First impression of the Aquatic Life T5 LED Hybrid light
- Thread starter Roggio
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Looks nice and neat but I've never saw the stick on ty wrap holders last very long, especially if they are mounted to something that changes temperature often.Here is what I did to makes the cords appear as one
I used the Ecotech style cable mounts to run the cables to the back centerI am please with how it turned out ..
Thank you James Emory , I’ll see as time goes on to see it it actually holds up .
Sharvey103
ReefAddicted
Well, I have a 300DD with 4 ecotech and I am planning on 2 36" fixtures. I believe the combination of the T5s with LEDs will be the best option for my SPS tank so I still planning on moving forward.
I have a question. If both plugs come out of one end wouldn't it cause the light to tilt toward that end when hung on cables or such? I still think it would look better coming out same end, but just for the mounting aspect I can see how balance could be effected.
Got mine today. Was easy to setup and tune in but dang those cords are short. The hanging kit is top notch rigging. The Ecotechs went into the brackets with the supplied ecotech hanging nuts without any issue. I see why the cords come out of opposite ends as manufacturing a back and front fixture would increase costs slightly. For 299 for a 4 foot fixture its not bad. I may just mod the cord myself.
And before anyone says just get an extension cord let me just say. When was the last time anyone in this hobby did things the easy way ?
And before anyone says just get an extension cord let me just say. When was the last time anyone in this hobby did things the easy way ?
Cords are 6 feet. But once you route past 4 feet of fixture to make them come out one side you end up with a stubby 2 foot of cord length. It would be easy to mod a longer cord or mod the light and bracket to allow for the cord to be repositioned. It’s really not a big deal.
The cords for my light hood are fished through a channel in the wall behind the tank. As it sits there just isn’t enough cord to scheive this .
The cords for my light hood are fished through a channel in the wall behind the tank. As it sits there just isn’t enough cord to scheive this .
MapleReef
Active Member
That’s a great idea!!I just ordered the 24" fixture. If I have to i plan on using this if needed.
www.amazon.com/dp/B01MZ1Y0Q9/ref=cm_sw_r_other_apa_l5jeAbF95MJEX
Definitely a lot easier then what I came up with.
I am currently using , 2 8ft 16g extensions that I found at Target that I’ll running through my wall to my main power to light up my T5’s on my fixture . But the cables should work fine !
nkyreef
Well-Known Member
What an awesome setup! I wouldn't want to put anything in it for fear of getting everything dirty lol.That’s a great idea!!
Definitely a lot easier then what I came up with.
rkpetersen
walked the sand with the crustaceans
It's been a month since anyone's posted to this thread, but here's how I finally got around to putting up my hybrid fixture. It came out reasonably well and figured others might want to use the same approach.
I had read this thread and noted the concerns of many regarding the unequal cord length/position and other issues. I wanted to create a functional and finished look to the fixture, but without doing any drilling or rewiring of the fixture itself.
After assembling the fixture, installing the lights (2 Blue+, 1 Coral+, 1 Actinic), and testing it for a few days, I wrapped both cords tightly around edges of the fixture until they met at the center back, using the included metal clips and then a couple dozen of these clips at close intervals. I've used these for years in other applications and found that they hold tight and last better than I would have expected. There's a little over 1' difference in length between the two cords as the hang down the back, due to the products design. I sorted that out with one of these, which made the two cords virtually the same length. Then I added one of these, and that gave me one plug for all 4 T5s, which is my preference at the moment. If you want, you can add cord locks to secure the plug attachments, but that's probably overkill in most situations unless you expect to be pulling on them.
Before I considered drilling holes in my ceiling, I wanted to make sure this thing would actually work with my Hydra 26HD LED fixtures. It was pretty obvious that I could attach them to the hangers with the Hydra hardware, so I didn't test that. However, my Hydras are sometimes marginal about connecting to my home's wifi, only improved slightly with a wi-fi extender. Since the Hydras really need that wifi connection to be controlled, I wanted to make sure that having the 4 T5s in close proximity didn't cause the Hydras to lose the wifi signal entirely. I put the fixture up on cardboard boxes, just under the LEDs, lit them up, and found that they didn't effect the Hydra wifi reception at all. ;Smuggrin
With that out of the way, I found two joists above my ceiling at nearly the perfect equidistant location for positioning over my tank. (Couldn't believe my luck there.) I decided on using this hanging hardware. There's prettier stuff out there for sure, but these are made to hold punching bags up so I think they'll be good enough for a light hood. ;Shifty I personally like the carabiner design; both functional and secure.
Measuring the location for the hardware and drilling was done in the usual manner; by measuring everything and then measuring it again. I strongly advise the use of a plumb line to match up locations properly with your tank; easy enough to make one with a string and a heavy screw. I positioned my fixture exactly 1.5 cm anterior to the front-back mid-point, just to bring a bit more light to the fore, without it being noticeable or something I'm going to hit my head on. Also, of course, you have to put something over your tank while you work to catch any falling dust, debris, or drill.
Then I removed the Hydras from the HMS brackets and installed them in the Aquatic Life brackets, using the Hydra screws, washers, and nuts. Removing the HMS brackets from the tank was easy, but getting the Hydra power cords free of the brackets was not! When you assemble these brackets the first time, you run the cord in a groove and around a 90 degree bend, concealing it. No way to get the cord free in undamaged condition without disassembling the bracket. Unfortunately the connecting hardware at the bend is odd, inclined to lock up over time with exposure to salt, and easy to strip. One came off easily with an allen wrench, the second with some difficulty and a pair of pliers, the third required a hacksaw.
Once I got the Hydra cords free, it was easy to route them from the pucks toward the rear and use the same cable keepers to bring them to the center back. There, I used this handy system to quickly put a concealing conduit around all 5 cords (also quick and easy to remove, when necessary.) Since the weight of the combined cord tends to tilt the fixture, I was going to put a plumbing-type bracket on the wall behind the tank, which would sort-of work to hold up the cords, but then I found this great thing, which is absolutely a perfect fit, looks nice, holds the cable bundler securely yet releases it with a gentle tug, and requires no drilling.
And that's it. Plugged it into my Apex and began acclimation.
I had read this thread and noted the concerns of many regarding the unequal cord length/position and other issues. I wanted to create a functional and finished look to the fixture, but without doing any drilling or rewiring of the fixture itself.
After assembling the fixture, installing the lights (2 Blue+, 1 Coral+, 1 Actinic), and testing it for a few days, I wrapped both cords tightly around edges of the fixture until they met at the center back, using the included metal clips and then a couple dozen of these clips at close intervals. I've used these for years in other applications and found that they hold tight and last better than I would have expected. There's a little over 1' difference in length between the two cords as the hang down the back, due to the products design. I sorted that out with one of these, which made the two cords virtually the same length. Then I added one of these, and that gave me one plug for all 4 T5s, which is my preference at the moment. If you want, you can add cord locks to secure the plug attachments, but that's probably overkill in most situations unless you expect to be pulling on them.
Before I considered drilling holes in my ceiling, I wanted to make sure this thing would actually work with my Hydra 26HD LED fixtures. It was pretty obvious that I could attach them to the hangers with the Hydra hardware, so I didn't test that. However, my Hydras are sometimes marginal about connecting to my home's wifi, only improved slightly with a wi-fi extender. Since the Hydras really need that wifi connection to be controlled, I wanted to make sure that having the 4 T5s in close proximity didn't cause the Hydras to lose the wifi signal entirely. I put the fixture up on cardboard boxes, just under the LEDs, lit them up, and found that they didn't effect the Hydra wifi reception at all. ;Smuggrin
With that out of the way, I found two joists above my ceiling at nearly the perfect equidistant location for positioning over my tank. (Couldn't believe my luck there.) I decided on using this hanging hardware. There's prettier stuff out there for sure, but these are made to hold punching bags up so I think they'll be good enough for a light hood. ;Shifty I personally like the carabiner design; both functional and secure.
Measuring the location for the hardware and drilling was done in the usual manner; by measuring everything and then measuring it again. I strongly advise the use of a plumb line to match up locations properly with your tank; easy enough to make one with a string and a heavy screw. I positioned my fixture exactly 1.5 cm anterior to the front-back mid-point, just to bring a bit more light to the fore, without it being noticeable or something I'm going to hit my head on. Also, of course, you have to put something over your tank while you work to catch any falling dust, debris, or drill.
Then I removed the Hydras from the HMS brackets and installed them in the Aquatic Life brackets, using the Hydra screws, washers, and nuts. Removing the HMS brackets from the tank was easy, but getting the Hydra power cords free of the brackets was not! When you assemble these brackets the first time, you run the cord in a groove and around a 90 degree bend, concealing it. No way to get the cord free in undamaged condition without disassembling the bracket. Unfortunately the connecting hardware at the bend is odd, inclined to lock up over time with exposure to salt, and easy to strip. One came off easily with an allen wrench, the second with some difficulty and a pair of pliers, the third required a hacksaw.
Once I got the Hydra cords free, it was easy to route them from the pucks toward the rear and use the same cable keepers to bring them to the center back. There, I used this handy system to quickly put a concealing conduit around all 5 cords (also quick and easy to remove, when necessary.) Since the weight of the combined cord tends to tilt the fixture, I was going to put a plumbing-type bracket on the wall behind the tank, which would sort-of work to hold up the cords, but then I found this great thing, which is absolutely a perfect fit, looks nice, holds the cable bundler securely yet releases it with a gentle tug, and requires no drilling.
And that's it. Plugged it into my Apex and began acclimation.
Last edited:
rkpetersen
walked the sand with the crustaceans
I'm totally winging it, I have no real idea but I'm going to do this, watch and see how the corals react.
Currently, my LEDs are set to a 4-hour mid-day high/variable peak period, bracketed by 2-hour slightly lower intensity light plateau periods both before and after the peak, with 2-hour rise and fall periods to start and finish the day. To acclimate, I started by turning on the T5s for 15 minutes twice a day, during the plateau periods just before and after the peak period. Every couple of days, I will increase the light duration by 5 minutes in one or the other direction. If any corals or nems seem to be reacting negatively, I'll back off. Eventually I'd like the two T5 lighting periods to join midday.
Last edited:
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