Kessil Club
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ComforablyNumb
New member
That would be your choice..
smatter
Active member
I have a a360we over an 18x18x18 cube and had been running it at 8" above the water. A lot of light was spilling into the room, and I was getting complaints, so I lowered it to 5" and all of the light is contained within the tank now. It's insane how much more intense the light is without all that wasted light being cast into the room. To achieve the same LUX reading I had at 8" I had to turn the intensity down to 5% and the color to zero on the spectral controller. I am slowly increasing the color as the difference between zero and my usual 60% is significant. So if anyone needs a lot more light out of their Kessil, lower it two or three inches.
smatter
Active member
I ended up moving it back up to 8" because some stuff in the tank was reacting negatively to the increased light even with the intensity as low as it will go. Too bad because it was nice with no light spill. The a360we is total overkill for my small tank apparently. It's incredible what a three inch difference in height makes. Perhaps a 160x is on the horizon.
A160WE Trouble
A160WE Trouble
Hi fellow Kessil enthusiasts.
I currently have the A160WE for the last 2.5 years, coming from an A150W for about 3.5 years before that.
The A150W died to over heating issues, and after working with Kessil support I was given the option to buy the A160WE at a reduced cost. Due to duties/shipping (I'm in Canada) I didn't end up saving anything over buying from the LFS, but I appreciated the effort from Kessil.
Well, my A160WE now has had all the blues die. Only 2.5 years from a premium LED fixture seems pretty bad to me, and now I'm 2/2 with these lights dying on me "early".
I'm currently working with Kessil support, but considering warranty is only 1 year I'm not holding out much hope. I thought I would check here if anyone has run into this issue with the A160WE and have any DIY solutions or things to try? Thanks a lot!
A160WE Trouble
Hi fellow Kessil enthusiasts.
I currently have the A160WE for the last 2.5 years, coming from an A150W for about 3.5 years before that.
The A150W died to over heating issues, and after working with Kessil support I was given the option to buy the A160WE at a reduced cost. Due to duties/shipping (I'm in Canada) I didn't end up saving anything over buying from the LFS, but I appreciated the effort from Kessil.
Well, my A160WE now has had all the blues die. Only 2.5 years from a premium LED fixture seems pretty bad to me, and now I'm 2/2 with these lights dying on me "early".
I'm currently working with Kessil support, but considering warranty is only 1 year I'm not holding out much hope. I thought I would check here if anyone has run into this issue with the A160WE and have any DIY solutions or things to try? Thanks a lot!
madweazl
Member
Dirt/dust will kill these lights prematurely due to excess heat. Unfortunately, the only way to properly clean them is to disassemble them. It's a pain over some of the other options but if you do it, they'll last. The two A360WEs on my tank were purchased used to begin with and have been on my tank two and a half years now. Once they're gone, I don't believe you'll get the functionality back but you can try to open and clean it.
I pulled apart the A160 at the recommendation of Kessil, and it was basically spotless inside(just an extremely light coating of dust, which I cleaned while I had it apart). I always maintain my equipment, and especially so with the 160 after my 150 failed. There's a can of compressed air in my stand just for the purpose of regular blowing the dust out as recommended by Kessil.
It is what it is, but it's also frustrating. I've read enough forum threads and reviews to know that I'm not alone in this issue with the A160. With a one year warranty I guess it's not surprising that issues start popping up after 2 years, but it makes it feel like LED isn't quite as economical as they would have you think since the fixtures (especially Kessil) aren't user repairable in any way; once they're dead, you chuck them and buy a whole new one.
madweazl
Member
I understand the frustration. I am a bit surprised it was very clean inside which makes me wonder if the fan wasn't operating properly. Cleaning them out with compressed air cant keep the heatsink clean which is why they have to be pulled completely apart (poor design choice on their part in that regard). One other thing I'll mention is the need to keep the fan stationary while you clean them; letting them spin freely under compressed air or a compressor will damage the fan (this is true for all similar fans such as desktops and laptops as well). Just something else to consider going forward.
Kessil has changed the heatsink and fan on the A360X but only time will tell if that ends up being a better solution or not (I hope so as I've already started converting over to them).
ComforablyNumb
New member
Their warranty is actually 2 years for Canada (if you demand).
They tried to give me the same excuse because I live in Canada too. The fan stopped on mine.
They tried to say it was because of Europe mostly runs on 220v ..when I pointed out the Canadian and American grids are intertwined and both run at 120, they relented. Full replacement, I only had to pay shipping.
I have had 2 360's for 4 years. Just blow them out with compressed air once or twice a year when they are cool. Also, from the previous page, my 160 works like a charm. Freshwater shimmer!
They tried to give me the same excuse because I live in Canada too. The fan stopped on mine.
They tried to say it was because of Europe mostly runs on 220v ..when I pointed out the Canadian and American grids are intertwined and both run at 120, they relented. Full replacement, I only had to pay shipping.
I have had 2 360's for 4 years. Just blow them out with compressed air once or twice a year when they are cool. Also, from the previous page, my 160 works like a charm. Freshwater shimmer!
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That's interesting.. I always felt I could clean the heatsink pretty well with the compressed air, I just basically give a couple short blasts through every slit in the housing. If you're saying they still tend to accumulate dust then something is off with mine, because all the fins were clean. I know my A160 is vastly quieter than my A150 was, but I chalked that up to a better design (and I never ran my A160 at max intensity, the A150 didn't have any ability to adjust it).
Unfortunately I'm still over the 2 year mark at 2.5 years.
after I completely disassembled and cleaned the unit meticulously (just surface dust, it was already very clean), and did all their other testing (removed timers/power bars, unplug for 15 minutes, etc etc) they haven't responded to my emails. I'm guessing I'm out of luck here. I really love the lights, especially the shimmer, but my bad luck with them has me leaning towards changing to a different brand for my next light.
Interesting that you also had an issue and you're in Canada though.. I've noticed that Canadian sites generally have far worse reviews for Kessils than the larger international sites. JLAquatics for example has awful reviews for the 160, with a couple describing exactly the problem I have (one with blues staying off, one with whites). I wonder if there's something to that.
ComforablyNumb
New member
I wonder if there's something to that.
Could be. Hasnt been my experience ..but my 160 is the sun version. Are there other manufacturers that offer a longer warranty than 2 yrs?
I switched from t5's to the kessil..plants grow well and the change from the flat appearance is quite nice. I bought all my Kessils from Reef Supplies in Montreal. Same price as anywhere else in Canada I guess.
Could be. Hasnt been my experience ..but my 160 is the sun version. Are there other manufacturers that offer a longer warranty than 2 yrs?
I switched from t5's to the kessil..plants grow well and the change from the flat appearance is quite nice. I bought all my Kessils from Reef Supplies in Montreal. Same price as anywhere else in Canada I guess.
I don't know about longer warranties, I doubt it. Like I mentioned the warranty for Canada is only 1 year as well, you got lucky with getting them to give you 2 but all the paperwork says 1 so it's entirely up to them to be generous or not.
They offered me a discount on buying a new A160WE for 230 CAD. I can get one new for 300. When my A150W failed I took them up on their discount, but the shipping/duties added almost $100 to the cost, making it cost the same as going to the store and paying full price. So their deal isn't worth it for me, if I got $100 additional fees this time it would be more expensive than going to the store and buying one. I made one last plea for them to work with me a little more, long shot but nothing to lose now.
I'm probably going to switch to an AI Prime HD. Good reviews, built in controller, cheaper than the 160 while still being strong enough for my nano from what I've read. I really love Kessil but I can't keep dropping money into them when they don't last (in my experience).
They offered me a discount on buying a new A160WE for 230 CAD. I can get one new for 300. When my A150W failed I took them up on their discount, but the shipping/duties added almost $100 to the cost, making it cost the same as going to the store and paying full price. So their deal isn't worth it for me, if I got $100 additional fees this time it would be more expensive than going to the store and buying one. I made one last plea for them to work with me a little more, long shot but nothing to lose now.
I'm probably going to switch to an AI Prime HD. Good reviews, built in controller, cheaper than the 160 while still being strong enough for my nano from what I've read. I really love Kessil but I can't keep dropping money into them when they don't last (in my experience).
nycman
New member
A360X w/ spectral controller X
A360X w/ spectral controller X
Just got a pair of A360X Tuna Blues with the new controller. Mounted them from the ceiling using a "y" cable from Amazon. No tank brackets as my set up is peninsula. Tank will be 245g freshwater Mbuna Cichlids.
I started programming the Kessils using the controller. Questions I cannot find answers to...
1) Are the manual effect (clouds, storms) etc. just that, manual only? Meaning you cannot add them to your program so that they occur randomly all day over time, like with the GHL Mitras? If so, boo.
2) Can you determine the Kelvin (color temp) of you programmed color and intensity setting, again like that of other LEDS, like the Mitras? If not, boo again.
3) They say that the light range (Tuna Blue) is 10K to 20K (or so). But there is a Violet Red and Green LED that can be varied in intensity as well. Seems that this may make the light more white, and lower than 10K? Again, it would be helpful to have the controller reflect back to you the Kelvin in the program.
4) What is the purpose of the Group setting? Seems unnecessary from what I have used thus far. I have both lights in synch varying in color and intensity over a 24 hour schedule, with the 8 time increments that are allowable. While 8 seems low, compared to the Mitras, it is sufficient for my needs on this tank.
A360X w/ spectral controller X
Just got a pair of A360X Tuna Blues with the new controller. Mounted them from the ceiling using a "y" cable from Amazon. No tank brackets as my set up is peninsula. Tank will be 245g freshwater Mbuna Cichlids.
I started programming the Kessils using the controller. Questions I cannot find answers to...
1) Are the manual effect (clouds, storms) etc. just that, manual only? Meaning you cannot add them to your program so that they occur randomly all day over time, like with the GHL Mitras? If so, boo.
2) Can you determine the Kelvin (color temp) of you programmed color and intensity setting, again like that of other LEDS, like the Mitras? If not, boo again.
3) They say that the light range (Tuna Blue) is 10K to 20K (or so). But there is a Violet Red and Green LED that can be varied in intensity as well. Seems that this may make the light more white, and lower than 10K? Again, it would be helpful to have the controller reflect back to you the Kelvin in the program.
4) What is the purpose of the Group setting? Seems unnecessary from what I have used thus far. I have both lights in synch varying in color and intensity over a 24 hour schedule, with the 8 time increments that are allowable. While 8 seems low, compared to the Mitras, it is sufficient for my needs on this tank.
ComforablyNumb
New member
"shipping/duties added almost $100 to the cost"
wow, thats gone up. Must be new Trump tariffs or something because my total costs were $40 USD from California for the replacement 360, with no tariff or border surcharges. When I complained about mine, I got the same runaround as you I think, but I was insistent. Bumped to a supervisor and got it, but mine was 20 months old. As long as its within 24 months of purchase, you should be covered. They didnt even want the old unit back, which I found surprising.
wow, thats gone up. Must be new Trump tariffs or something because my total costs were $40 USD from California for the replacement 360, with no tariff or border surcharges. When I complained about mine, I got the same runaround as you I think, but I was insistent. Bumped to a supervisor and got it, but mine was 20 months old. As long as its within 24 months of purchase, you should be covered. They didnt even want the old unit back, which I found surprising.
nycman
New member
I received answers from Kessil today. Very helpful. Here they are...
You can add the effects of your customized schedule. When you go into one of your 8-time slots under your program, you can change your color settings and intensity, on that same page, there is a tab that says "effects" right next to the "color" tab. See photo below highlighted in yellow.
The controller will not show Kelvin value, unfortunately- you will have to calculate the Kelvin. I.e. at 100% color, the Kelvin is at 20,000 and at 0% color, Kelvin is at 10,000. When you add the other colors in it, the amount of the color spectrum of the violet, red, and green are so minimal that it does not usually affect much of the Kelvin you get if you have the color % at 100% or 0%. This is what makes our lights quite unique, the feature of Kessil logic which locks in the wavelength so visual effects can become personalized.
Groups are only applicable if you want to keep the lights on different programs. If both lights are in the same group, you can ignore the group function. Hope this explains a little more!
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