40b Start-up help

[scallywags]

Hey all! A little heads up, I am going through some crazy kidney issues so My DIY love has gone by the wayside as of late. I dont mind putting in elbow grease but building and lifting has escaped me.. sadly... for the foreseeable future. So I have a 35g tall (24in tall) with 10g sump running AI nano and tunze 9400 skimmer. Mostly leather/shrooms/zoas... been running for about 2 years. The tall setup is makes the landscape too condensed and hard to get a good par from top to bottom (im guessing from the drastic changes in coral wellness with changes to depth). I got a 40 breeder with a 20 long sump (thinking of just getting another 40B) for my new setup. I was curious about lighting... I want to start getting my feet wet with LPS and possibly dabble is sps. I have never dosed or had to add supplements so I have been researching and its a little overwhelming with options/opinions/financials. but that will be tackled another day. For now I am focusing on lights. I have read about the black boxes, reefbreeders, t5ho, and so on. Every time I read a post I feel like i get a better understanding, then I read the next one and I get more confused lol. I dont mind spending a few hundred But I'm also one to wait for a deal/ buy used. Any direction of actuall setups would be amazingly helpful. Most of the posts I have read refer to companies rather that actual products. sizing/wattage is escaping me a bit.

 

[mcgyvr]

Not sure what all to tell you really..
I had a 40b mixed reef and it ran just fine with 2 x OceanRevive S026 fixtures (black boxes basically) at no more than 50% strength in each channel..
I swapped those out for a 6bulb 24" ATI T5 dimmable fixture and it worked great too.. and that actually helped reduce self shadowing of my SPS corals.. (white or not as colorful on the bottom sides because the led lighting doesn't really reach there well because its so direct point sourced,etc...)

The down side to T5 is the 9-12 month replacement bulb costs and slightly higher energy usage compared to LED

 

[RobZilla04]

Sounds like LED would be the route for you since you'll want to keep future costs down. LED will last longer, run more efficiently and cooler.

From there you've got your "black box" fixtures (Mars Aqua, Viparspectra, EverGrow). These come with a few features but little control. The benefit is lower cost. The trade off is no customization and a spread out bulb pattern. Many reefers use them with success (myself included).

Mid range fixtures come with added control features of spectrum, intensity, and timing. Many of the branded (Kessil, AI, Ecotech, Maxspect) offer fixtures from a few hundred upwards to over a thousand. Are they worth it? Depends on the level of control and build quality you are seeking. These fixtures come with mounting options generally not offered by "black boxes" such as legs for the ends and arms for the back.

At the end of the day a 40b with softies & LPS "could" run with a single black box, or a single mid range fixture. Mounting height would have to high (16-20 inches) and the intensity run higher. Better option would be two fixtures for better coverage.

Suggestions:

Two black box Viparspectra $258

https://www.amazon.com/VIPARSPECTRA...=1523621132&sr=8-2&keywords=viparspectra+reef

Two AI Prime $450 (w/ out mounting option)

https://www.amazon.com/Prime-HD-Ill...F8&qid=1523621175&sr=1-1&keywords=ai+prime+hd

Two Kessil A360WE $696 (w/ out mounting option)

https://www.amazon.com/Kessil-A360W...&qid=1523621231&sr=1-1&keywords=kessil+a360we


Used fixtures with mounting options are pretty easy to come by in the "For Sale" section on this form and others.

 

[scallywags]

Thank you for the links. very helpful!

 

[mrsixstrings12]

This past black friday I was dead set on upgrading my lights lights. I had 2 black box lights for about 3 years and one ended up failing, so even more reason to upgrade! I went back and forth for weeks. I was set on getting a T5 setup just because they are so proven, but I REALLY wanted something that wouldn't spin the electric meter as fast. I ended up with a reef breeders photon v2 48 over my 120g. I just got my first 3 frags about 2 weeks ago and they seem to really enjoy it so far. I have a torch, duncan, and acan; all are within the bottom 6" of the tank. The highest channel settings are 30% currently and I am seeing good results so far.

With that being said, the local LFS has a few "show tanks" around the store that are lit by radions, and if I had the cash, i'd 100% go for them. something about the light that is produced compared to my reef breeders. It just looks so much better. I don't know if its settings, mentality, or just them being better.