Aquactinics Lights Experience (Pic Intense)

FastUno · 03/25/2006, 09:51 PM

Some of you might remember me from my T5 thread a while back. Just wanted to come back now & share my joy with you. I always wanted to write up one of those 1 year to date threads & to share some good news. Fortunately, I now can.

Everything has been going smooth so far & I can finally relax, sit back, watch my corals blossom, & share the experience with you.

I don't see too many others with my fixture & have wondered why? I bet no one has come forward yet & perhaps that is why I am taking center stage.

I would love to hear from other owners & wonder if you feel the same way I do? Also, would like to know what 250W MH bulb you feel provides the best growth for your corals on the default ballast. Right now I am using XM 20K's & I wonder how much more growth I would get with different bulbs. I have heard that the XM 250W bulbs provided sluggish growth for others, for me it has been quite the opposite. It would scare me to think what would happen if I were to use a 10K bulb, since I already feel as if I am running out of space.

This is how the tank got started, back in March 05.

This is how the tank looked in July 05, right after the placement of the new Aquactinics fixtures.

The rest from march 06. Most of the corals you see below are the same ones from July, only much bigger. I have bought 2 corals & sold 4-5 corals since then & frags.

I will post tank inhabitant pictures soon.

chip721 · 03/25/2006, 10:28 PM

FastUno, I really like your tank. I'm building a 90g tank right now and the Aquactinics is my current choice of lighting w/250w 14k bulbs. I'm glad to hear your positive comments on this fixture. But the beauty of your tank is the real evidence. If you don't mind I have a question. What ballast are you using; the standard Fulham Workhorse or the Ice Cap Electronic? Lovely, lovely display. Do you mind sharing a look at your sump? I've also got an AP600 on the way from Doug. Thanks.

FastUno · 03/25/2006, 11:00 PM

Thanks chip.
I am using the magnetic ballast that comes with the fixture. I chose not to upgrade at the time. I believe Tom at Aquactinics said they were Venture Lighting (M58) ballasts.

I have contemplated changing them to electronic ballasts, but at the same time I figure why fix something that is not broken. I would have to receive a source of inspiration for me to reconsider a possible change.

Now my biggest decision is choosing that next awesome MH bulb. I want one that will look as good as the XM20K's & with a little more punch for growth spurs. I have just purchased the CV 14K bulbs today, but have not put them on yet.

I still have the Deltec AP600, but have not used it for some 3mo or so. I have very old & cranky neighbors below me & they complained about vibrations. I just got tired of hearing them & have removed it for now. So I am running skimmerless for now & doing some 25g water changes every 3-4 weeks.

My sump is BB & not impressive at all without the skimmer. I only have the main tank water going into one of the Fluval canister filter baskets. I just ordered the basket, which was something like 12 bucks. It has 3 compartments, top is a sponge filter, 2nd I use for 24/7 carbon, & last for phosban 24/7. I clean out the sponge every 3-4 days...a simple water rinse makes it look brand new. Found this to be easier than the 100micron filter socks I used to use.
Here is a pic a took a while ago:

chip721 · 03/25/2006, 11:14 PM

Man now I'm really impressed! A tank that looks this good and skimmerless too. Talk about keeping it simple. Come on, you've got to have a magic wand stuck in that sump somewhere.

I'll be sure to post some pics of my 90 with Aquactinics once I'm set up. It's going in my basement and I want to paint before putting water in the box. One last question. Did you go with the standard fans or variable speed w/ ambient temp sensor? Thanks again for sharing your setup. It's too bad your neighbors can't see and appreciate the beauty they're missing. chip

Panduriniii · 03/25/2006, 11:27 PM

I was wondering where you ordered your basket from. Excellent tank btw. I m jealous

sjm817 · 03/25/2006, 11:41 PM

Uno, did you ever replace the rubber grommets on the AP600 impeller? Mine got noisy and I replaced them. What a difference! Extremely quiet. now.

FastUno · 03/25/2006, 11:45 PM

Hey, you didn't hear about the "Easy" button Staples has? Come on everyone is using it on their reefs now!

I went with the IC fans & glad I did, no problems here. If you do not get the moonlights I will personally fly down to Virginia & slap someone silly.

No really, that is how good they are.

I did not want to get them at first & figured I would save on money. I asked one other person who had them & they ok'd it. I was still skeptical- figured two socket mounted moonlights can't possible have an impact. Especially since I saw others with 6 or 8 LED's out there. Man was I wrong!!!!!!!!!! It adds a whole new dimension to your tank & does it so well. I can't believe I almost passed those up. Every time I wake up in the middle of the night to go to the bathroom I have to stop & stare.

I look forward to hearing back from you. Let us know how they work out.

FastUno · 03/25/2006, 11:49 PM

Ordered basket from That Fish Place, it's the Fluval 403 basket.
http://www.thatpetplace.com/Products.../Itemdy00.aspx

Yes, replaced the gromets, that was a whole other issue. Doug was even nice enough to send me a replacement pump & it was much quieter, but still some residual vibration. Mind you that I had trouble with the same tenants on a freshwater with only 2 802 powerheads running. So you see how sensitive they are.

Man I love my Deltec skimmer, would not give that up for nadda. Just put on hold for future use.

chip721 · 03/26/2006, 12:50 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by FastUno
I went with the IC fans & glad I did, no problems here. If you do not get the moonlights I will personally fly down to Virginia & slap someone silly. No really, that is how good they are.

No need to make that trip. I had already planned on the IC fans and moonlights too. Now I've just got to nail down a MH color temp. I'm leaning toward 14k, but I want to do a little reading on the Coralvue bulb. What did you select for your front and back T5 supplements -- blue or pure actinic??

FastUno · 03/26/2006, 04:25 PM

I chose AB & B+ for my T5's. Reason is I want to run my T5's when my MH are not on & I don't like that actinic blue look. I wanted it to look natural when MH were off.

I also wanted to supplement the XM 20K's with some more par/light. Not for the sake of washing out white/yellow look (XM 20K is blue enough), but for the additional par output.

FastUno · 03/29/2006, 07:13 PM

Some inhabitant shots:

marino420td · 03/29/2006, 08:13 PM

I was admiring how nice those pictures are when I noticed your interests lists photography. What camera set up did you use for these shots? They look great.

FastUno · 03/29/2006, 08:26 PM

That's a cheapo Sony DSC-V3 & no biggie. I had a Canon 10D & 20D at one point, but sold both.

Eventually I will get back into the Canon world, the 30D is looking really good. It's suppose to be faster than the 20D, bigger 2.5" screen, & has the Canon Picture Styles mode...should be awesome.

FastUno · 04/02/2006, 07:10 PM

I changed my XM20K bulbs out this weekend. Using the CV 14K bulbs now. It definitely is brighter now, although I could swear the XM's were almost as bright when I first put them on. These bulbs make the corals look just as good as the 20K's & hopefully a lot more pars.

Should I really be worried about acclimation to the new lights?
I am gonna do the following schedule:
1st week = 4hrs/day
2n week = 5hrs/day
3rd week = 6hrs/day & keep it at this for about 4 mo, then maybe do 8hrs/day.

syilk1 · 04/03/2006, 03:28 PM

I love your aquarium, I too like newbies bought a 350 dollar coralife PC light fixture and am sort of happy I guess but am just starting to add corals now and have had good luck, Well there only 1 month old but not dead heheh. I have a question for you guys. I want to upgrade to MH and ith looks like aquatinics looks great but do I need to remove my glass canopy and if so do you get a lot of salt creep. Also I really want to have my mahogany hood still on. Will this cause heat issues??
Any help would be greatly appreciated before I drop 700 dollars on new lights, SInce my Coralife is less than 5 months old.\
Thanks for any input, Scott

FastUno · 04/03/2006, 09:01 PM

Salt creep, well not really, but I do get salt splatter on the bottom of the shield. I clean them every month or so, but I should do it more often. It only takes seconds to do though. Just lift & angle the lights with one hand & wipe with the other hand. I have some almost 4000GPH flowing through my tank & it creates some spatter. The fixture has a splash guard & it protects the reflectors within the fixture. It's a lot easier to clean the splashguard than it would be to clean all that salt from the reflectors

The light fits within the boundaries of my 90g perimeter & should fit within a hood. You just have to make sure the hood is tall enough & that it has 2 openings on either end for the fans.

syilk1 · 04/03/2006, 09:24 PM

Well its a standard wood canopy so only the back is open??, You know it sits over my light fixture that now sits on glass canopy
Would this be ok?

FastUno · 04/03/2006, 10:42 PM

You would need to make holes on both sides of the canopy.

The fixture has 2 fans on either end. One sucks in air & the other blows it out. If you trap all that hot air within your canopy your tank temp will inc.

Can you drill out 2x 4-5" holes on either end?

syilk1 · 04/03/2006, 11:13 PM

Yes I could do that, Just wont cosmetically look as nice but appreciate you input. Now I have to convince my wife to let me spend 800 bones on a light. Do you have moonlights?

FastUno · 04/05/2006, 12:00 AM

Oh, yea. Can't live without them now!

03/25/2006, 09:51 PM	#1
FastUno Registered Member Join Date: May 2004 Location: NY Posts: 1,726	Aquactinics Lights Experience (Pic Intense) Some of you might remember me from my T5 thread a while back. Just wanted to come back now & share my joy with you. I always wanted to write up one of those 1 year to date threads & to share some good news. Fortunately, I now can. Everything has been going smooth so far & I can finally relax, sit back, watch my corals blossom, & share the experience with you. I don't see too many others with my fixture & have wondered why? I bet no one has come forward yet & perhaps that is why I am taking center stage. I would love to hear from other owners & wonder if you feel the same way I do? Also, would like to know what 250W MH bulb you feel provides the best growth for your corals on the default ballast. Right now I am using XM 20K's & I wonder how much more growth I would get with different bulbs. I have heard that the XM 250W bulbs provided sluggish growth for others, for me it has been quite the opposite. It would scare me to think what would happen if I were to use a 10K bulb, since I already feel as if I am running out of space. This is how the tank got started, back in March 05. This is how the tank looked in July 05, right after the placement of the new Aquactinics fixtures. The rest from march 06. Most of the corals you see below are the same ones from July, only much bigger. I have bought 2 corals & sold 4-5 corals since then & frags. I will post tank inhabitant pictures soon. __________________ 75g AGA/RR/BB, 20g sump, Aquactinics 2x250 (Phoenix 14K)/2x54 T5 (AB & B+), Eheim 1262 Return, Deltec AP600, Tunze 6060 & Osmolator 3155, Homemade 2 part Current Tank Info: SW, Reef Last edited by FastUno; 03/25/2006 at 10:02 PM.

03/25/2006, 11:00 PM	#3
FastUno Registered Member Join Date: May 2004 Location: NY Posts: 1,726	Thanks chip. I am using the magnetic ballast that comes with the fixture. I chose not to upgrade at the time. I believe Tom at Aquactinics said they were Venture Lighting (M58) ballasts. I have contemplated changing them to electronic ballasts, but at the same time I figure why fix something that is not broken. I would have to receive a source of inspiration for me to reconsider a possible change. Now my biggest decision is choosing that next awesome MH bulb. I want one that will look as good as the XM20K's & with a little more punch for growth spurs. I have just purchased the CV 14K bulbs today, but have not put them on yet. I still have the Deltec AP600, but have not used it for some 3mo or so. I have very old & cranky neighbors below me & they complained about vibrations. I just got tired of hearing them & have removed it for now. So I am running skimmerless for now & doing some 25g water changes every 3-4 weeks. My sump is BB & not impressive at all without the skimmer. I only have the main tank water going into one of the Fluval canister filter baskets. I just ordered the basket, which was something like 12 bucks. It has 3 compartments, top is a sponge filter, 2nd I use for 24/7 carbon, & last for phosban 24/7. I clean out the sponge every 3-4 days...a simple water rinse makes it look brand new. Found this to be easier than the 100micron filter socks I used to use. Here is a pic a took a while ago: __________________ 75g AGA/RR/BB, 20g sump, Aquactinics 2x250 (Phoenix 14K)/2x54 T5 (AB & B+), Eheim 1262 Return, Deltec AP600, Tunze 6060 & Osmolator 3155, Homemade 2 part Current Tank Info: SW, Reef

03/25/2006, 11:41 PM	#6
sjm817 On Yer left! Join Date: Sep 2004 Location: Northern VA Posts: 18,777	Uno, did you ever replace the rubber grommets on the AP600 impeller? Mine got noisy and I replaced them. What a difference! Extremely quiet. now. __________________ - Scott

03/25/2006, 11:45 PM	#7
FastUno Registered Member Join Date: May 2004 Location: NY Posts: 1,726	Hey, you didn't hear about the "Easy" button Staples has? Come on everyone is using it on their reefs now! I went with the IC fans & glad I did, no problems here. If you do not get the moonlights I will personally fly down to Virginia & slap someone silly. No really, that is how good they are. I did not want to get them at first & figured I would save on money. I asked one other person who had them & they ok'd it. I was still skeptical- figured two socket mounted moonlights can't possible have an impact. Especially since I saw others with 6 or 8 LED's out there. Man was I wrong!!!!!!!!!! It adds a whole new dimension to your tank & does it so well. I can't believe I almost passed those up. Every time I wake up in the middle of the night to go to the bathroom I have to stop & stare. I look forward to hearing back from you. Let us know how they work out. __________________ 75g AGA/RR/BB, 20g sump, Aquactinics 2x250 (Phoenix 14K)/2x54 T5 (AB & B+), Eheim 1262 Return, Deltec AP600, Tunze 6060 & Osmolator 3155, Homemade 2 part Current Tank Info: SW, Reef

03/25/2006, 11:49 PM	#8
FastUno Registered Member Join Date: May 2004 Location: NY Posts: 1,726	Ordered basket from That Fish Place, it's the Fluval 403 basket. http://www.thatpetplace.com/Products.../Itemdy00.aspx Yes, replaced the gromets, that was a whole other issue. Doug was even nice enough to send me a replacement pump & it was much quieter, but still some residual vibration. Mind you that I had trouble with the same tenants on a freshwater with only 2 802 powerheads running. So you see how sensitive they are. Man I love my Deltec skimmer, would not give that up for nadda. Just put on hold for future use. __________________ 75g AGA/RR/BB, 20g sump, Aquactinics 2x250 (Phoenix 14K)/2x54 T5 (AB & B+), Eheim 1262 Return, Deltec AP600, Tunze 6060 & Osmolator 3155, Homemade 2 part Current Tank Info: SW, Reef

03/25/2006, 10:28 PM	#2
chip721 Premium Member Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Alexandria, Virginia Posts: 1,260	FastUno, I really like your tank. I'm building a 90g tank right now and the Aquactinics is my current choice of lighting w/250w 14k bulbs. I'm glad to hear your positive comments on this fixture. But the beauty of your tank is the real evidence. If you don't mind I have a question. What ballast are you using; the standard Fulham Workhorse or the Ice Cap Electronic? Lovely, lovely display. Do you mind sharing a look at your sump? I've also got an AP600 on the way from Doug. Thanks.

03/25/2006, 11:14 PM	#4
chip721 Premium Member Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Alexandria, Virginia Posts: 1,260	Man now I'm really impressed! A tank that looks this good and skimmerless too. Talk about keeping it simple. Come on, you've got to have a magic wand stuck in that sump somewhere. I'll be sure to post some pics of my 90 with Aquactinics once I'm set up. It's going in my basement and I want to paint before putting water in the box. One last question. Did you go with the standard fans or variable speed w/ ambient temp sensor? Thanks again for sharing your setup. It's too bad your neighbors can't see and appreciate the beauty they're missing. chip

03/25/2006, 11:27 PM	#5
Panduriniii Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Bucks County Posts: 354	I was wondering where you ordered your basket from. Excellent tank btw. I m jealous

03/26/2006, 04:25 PM	#10
FastUno Registered Member Join Date: May 2004 Location: NY Posts: 1,726	I chose AB & B+ for my T5's. Reason is I want to run my T5's when my MH are not on & I don't like that actinic blue look. I wanted it to look natural when MH were off. I also wanted to supplement the XM 20K's with some more par/light. Not for the sake of washing out white/yellow look (XM 20K is blue enough), but for the additional par output. __________________ 75g AGA/RR/BB, 20g sump, Aquactinics 2x250 (Phoenix 14K)/2x54 T5 (AB & B+), Eheim 1262 Return, Deltec AP600, Tunze 6060 & Osmolator 3155, Homemade 2 part Current Tank Info: SW, Reef

03/29/2006, 07:13 PM	#11
FastUno Registered Member Join Date: May 2004 Location: NY Posts: 1,726	Some inhabitant shots: __________________ 75g AGA/RR/BB, 20g sump, Aquactinics 2x250 (Phoenix 14K)/2x54 T5 (AB & B+), Eheim 1262 Return, Deltec AP600, Tunze 6060 & Osmolator 3155, Homemade 2 part Current Tank Info: SW, Reef

03/29/2006, 08:13 PM	#12
marino420td Premium Member Join Date: Mar 2004 Location: Cape Girardeau, MO Posts: 2,529	I was admiring how nice those pictures are when I noticed your interests lists photography. What camera set up did you use for these shots? They look great.

03/29/2006, 08:26 PM	#13
FastUno Registered Member Join Date: May 2004 Location: NY Posts: 1,726	That's a cheapo Sony DSC-V3 & no biggie. I had a Canon 10D & 20D at one point, but sold both. Eventually I will get back into the Canon world, the 30D is looking really good. It's suppose to be faster than the 20D, bigger 2.5" screen, & has the Canon Picture Styles mode...should be awesome. __________________ 75g AGA/RR/BB, 20g sump, Aquactinics 2x250 (Phoenix 14K)/2x54 T5 (AB & B+), Eheim 1262 Return, Deltec AP600, Tunze 6060 & Osmolator 3155, Homemade 2 part Current Tank Info: SW, Reef

04/02/2006, 07:10 PM	#14
FastUno Registered Member Join Date: May 2004 Location: NY Posts: 1,726	I changed my XM20K bulbs out this weekend. Using the CV 14K bulbs now. It definitely is brighter now, although I could swear the XM's were almost as bright when I first put them on. These bulbs make the corals look just as good as the 20K's & hopefully a lot more pars. Should I really be worried about acclimation to the new lights? I am gonna do the following schedule: 1st week = 4hrs/day 2n week = 5hrs/day 3rd week = 6hrs/day & keep it at this for about 4 mo, then maybe do 8hrs/day. __________________ 75g AGA/RR/BB, 20g sump, Aquactinics 2x250 (Phoenix 14K)/2x54 T5 (AB & B+), Eheim 1262 Return, Deltec AP600, Tunze 6060 & Osmolator 3155, Homemade 2 part Current Tank Info: SW, Reef

04/03/2006, 03:28 PM	#15
syilk1 Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2005 Location: Chicago Posts: 391	I love your aquarium, I too like newbies bought a 350 dollar coralife PC light fixture and am sort of happy I guess but am just starting to add corals now and have had good luck, Well there only 1 month old but not dead heheh. I have a question for you guys. I want to upgrade to MH and ith looks like aquatinics looks great but do I need to remove my glass canopy and if so do you get a lot of salt creep. Also I really want to have my mahogany hood still on. Will this cause heat issues?? Any help would be greatly appreciated before I drop 700 dollars on new lights, SInce my Coralife is less than 5 months old.\ Thanks for any input, Scott

04/03/2006, 09:01 PM	#16
FastUno Registered Member Join Date: May 2004 Location: NY Posts: 1,726	Salt creep, well not really, but I do get salt splatter on the bottom of the shield. I clean them every month or so, but I should do it more often. It only takes seconds to do though. Just lift & angle the lights with one hand & wipe with the other hand. I have some almost 4000GPH flowing through my tank & it creates some spatter. The fixture has a splash guard & it protects the reflectors within the fixture. It's a lot easier to clean the splashguard than it would be to clean all that salt from the reflectors The light fits within the boundaries of my 90g perimeter & should fit within a hood. You just have to make sure the hood is tall enough & that it has 2 openings on either end for the fans. __________________ 75g AGA/RR/BB, 20g sump, Aquactinics 2x250 (Phoenix 14K)/2x54 T5 (AB & B+), Eheim 1262 Return, Deltec AP600, Tunze 6060 & Osmolator 3155, Homemade 2 part Current Tank Info: SW, Reef

04/03/2006, 09:24 PM	#17
syilk1 Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2005 Location: Chicago Posts: 391	Well its a standard wood canopy so only the back is open??, You know it sits over my light fixture that now sits on glass canopy Would this be ok?

04/03/2006, 10:42 PM	#18
FastUno Registered Member Join Date: May 2004 Location: NY Posts: 1,726	You would need to make holes on both sides of the canopy. The fixture has 2 fans on either end. One sucks in air & the other blows it out. If you trap all that hot air within your canopy your tank temp will inc. Can you drill out 2x 4-5" holes on either end? __________________ 75g AGA/RR/BB, 20g sump, Aquactinics 2x250 (Phoenix 14K)/2x54 T5 (AB & B+), Eheim 1262 Return, Deltec AP600, Tunze 6060 & Osmolator 3155, Homemade 2 part Current Tank Info: SW, Reef

04/03/2006, 11:13 PM	#19
syilk1 Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2005 Location: Chicago Posts: 391	Yes I could do that, Just wont cosmetically look as nice but appreciate you input. Now I have to convince my wife to let me spend 800 bones on a light. Do you have moonlights?

04/05/2006, 12:00 AM	#20
FastUno Registered Member Join Date: May 2004 Location: NY Posts: 1,726	Oh, yea. Can't live without them now! __________________ 75g AGA/RR/BB, 20g sump, Aquactinics 2x250 (Phoenix 14K)/2x54 T5 (AB & B+), Eheim 1262 Return, Deltec AP600, Tunze 6060 & Osmolator 3155, Homemade 2 part Current Tank Info: SW, Reef