Who is using the AI SOL Super Blue's?? Do you still love them?
- Thread starter areucrazy
- Start date
scott11
New member
i have them, but now only over a swim tank. I really like the lights for several reasons, no heat, no noise, low power, great control over color, good intensity. That said, the only "coral" i had them over were RBTAs. I cant vouch for their performance for other corals. Also, it seems that the SOLs are now outdated by the vega and hydra, so if you are just getting into LEDs you may want to look at the newer tech.
m-six hundred
The Most Diabolical Hater
I had good luck with softies, lps and zoas. My SPS did not like them at all. The new Razor I think is amazing. no problems with sps and I have been running them at 100% since day one. I'd look into something like that.
Benson0219
Member
I love mine. Great results. 19 months now.
What is ur lighting schedule like?% and all
tcamos
Reef, Crustacean, Puffers
My lights are on 12 hours a day. They ramp up to about 75%, 25%, 35%. This takes 30 minutes. They run and for the last half hour they ramp back down. I have moon light mode set to sync with local.
I highly recommend using the acclimate mode when getting new corals as these lights are very bright. For this reason placement is important.
This photo is the tank in January of this year. You can see I have a mixed reef with a couple of very large SPS colonies and monti cap as well as the 16" Sebae anemone and the brains on the sand.
AI recommended 5-6 units for my size tank...I got 3 and it's been more than enough light. The lack of heat alone is worth the money for me. My study was a hot house before.
I highly recommend using the acclimate mode when getting new corals as these lights are very bright. For this reason placement is important.
This photo is the tank in January of this year. You can see I have a mixed reef with a couple of very large SPS colonies and monti cap as well as the 16" Sebae anemone and the brains on the sand.
AI recommended 5-6 units for my size tank...I got 3 and it's been more than enough light. The lack of heat alone is worth the money for me. My study was a hot house before.
I have 6 AI SOL Blue lights over a 12' span. They are great and give very nice coloration. I have had great luck with just about any kind of coral you can think of under them. I also have 11 Radion gen 2 lights. I like them as well but for the price difference it is tough to justify. I have to say if I were setting up a new tank I would use the AI SOL Blue leds as they leave little to be desired.
jteternal2
New member
sorry not ment to hi-jack this post but how many of these light would require to light a L 36.5 x W 18.5 x H 21 tank
areucrazy
New member
No worries... this is a discussion on how people like them so I can see if I want to buy them myself. I was told you need 1 per foot. So my 6ft tank needs 6. I was going to see if I could get started with 3 and go from there. My tank is also a bow front so I may get away with just using 4. I appreciate everyones feed back. Not 1 person complained about flickering or any issues so far. THATS AWESOME! I will keep my eyes open for a good deal on some used ones. I think Im ready to say goodbye to the HEAVY.. HOT.. fixture sitting on my tank. It cant be good to have all that weight on top of my tank.
zrogst
New member
Make sure to check AI's parts store for "refurbished" units (these are new units that didn't pass QA due to cosmetic issues like blemishing and flash on the plastic casing or heat sinks); they sell for $100 off.
I, too, was told 1 sol per ft, but for my 4ft frag tank I'm going to use 3 and see how it goes.
I, too, was told 1 sol per ft, but for my 4ft frag tank I'm going to use 3 and see how it goes.
tcamos
Reef, Crustacean, Puffers
A single module suspended 12" above the tank has a 36x36" span of coverage. The light at the edges of that will not be as intense. So there are two ways of answering this question.
1. use a single module and place soft corals on the ends of the tank or LPS.
2. use two modules and place whatever you want where ever you want.
I went with 3 modules on my 6 foot tank and am placing lower light corals on the ends. However, I have found that even higher light corals grow there as I have a frag rack on the end of the tank and everything on it grows just fine.
Personally I would start with one, see how it goes and get a second if you think you need it but don't spend the extra money until you have tried it with one.
We have 3 units over our 180g @ 12in above the water, and see no reason to add anymore units. With just three unit there is more then enough light, to much light if I crank them up to 100% imho. It does take me awhile to figure out where to place new frags, cause its real easy to bleach them with to much light. All of our corals are growing faster and look better then before. We are planning to convert our bc29 to these leds soon, since they are doing so well over our big reef tank.
is your tank 60 x 24 x 30 ? are the AI's placed end to end, or side by side?
what are your white and blue settings?
Reef-o-Roni
Active member
I bought 2 and a controller,going to run them a month and see if I like them better then my MH's.
If I do I'll buy 2 more.
If I do I'll buy 2 more.
