CAD Lights Mini Series Owners Thread

[eb8919]

eb8919, you're killin me with the pics...please post ASAP! :spin2:

Alright alright :hammer: I found a few minutes to post em

The change isn't that noticeable on the pics...I'm hoping with the second one installed (whenever it comes in) it will add that much more.

Strip

Installed

Stock

Combo

Blue only

 

[eb8919]

And just for fun...zoom up actinic vs day for the ricordea

Will update again when second strip arrives :beer:

 

[psychoanalyzer]

And just for fun...zoom up actinic vs day for the ricordea

Will update again when second strip arrives :beer:

:thumbsup: Sweet! Thanks for posting those! That ric pic is sic!!! I've been waiting to see them before ordering my own. I'm still trying to decide if I will get one or two strips. I'm also considering getting one for my 4 gallon too, which has the same spacing between LED's on the stock fixture as the 8 gallon does. I'm looking forward to seeing the pics once you get the second strip added... :smurf:

 

[eb8919]

I haven't seen it with two strips yet but after seeing the change with the first one, I know I'll really like the second..so I'm going to recommend two right off the bat....I was also considering a mixed strip but I think that may be over kill....time will tell as I add more coral. The ric has been doing great in the bottom and there is also a frag of nuclear green palys that have maintained their color near the bottom.

 

[psychoanalyzer]

I haven't seen it with two strips yet but after seeing the change with the first one, I know I'll really like the second..so I'm going to recommend two right off the bat....I was also considering a mixed strip but I think that may be over kill....time will tell as I add more coral. The ric has been doing great in the bottom and there is also a frag of nuclear green palys that have maintained their color near the bottom.

eb8919, would you do me a huge favor and measure the length of the LED strip? I want to check and see if it will fit on my 4 gallon light fixture as well. From the looks of your picture I think it may be too long. :uhoh2: Thanks!!

 

[eb8919]

No problem...its 6 and 1/4 inch

 

[Maximus]

How is the quality of just the glass portion of the tank? I'm considering buying the 18g nano. Thanks.

 

[psychoanalyzer]

No problem...its 6 and 1/4 inch

Thanks! Bummer though, the 4g light is only 5". :thumbdown I may go ahead and get one anyway and just have it sticking out an inch past the light fixture. It looks like the 3rd LED may be an inch or more away from the end of the LED strip(?), which would allow all 3 LED's to be putting the majority of their light into the tank. I'm going to go ahead and order two strips for my 8g and then see how it might look on my 4g before deciding for sure! :hmm4:

 

[psychoanalyzer]

How is the quality of just the glass portion of the tank? I'm considering buying the 18g nano. Thanks.

The quality of the glass is stellar. I can't imagine being satisfied with anything less on my future tanks! Be warned though, if the 18 gallon filter section is of the same quality as those on the 4 and 8 gallon versions, I would be shocked if it sealed properly and stood up to the pressures inherent in an 18 gallon tank...just some food for thought.

 

[Maximus]

Thanks psycho. It seems as if the 4 and 8g have a piece of glass or plexi sticking up on the rear. Am I seeing it right?

 

[Maximus]

I looked at another pic and I think I was seeing things. I don't see the piece of glass sticking up anymore.

 

[psychoanalyzer]

Thanks psycho. It seems as if the 4 and 8g have a piece of glass or plexi sticking up on the rear. Am I seeing it right?

The portion that sticks up in the very back is actually the back part of the tank where the glass is taller than the other 3 sides (it is covered with black material so it doesn't look like glass). The issue I am referring to is with the removable filter section that is made of acrylic.

 

[Maximus]

Ok, yeah I read about the removable filter section issue and how a person took some black airline tubing, split it in half, and glued it to the rear of the filter, forming a better seal in the rear. So in all these tanks, is the glass in the rear taller than the other 3 sides? Any reason for that?

 

[Maximus]

After looking at a video, it looks like the rear is taller to accommodate the clamp of the led lights. I bet the AI nano would look great for the 18g tank!

 

[psychoanalyzer]

FINALLY, as promised many moons ago it seems, here are some vids for your viewing pleasure. So far I only have life in my 4g with hopefully the first corals going into the 8g later this week. I caught a pretty funny interaction between the Pom Pom Crab I added last night and the Sexy Shrimp I added last week. The Pom Pom was like, "Don't even think about it, Sexy. I'll Anemone you so fast you won't be able to bring sexy back!" LOL I hope you enjoy the title I came up with for the first two vids: a shout out to the ridiculous cheerleading movies from the past decade. haha As always, be sure to open up the vids in HD!

http://youtu.be/_u-wAW87kOM?hd=1

http://youtu.be/u4m3_B9vtBE?hd=1

http://youtu.be/4wgVVKiHttA?hd=1

 

[psychoanalyzer]

After looking at a video, it looks like the rear is taller to accommodate the clamp of the led lights. I bet the AI nano would look great for the 18g tank!

Yep, you got it...

 

[Maximus]

Haha cool videos! Love the pom pom!

 

[Austinchap]

Sorry I remember that your tank in on your kitchen counter. So How did you level it?

Luckily the idiots that built my apartment new how to use a level lol. I put the tank up there and it was dead on. It was meant to be.

 

[psychoanalyzer]

Yesterday I received my 453nm blue LED strips from Ecoxotic. Below is a link to a video I created showing the comparisons with the stock CAD Lights 4g lighting and the 2 EcoPico strips. I purchased these two strips to put on my 8g CAD Lights pico, but since I don't have life in it yet, I have been doing testing with them on my 4g. Special thanks to eb8919 for suggesting I get two strips to start with; I will definitely use both on my 8g. I am still trying to decide if I will get one or two strips for the 4g. The video does not have very accurate coloration (shot with an iPhone 4), but it does effectively demonstrate how much these lights add to the stock lighting. They DEFINITELY make the colors in my corals pop! When I turn off the actinics and have just the stock lighting on it looks disgusting by comparison: these actinics are THAT GOOD! I will also post some comparison pics and vids showing the 8g with stock lighting and the 4g with the stock plus actinics.

On the livestock front, two days ago I added another Pom Pom crab (believed to be a female, so now I have one male and one female), two blue-leg hermits from my Biocube, green-face/purple-mouth/brown-skirt zoas, green striped mushroom, and red mushroom. I also temporarily added a spotted Mandarin, but he is going in my Biocube tomorrow when I head into the office. Now I just need a few more sexy shrimp and I'll have completed all of my plans for this tank with the exception of possibly adding two Harlequin shrimp (still debating that one due to tank size).

I hope this video provides some useful info for everyone following this thread, and let me just say, GET AT LEAST ONE STRIP OF THE ECOPICO 453nm LED'S! You WILL NOT regret it! Massive improvement over stock lighting, especially if you are keeping corals!!! :love2:

http://youtu.be/ZX0UabTEvEQ?hd=1

 

[Flytrap1]

Hi all,

Well after over a month I setup up my CADlight Mini 8. I first was waiting for the FP-28 that I was told would ship with the system. After receiving it it had the FP-08. So I called and was told that they would get right out and after a week and no pump I called again and was told that the FP-08 was the pump for this system. I told them that it was to small and they agreed to send the FP-28 and told me that I would need to make the hole bigger. So after another week the pump came. I enlarged the hole only to find that now the pump is to big and now the compartment will not slide back in place. I did find all the connectors to get it to sit lower in the third compartment like Austinchap did. I purchased a hydroflo but I do not like it. It sticks out to far in tank and cause a sand ditch so I removed it. But with the straight tip I am still getting the sand ditch. I would like something with some adjustment so I can change the direction of flow. The problem now is that the connector that goes thought the hole has a male 1/2 garden hose connection. In fact I had CADlight send me another barb connector like that came with the FP-28. Any ideas? I see adjustable tank nozzles but they have male connectors and not female.