AI Sol

Capt_Cully

Capt_Cully

Active member
Who's seen em. Who's got em?

I'm considering being progressive and integrating my lighting with the new skool LEDs.

For the record though, I will NEVER give up on my halides.
 
I heard AI is coming out with something new. I have tried to find some info on the net about it but haven't found anything yet. I'm stuck between a reefbrite hybrid fixture or the AI nano for my solana.
 
I hear good things about A.I. and I am intrigued by the new Phoenix. Ecotech radion claims you only need 2 for a 4x2x2 tank and give you full spectrum and coverage. A.I. said I will need 4. I am still on the fence and everyone (including me) have issues with SPS and Leds. Full spectrum may change that? I am in a waiting game.
 
I'm still planning on halides being my primary light source. I was thinking that 2 modules amounted sideways would give me the coverage I'd need. 3 would be a monitary deal breaker. From what I've read, those having trouble with SPS are not transitioning well and shocking or even killing the corals. I have seen the same issues when people transitioned to T5S. Given proper acclimation, many people have been very successful with T5s. My own personal experience was taking frags from mg main tank and putting them under T5s in a frag tank. There was a brown out period, but after ample time I saw some corals color up in ways I'd not previously seen.

As for the AIs its really a matter of spread. If 2, mounted sideways would cover the front 4 x 1 foot area, I just might pull the trigger. But 3 units is out of the question. I'd be a dead man!
 
travsi said:
I heard AI is coming out with something new. I have tried to find some info on the net about it but haven't found anything yet. I'm stuck between a reefbrite hybrid fixture or the AI nano for my solana.
Click to expand...



Can't go wrong with the reef brite hybrid fixture....
 
Hey Cully,
I've had some success with the AI Sol Blue fixtures. I've been running a few for about a year on a 48"x30"x12" tank. I ran two modules for about 6 months and then added a third one on for the last 6 months. LPS and Zoa's have done very well and it's hard to beat the color they bring out of the corals. Just doing some experiments now with SPS, but I've read they haven't been great for that, so I didn't try initially.

Since your tank has a beast of a center brace, I think you can get away with one on either side of it if you oriented the lights sideways, giving a little more spread. I'm trying a few of these lights on a 36" wide tank and they spread the entire 36". There's even a little bit of Bleed on the wall, but I do have them 24" off the water. I think you can get away with a 24"x18" spread per module on your tank and then have a halide behind it. If you got creative, you could "Aim" the LED on a slight angle to blend the halides in together.
 
Randy, thank you so much! That is EXACTLY he I formation I was looking for (and hoping to beware, frankly). I can jerry-rig a hanging kit, but do I need anything else with them? Do they come with wiring and controller, or is that extra?

Just trying to hammer out the particulars before I decide if I can do it or not.

Thanks again!
 
They come with wiring but you will need a controller. They sell one thats under 80.00 or if you have an Apex, you can buy a VDM module to control them, which costs around the same. After that they sell a hanging rail kit, but if your putting them in a canopy, you will be able to mount/hang them in there.
The fan is on top of the module, so you will need them to have some clearance for airflow.
 
LED's are cool as long as they have a proper heat sink and fan, a bunch of LEDs on a smaller size heat sink will get quite toasty without a fan.
 
I got em!

Here are a few pictures:

tank2.jpg


tank3.jpg


tank1.jpg
 
I have an AI Sol over my 34 gallon nano. I had some corals die (two acan, clam, chalice) within a month of upgrading my lights. There was a two week period where everything looked great but then in a matter of two days those corals bleached out/receded and died. I was using the default settings with the AI controller at the time (I think it went up to 40% power on the white bulbs). I have since cut down all the lights pretty low and I think the rest of my corals will be alright (Todd's Torch, ricoreda, Hydro, purple candy cane).

The lights look great, it saves money on electric and there is no heat to the touch (on the settings I'm using at least). Just be careful acclimating to the new bulbs if you have an established tank running.

IMG_2913.jpg


IMG_2911.jpg


I lost the green candy cane, acan's, chalice and clam from this picture :/
 
I have so few corals at the moment. Its a conscious decision to wait out the first few months while things stabilize. I'll be using them purely as supplemental lighting so they'll be dialed back and heavy on the blue.
 
Another tip is not to put them at 50%white, 100%blue and 100% royal blue and then leave them on Manuel On for two days straight. Corals no like.

Dbartkow,
The fans are built into the top of the units, within the heat sink. It's perfect since it circulates air across the entire sink, exhausting warm air up.
 
I don't have these LEDs but have a DIY set and there are no issues with SPS. That being said, I've never had SPS under any other light source.
 
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