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View Full Version : Aquactinics Lights Experience (Pic Intense)


FastUno
03/25/2006, 09:51 PM
Some of you might remember me from my T5 thread a while back. Just wanted to come back now & share my joy with you. I always wanted to write up one of those 1 year to date threads & to share some good news. Fortunately, I now can.

Everything has been going smooth so far & I can finally relax, sit back, watch my corals blossom, & share the experience with you.

I don't see too many others with my fixture & have wondered why? I bet no one has come forward yet & perhaps that is why I am taking center stage.

I would love to hear from other owners & wonder if you feel the same way I do? Also, would like to know what 250W MH bulb you feel provides the best growth for your corals on the default ballast. Right now I am using XM 20K's & I wonder how much more growth I would get with different bulbs. I have heard that the XM 250W bulbs provided sluggish growth for others, for me it has been quite the opposite. It would scare me to think what would happen if I were to use a 10K bulb, since I already feel as if I am running out of space.

This is how the tank got started, back in March 05.
http://www.pbase.com/fastuno/image/40521640.jpg

This is how the tank looked in July 05, right after the placement of the new Aquactinics fixtures.
http://www.pbase.com/fastuno/image/46279260.jpg

The rest from march 06. Most of the corals you see below are the same ones from July, only much bigger. I have bought 2 corals & sold 4-5 corals since then & frags.
http://www.pbase.com/fastuno/image/57419569.jpg

http://www.pbase.com/fastuno/image/57419619.jpg


I will post tank inhabitant pictures soon.

chip721
03/25/2006, 10:28 PM
FastUno, I really like your tank. I'm building a 90g tank right now and the Aquactinics is my current choice of lighting w/250w 14k bulbs. I'm glad to hear your positive comments on this fixture. But the beauty of your tank is the real evidence. If you don't mind I have a question. What ballast are you using; the standard Fulham Workhorse or the Ice Cap Electronic? Lovely, lovely display. Do you mind sharing a look at your sump? I've also got an AP600 on the way from Doug. Thanks.

FastUno
03/25/2006, 11:00 PM
Thanks chip.
I am using the magnetic ballast that comes with the fixture. I chose not to upgrade at the time. I believe Tom at Aquactinics said they were Venture Lighting (M58) ballasts.

I have contemplated changing them to electronic ballasts, but at the same time I figure why fix something that is not broken. I would have to receive a source of inspiration for me to reconsider a possible change.

Now my biggest decision is choosing that next awesome MH bulb. I want one that will look as good as the XM20K's & with a little more punch for growth spurs. I have just purchased the CV 14K bulbs today, but have not put them on yet.

I still have the Deltec AP600, but have not used it for some 3mo or so. I have very old & cranky neighbors below me & they complained about vibrations. I just got tired of hearing them & have removed it for now. So I am running skimmerless for now & doing some 25g water changes every 3-4 weeks.

My sump is BB & not impressive at all without the skimmer. I only have the main tank water going into one of the Fluval canister filter baskets. I just ordered the basket, which was something like 12 bucks. It has 3 compartments, top is a sponge filter, 2nd I use for 24/7 carbon, & last for phosban 24/7. I clean out the sponge every 3-4 days...a simple water rinse makes it look brand new. Found this to be easier than the 100micron filter socks I used to use.
Here is a pic a took a while ago:
http://www.pbase.com/fastuno/image/55959033.jpg

chip721
03/25/2006, 11:14 PM
Man now I'm really impressed! A tank that looks this good and skimmerless too. Talk about keeping it simple. Come on, you've got to have a magic wand stuck in that sump somewhere.

I'll be sure to post some pics of my 90 with Aquactinics once I'm set up. It's going in my basement and I want to paint before putting water in the box. One last question. Did you go with the standard fans or variable speed w/ ambient temp sensor? Thanks again for sharing your setup. It's too bad your neighbors can't see and appreciate the beauty they're missing. chip

Panduriniii
03/25/2006, 11:27 PM
I was wondering where you ordered your basket from. Excellent tank btw. I m jealous

sjm817
03/25/2006, 11:41 PM
Uno, did you ever replace the rubber grommets on the AP600 impeller? Mine got noisy and I replaced them. What a difference! Extremely quiet. now.

FastUno
03/25/2006, 11:45 PM
Hey, you didn't hear about the "Easy" button Staples has? Come on everyone is using it on their reefs now!

I went with the IC fans & glad I did, no problems here. If you do not get the moonlights I will personally fly down to Virginia & slap someone silly.:D No really, that is how good they are.

I did not want to get them at first & figured I would save on money. I asked one other person who had them & they ok'd it. I was still skeptical- figured two socket mounted moonlights can't possible have an impact. Especially since I saw others with 6 or 8 LED's out there. Man was I wrong!!!!!!!!!! It adds a whole new dimension to your tank & does it so well. I can't believe I almost passed those up. Every time I wake up in the middle of the night to go to the bathroom I have to stop & stare.

I look forward to hearing back from you. Let us know how they work out.

FastUno
03/25/2006, 11:49 PM
Ordered basket from That Fish Place, it's the Fluval 403 basket.
http://www.thatpetplace.com/Products/KW/fluval%2cbasket/Class//T1/F26EB+0171+0141/EDP/8172/Itemdy00.aspx

Yes, replaced the gromets, that was a whole other issue. Doug was even nice enough to send me a replacement pump & it was much quieter, but still some residual vibration. Mind you that I had trouble with the same tenants on a freshwater with only 2 802 powerheads running. So you see how sensitive they are.

Man I love my Deltec skimmer, would not give that up for nadda. Just put on hold for future use.

chip721
03/26/2006, 12:50 PM
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7042640#post7042640 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by FastUno
I went with the IC fans & glad I did, no problems here. If you do not get the moonlights I will personally fly down to Virginia & slap someone silly.:D No really, that is how good they are.
No need to make that trip. I had already planned on the IC fans and moonlights too. Now I've just got to nail down a MH color temp. I'm leaning toward 14k, but I want to do a little reading on the Coralvue bulb. What did you select for your front and back T5 supplements -- blue or pure actinic??

FastUno
03/26/2006, 04:25 PM
I chose AB & B+ for my T5's. Reason is I want to run my T5's when my MH are not on & I don't like that actinic blue look. I wanted it to look natural when MH were off.

I also wanted to supplement the XM 20K's with some more par/light. Not for the sake of washing out white/yellow look (XM 20K is blue enough), but for the additional par output.

FastUno
03/29/2006, 07:13 PM
Some inhabitant shots:
http://www.pbase.com/fastuno/image/54549785.jpg

http://www.pbase.com/fastuno/image/56520541.jpg

http://www.pbase.com/fastuno/image/54550406.jpg

http://www.pbase.com/fastuno/image/56541649.jpg

http://www.pbase.com/fastuno/image/56540542.jpg

http://www.pbase.com/fastuno/image/55956008.jpg

marino420td
03/29/2006, 08:13 PM
I was admiring how nice those pictures are when I noticed your interests lists photography. What camera set up did you use for these shots? They look great.

FastUno
03/29/2006, 08:26 PM
That's a cheapo Sony DSC-V3 & no biggie. I had a Canon 10D & 20D at one point, but sold both.

Eventually I will get back into the Canon world, the 30D is looking really good. It's suppose to be faster than the 20D, bigger 2.5" screen, & has the Canon Picture Styles mode...should be awesome.

FastUno
04/02/2006, 07:10 PM
I changed my XM20K bulbs out this weekend. Using the CV 14K bulbs now. It definitely is brighter now, although I could swear the XM's were almost as bright when I first put them on. These bulbs make the corals look just as good as the 20K's & hopefully a lot more pars.

Should I really be worried about acclimation to the new lights?
I am gonna do the following schedule:
1st week = 4hrs/day
2n week = 5hrs/day
3rd week = 6hrs/day & keep it at this for about 4 mo, then maybe do 8hrs/day.

http://www.pbase.com/fastuno/image/58105491.jpg

http://www.pbase.com/fastuno/image/58105514.jpg

http://www.pbase.com/fastuno/image/58105538.jpg

syilk1
04/03/2006, 03:28 PM
I love your aquarium, I too like newbies bought a 350 dollar coralife PC light fixture and am sort of happy I guess but am just starting to add corals now and have had good luck, Well there only 1 month old but not dead heheh. I have a question for you guys. I want to upgrade to MH and ith looks like aquatinics looks great but do I need to remove my glass canopy and if so do you get a lot of salt creep. Also I really want to have my mahogany hood still on. Will this cause heat issues??
Any help would be greatly appreciated before I drop 700 dollars on new lights, SInce my Coralife is less than 5 months old.\
Thanks for any input, Scott

FastUno
04/03/2006, 09:01 PM
Salt creep, well not really, but I do get salt splatter on the bottom of the shield. I clean them every month or so, but I should do it more often. It only takes seconds to do though. Just lift & angle the lights with one hand & wipe with the other hand. I have some almost 4000GPH flowing through my tank & it creates some spatter. The fixture has a splash guard & it protects the reflectors within the fixture. It's a lot easier to clean the splashguard than it would be to clean all that salt from the reflectors:)

The light fits within the boundaries of my 90g perimeter & should fit within a hood. You just have to make sure the hood is tall enough & that it has 2 openings on either end for the fans.

syilk1
04/03/2006, 09:24 PM
Well its a standard wood canopy so only the back is open??, You know it sits over my light fixture that now sits on glass canopy
Would this be ok?

FastUno
04/03/2006, 10:42 PM
You would need to make holes on both sides of the canopy.

The fixture has 2 fans on either end. One sucks in air & the other blows it out. If you trap all that hot air within your canopy your tank temp will inc.

Can you drill out 2x 4-5" holes on either end?

syilk1
04/03/2006, 11:13 PM
Yes I could do that, Just wont cosmetically look as nice but appreciate you input. Now I have to convince my wife to let me spend 800 bones on a light. Do you have moonlights?

FastUno
04/05/2006, 12:00 AM
Oh, yea. Can't live without them now!