigger for a new build- a 180 gallon- 50 inches x 32 x 26 high.
I've decided on AI because I think they are the best light/controller package for the money right now.
I'm old school when it come to building systems, my last tank is on pg. 32 of the all sps thread.
I am also nutso about lighting and multiple point sources of light for ultimate coverage, and have been racking my brain on which way to go..
My plan is to use T5s in addition to the LEDs because I'm old school and I don't completely trust LEDs, but want to try them and reduce my electricity consumption..

Because my tank will be 32 inches from back to front, I plan to use two rows of LEDs parallel to the tank with double strips of t5 in the middle and on the front and back.
Originally, I was thinking of using 4 Vegas, 2 in front and two in back, then I was thinking of using 6! Then I was thinking that I was crazy to have 6 Vegas and 6 tubes of t5, but I didn't think 4 would really cover the entire bottom of the tank with good useable light.
Then, I was considering using 6 nanos to reduce electricity consumption but keep good coverage- or even 8 nanos...
I kind of want to stay with the Vegas because of the 'full' spectrum they provide over the sols or nanos, but they are relatively more powerfull, wattage wise and with 6, and the t5s, I'm getting up there...
I don't know which way to go.... I've become light blind and a little dumb as well...
Any patience and rational ideas would be greatly appreciated..

[kajung2k]

Lots of info there.

My tank is 48l x 30w x 20 tall.

I have three running parallel at 5" awl

I'm covered on the length and tall the width I'm probably covered 90 percent.

So if you want 99.99 coverage then two rows of three running parallel (cord towards the back)

My only concern is what are you placing on the bottom of the tank ? Do you have a sand bed? If so how tall?

Kevin

Originally Posted by reefmutt

Hey everybody, this is a great thread. Very informative, interesting and helpful.
I hope I am not too off topic for this thread, I just know that I will be hitting a knowledgeable crowd here..
I don't own any AI lights but I am about to pull the trigger for a new build- a 180 gallon- 50 inches x 32 x 26 high.
I've decided on AI because I think they are the best light/controller package for the money right now.
I'm old school when it come to building systems, my last tank is on pg. 32 of the all sps thread.
I am also nutso about lighting and multiple point sources of light for ultimate coverage, and have been racking my brain on which way to go..
My plan is to use T5s in addition to the LEDs because I'm old school and I don't completely trust LEDs, but want to try them and reduce my electricity consumption..

Because my tank will be 32 inches from back to front, I plan to use two rows of LEDs parallel to the tank with double strips of t5 in the middle and on the front and back.
Originally, I was thinking of using 4 Vegas, 2 in front and two in back, then I was thinking of using 6! Then I was thinking that I was crazy to have 6 Vegas and 6 tubes of t5, but I didn't think 4 would really cover the entire bottom of the tank with good useable light.
Then, I was considering using 6 nanos to reduce electricity consumption but keep good coverage- or even 8 nanos...
I kind of want to stay with the Vegas because of the 'full' spectrum they provide over the sols or nanos, but they are relatively more powerfull, wattage wise and with 6, and the t5s, I'm getting up there...
I don't know which way to go.... I've become light blind and a little dumb as well...
Any patience and rational ideas would be greatly appreciated..

[rldcpa]

My tank is 72x30x26 and it looks like I would need 6 of these to cover. A bit more than I wanted to spend.

[kajung2k]

I had 2 over mine and it was fine. I have 3 and it is great now.

Truly not all lights cover 100 percent tank.

If you want 90 percent coverage you could do 3. If you want 100 percent you would need 4.

Originally Posted by rldcpa

My tank is 72x30x26 and it looks like I would need 6 of these to cover. A bit more than I wanted to spend.

[Wills612]

Still loving my vega. Corals showing good growth, and PE. Can't wait for the director.

[reefmutt]

Hey Kevin, thanks for the quick response.
I'll be going bare bottom- sand bed will be remote, for maintenance purposes..
I guess the 80 degree optics require that they go so close to the water..
If you raised them an inch or two and ran them perpendicular to the tank wouldn't you get better coverage?... I guess you sacrifice intensity if you raise them, but having them perpendicular should spread your light out to the back further, no?
It just seems to me that a source of light that is about a foot in length suspended over the middle of a 30 inch wide tank ends up delivering light to almost the back side of a coral placed near the front of the tank.. Especially if they are running parallel...
This is why I would rather have two rows than run them perpendicular to the tank..
Ridcpa, if I were going 72, there'd be no question in my mind to run 6.... Sure does get pricey..
I'm just wondering if 6 over a 50x32 is over doing it.. I guess Kevin, you wouldn't say I was crazy for doing it..

[rldcpa]

I wonder how bad the coverage would be with 3 on my tank? Get 3 now and get 3 later?

[Nob35]

I would like to thank everyone that posted about the AI Vega's. I decided to get four of them and install on my Red Sea Max 650. They came out great, I have yet to see there colors with water in the tank but that will be coming in a few days. Also would like to thank everyone for talking about the timer settings, it really helped understanding them after reading your posts.
Here are a few pics of them

[spinsonic]

[QUOTE=Nob35;20863060]I would like to thank everyone that posted about the AI Vega's. I decided to get four of them and install on my Red Sea Max 650. They came out great, I have yet to see there colors with water in the tank but that will be coming in a few days. Also would like to thank everyone for talking about the timer settings, it really helped understanding them after reading your posts.



Whoa! i too have a s650 and was thinking to do just that. running 10x 80w is killing me on electricity cost. did you upgrade the rears too?

[Nob35]

No if you put 4 in the rear section you would be back to 800w plus I think they would be to bright. It looks like I will have more than enough with the front 4 and probably could have got away with only 3 but I rather have to much than to little light. Right now I only have them going to 70% white, 75% blue,70% r.blue, 70% d.blue, 45% green and 40% red and that seems really bright but will not know for sure until I have the tank filled with water and rocks.
I used a dremel to cut out the reflector slide rails for the T5's and also vents for the fans. The T5 heatsink used to get so hot after a couple hours that you could not touch it but now after hours of the Vegas being on it does not feel warm at all and if you reach underneath to the Vargas they are only slightly warm so I think I am saving a lot on energy cost not to mention I will not need a chiller.

[qfrisco]

I guess it slipped by without any of us noticing :-), but AI released new firmware for the New Controller a couple days ago:

Version 1.3.1 - 11/512

Fixes/Enhancements:

Modified fan speeds on Vega to minimize audible noise.
Fixed lightning effects on wired Sol.

[kajung2k]

whaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaat? thanks QFrisco.. I'll have to update when I get home!!

[gbreynol]

It will update the firmware on your lights which can take a while. I have a unit over my frag in the basement which kept failing the update. I brought the controller downstairs so it was closer but it still failed. I wound up having to reset controller and lights a few times. Fun!


Also my controller did not handle daylight savings time correctly. Anybody else have that issue?

[qfrisco]

Originally Posted by mypepper

qfirsco,

I'm starting to think the same as you. I also use the Easy Setup mode, which maybe causing my lunar cycle not to work properly.

If anyone has their lunar cycle working like it should, a written step by step outline or short video clip, would be greatly appreciated so much.

Thanks again,
Randy

Circling back on this one - I've confirmed now that using the Easy Setup alone isn't enough to get the lunar cycle working properly. For those like me who had a hard time grasping the concept :-), here's what I've done that seems to work.

1. Use Easy Setup to configure the daytime intensities only. Leave all NITE intensities at 0% or you will find your lights coming on outside of the defined lunar cycle window. These will setup the appropriate manual timers (should create 8 timers) to support the daytime configuration you desire.

2. Now go into Manual Setup and create two additional timers - one for the night lights to come on, and another for the night lights to turn off. For the timer that turns the night lights on, make sure and set the intensities of whichever LEDs you want (I use only the Royal Blues for lunar lights) to be at least 4% or the LEDs won't come on at all during some of the "less full" phases of the moon. Whatever intensities you set here will be how bright the lunar lights will be during a full moon. I also set the LEDs to come on at 12:05 am because the lunar cycle intensities aren't calculated until midnight. Midnight might work, too, but I never tried it. I have the night lights set to turn off at 5 am.

The reason the Easy Setup doesn't "work" is because you can't define when the night lights come on. The Easy Setup automatically configures the the night lights come on after sunset and there’s no way to change that without going into the Manual Setup. This, in conjunction with the Lunar Cycle window causes the lights to come on in a non-natural way like this:

- Sun sets (lights ramp down)
- Night lights come on at the “NITE” intensities
- Lunar Cycle window starts (which will dim the “NITE” intensities depending on the current phase of the moon)
- Lunar Cycle window ends, and nights brighten to the “NITE” intensities and stay on until sun rise

So after Step 2 above, you should have a functioning moon light (but without the lunar cycle function.)

3. Now go into the Lunar Cycle setup and set the Start and End hours to be inclusive of the night time window you setup in Step 2. For example, I setup my nighttime timers to come on at 12:05 am and off at 5 am, so I set my Lunar Cycle start hour at 12:00 am and end hour at 5am.

I haven't confirmed if (assuming you set lights to come on at night by setting the NITE intensities to other than 0%) the lunar cycle reduction is applied to those lights when inside the lunar cycle window, but the above appears to work. Does someone know?

If, in Step 3, you don't set the Lunar Cycle to be inclusive of the night time window configured in Step 2, then your lunar lights will come on, brighten, then dim (when you enter the Lunar Cycle window), then brighten (when you leave the Lunar Cycle window), then turn off. Not very nice, although many us probably will never notice it as we will be asleep. :-)

Hope the above helps!

[qfrisco]

So I'm still in acclimation mode, slowly acclimating my corals from 40% (started Oct 15) to a max of 90% (set to end Nov 15) intensity with the blues (75% with the whites). I'm at 79% today, and I just noticed some bleaching on my ORA Red Planet and ORA Frog Skin, the former being ~11" below the water line and the latter ~17" below the water line. Lights are ~7" AWL.

I did a quick water test to make sure all params are in line - and they are. I was looking for an alkalinity spike which can cause some bleaching, but my alkalinity was the same as it's been for at least the last four months +/- 0.2 dkh.

My only conclusion is that this is as high as I can go with these lights. Or am I still acclimating too fast at 1.6% per day increase?

I'm curious what other folks' experience has been? How bright are you able to set your Vegas before seeing bleaching?

[MBSL55]

Funny timing on this. I was up to 75% this week and noticed bleaching too so I backed it down to 65% and will leave it there for a week or two and then slowly trying going up from there.

Sent from my Samsung Galaxy SIII

[qfrisco]

Originally Posted by MBSL55

Funny timing on this. I was up to 75% this week and noticed bleaching too so I backed it down to 65% and will leave it there for a week or two and then slowly trying going up from there.

Sent from my Samsung Galaxy SIII

That is funny. I guess all of us early adopters are all getting up there in terms of acclimation intensities. I backed mine down to 70% and we'll see how the corals do.

I was hoping to get pretty high up in terms of intensities in order to get the lights visually pretty bright. I might try raising the lights up to see if I can get more apparent brightness at the same PAR level for the livestock. We'll see.

[Hooked4life]

I noticed some bleaching when mine tipped over the 50% mark, so I turned it back to 45% and turned off the acclimation mode.

Mine tank is only 10" deep, so I probably will never need much higher intensity.

[DloG]

Originally Posted by Hooked4life

I noticed some bleaching when mine tipped over the 50% mark, so I turned it back to 45% and turned off the acclimation mode.

Mine tank is only 10" deep, so I probably will never need much higher intensity.

How high are your light from water level?

[Hooked4life]

Originally Posted by DloG

How high are your light from water level?

About 12" - it looks lower in that pic because of the angle.

[ukguy]

I'm up to 78% so far in my 120g with 6"awl..With no bleaching... Previously using 2x 250w MH. At 8" awl

[kajung2k]

My lights are at 5" awl 60 percent on all colors except for red an green (35 percent) and my sunset monti bleached an my Jedi mind trick as well.

Though I'm coming from t5's so the sunset was probably 6" below water line.

I have changed the LEDs to 50 percent and restart 20 percent acclamation mode over 30 days.

I don't have high hopes for either coral because they are too high IMO. I might cut my losses and move forward as my other corals were starting to go from brown to getting color as the light ramped up. Though now they will go brown again until for another 4 weeks due to not enough light.

..and yes. LEDs will look "not as bright". One of the reasons why people bleach their coraks and say LEDs do not work is simply because they try to make their lights as bright as their halides or t5

The truth is LEDs are dinner but put out more light. People try to adjust the brightness to match their previous lights and end up killi everything, hence LEDs do not work.

No. LEDs work, we don't have enough patience. It's the same "mental" reason why when its cloudy we get sunburned.

No clouds in the sky. So no need for sun tab lotion. Right. Similar concept.

[Hooked4life]

Originally Posted by kajung2k

My lights are at 5" awl 60 percent on all colors except for red an green (35 percent) and my sunset monti bleached an my Jedi mind trick as well.

Though I'm coming from t5's so the sunset was probably 6" below water line.

I have changed the LEDs to 50 percent and restart 20 percent acclamation mode over 30 days.

I don't have high hopes for either coral because they are too high IMO. I might cut my losses and move forward as my other corals were starting to go from brown to getting color as the light ramped up. Though now they will go brown again until for another 4 weeks due to not enough light.

..and yes. LEDs will look "not as bright". One of the reasons why people bleach their coraks and say LEDs do not work is simply because they try to make their lights as bright as their halides or t5

The truth is LEDs are dinner but put out more light. People try to adjust the brightness to match their previous lights and end up killi everything, hence LEDs do not work.

No. LEDs work, we don't have enough patience. It's the same "mental" reason why when its cloudy we get sunburned.

No clouds in the sky. So no need for sun tab lotion. Right. Similar concept.

There are lots of tanks out there to prove you right, but it is a difficult transition.

I've been watching my montis closely thinking they would be the first to show signs of bleaching. My sunset is fine, by my Tyree Wild Orchid is getting lighter. What puzzles me is the wild orchid frag came from a system running LEDs and my starting PAR was in the same range.

[kajung2k]

You are absolutely correct. Here is what I have seen...

1) t5 everything is soon fine just slow growth IMO
2) move to a name brand LED (pick a brand)
3) notice it looks very dim so we turn up the light
4) corals start to bleach so we turn down the light
5) bleach corals die or turn brown
6) other corals turn brown because there is not enough light (turned down due to bleaching)
7) now we are about 6 months in...not happy and switch back to T5 or MH.

I have have had brown corals on t5 color up but it's taken 3 to 4 months if consistency (parameters and correct power of light).

Though after 7 months from going slow growth lots of colors (whatever light u had before) to some bleached and most brown (led) most people will say LEDs do not work and they killed my corals.

I have the example of getting burned in at the beach on a cloudy day. The LEDs are powerful. They just don't look brute to the human eye. Same thing. Cloudy day. You get burned.

Anyhow. Do LEDs work. Yes. Are they powerful. Yes. Do you need to exercise lots of patience. Yes.

Originally Posted by Hooked4life

There are lots of tanks out there to prove you right, but it is a difficult transition.

I've been watching my montis closely thinking they would be the first to show signs of bleaching. My sunset is fine, by my Tyree Wild Orchid is getting lighter. What puzzles me is the wild orchid frag came from a system running LEDs and my starting PAR was in the same range.