Just Picked up AI Prime 16hd for 10g... Looking for recommendations

[MB_Reef]

Just picked up an AI prime 16hd for a nano mixed reef (10g).
Tank is a standard 10g rectangle 20" long, 12 " deep, and 10" front to back,

1. How high should I mount the light?
2. Light intensity settings? Preset?

Thanks!

 

[Saltyreef]

Just picked up an AI prime 16hd for a nano mixed reef (10g).
Tank is a standard 10g rectangle 20" long, 12 " deep, and 10" front to back,

1. How high should I mount the light?
2. Light intensity settings? Preset?

Thanks!

Did the light come with a mount? They make hanging kits, goosenecks and adjustable rigid mounts.

Check out this link to download the signature series presets.

Signature Series - AquaIllumination

www.aquaillumination.com

 

[MB_Reef]

Did the light come with a mount? They make hanging kits, goosenecks and adjustable rigid mounts.

Check out this link to download the signature series presets.

Signature Series - AquaIllumination

www.aquaillumination.com

Yes, adjustable flex arm mount.

 

[MB_Reef]

Yes, adjustable flex arm mount.

Is there a specific preset you would recommend? Do I need to slowly increase intensity over a few weeks? This light is much brighter than the old.

 

[Saltyreef]

Is there a specific preset you would recommend? Do I need to slowly increase intensity over a few weeks? This light is much brighter than the old.

It has acclamation mode. You can set a reduction period to match your previous lights intensity and have it slowly ramp up over the set timeframe to full power.

I would choose karen vasquezes schedule

 

[Hooz]

To light the tank end to end, the light will need to be about 10" above the water line.

As for intensity, it's all just a wild guess without a PAR meter.

 

[MB_Reef]

To light the tank end to end, the light will need to be about 10" above the water line.

As for intensity, it's all just a wild guess without a PAR meter.

Thanks!

 

[Reef Psychology]

For a 10g it’s about 8”. More than that and you’ll have spill. I also went with a 3dprinted diffuser because I disliked the color separation in the puck style lights. If you like sharp whites in the afternoon and vivid blues in the evening, Saxby’s settings are pretty good, but I’d bring down the intensity a bit. You can use two fingers to move the entire schedule up (more intense) or down (less intense) or two fingers left to set the on time sooner in the day or right for later in the day. The app is pretty intuitive. You can use any of the signature settings and see if you like them or AI Facebook page where there are literally hundreds of schedules - but I found them to be a bit overwhelming. Sometimes too many options can be a bad thing so I just went with something that had it all. Some really like the AB+ setting, but be prepared to replace the lens in a year or two from what I’ve heard.

 

[Hooz]

Watch this video. Twice. It will give you a MUCH better understanding of the light, how it works and how to best set it up for success on your tank.

 

[Not woodyarmadillo]

Watch this video. Twice. It will give you a MUCH better understanding of the light, how it works and how to best set it up for success on your tank.

Was going to come on the thread to share this video as well. It’s exactly what I used to set my light up. It will give you a good idea of par levels for your tank. I ended up renting a par meter to verify this data. It will cover mixed reefs vs LPS/Softie tanks. So you need to decide if you’re going to put SPS in the tank or just LPS/Softies to determine which AB+ to use. I’m running this at the 70% setting in my 14g. The only thing I’ve done is cut the whites down to 10. I just don’t like the whites that high and believe that the whites contribute to more algae growth than coral growth. Lots of reefers here run minimal to no whites.

 

[bert236]

As for intensity, it's all just a wild guess without a PAR meter

Except this is one of the most used lights out there with tons of profiles you can download from people who checked them with a par meter. It won't be exact but close enough. It's easy enough to just Google the par reading from a prime and make the adjustments yourself too.

 

[wjm6449]

Just picked up an AI prime 16hd for a nano mixed reef (10g).
Tank is a standard 10g rectangle 20" long, 12 " deep, and 10" front to back,

1. How high should I mount the light?
2. Light intensity settings? Preset?

Thanks!

irrelevant comment; but i may game too much (not really), or its too early morning when im reading you state got the prime and nano mix reef for 10g, thinking like 10 Gold. ***.

 

[Hooz]

Except this is one of the most used lights out there with tons of profiles you can download from people who checked them with a par meter. It won't be exact but close enough. It's easy enough to just Google the par reading from a prime and make the adjustments yourself too.

But checked them with a PAR meter over what tank? At what mounting height?

David Saxby runs 28 lights over a 3200g aquarium. How does that translate to a single Prime on a 10g? But the Saxby schedule is one of the most popular.

I suggested the light be mounted 10" above the water for best coverage. With an 80 degree lens (what the Prime lens is), that's the height you need to cover a 20" long tank end to end. Someone else suggested an 8" height which only covers about 12" of the 20" length and will leave noticeable shadows in the top corners on the ends.

Someone else mentioned diffusers. I run them as well, but they cut down dramatically on the spread and PAR. I know that because I've PAR tested my tank and adjusted accordingly.

Even if you find someone running the exact light on the exact same tank, you'll still olny be "close" without a PAR meter.

 

[bert236]

But checked them with a PAR meter over what tank? At what mounting height?

It's really not that hard to find multiple options for almost every tank size and mounting height with the primes.it's not going to be perfect but close enough as you said. I'm not sure what your whole rant was about when you agreed with me at the end of it. If you are using an AI prime I think it's safe to say for the most part you are keeping corals that are good with close. Tbh even the most demanding corals aren't gonna care if you are 20 par off from whatever you perceive to be the perfect number.

 

[Lebowski_]

Hey OP, I've got a 15g cube. I mount my light about 14" from the waterline, and I use Eddy Putra's schedule:

Eddie Putra - AquaIllumination

www.aquaillumination.com

Right now, I have it turned down by about 20% but am slowly raising to his intensity.

I have excellent growth in my Mushrooms and Zoas, a little bit of Favia growth, not much going on with the little Acro plugs or Torch and Frogspawn.

 

[Hooz]

It's really not that hard to find multiple options for almost every tank size and mounting height with the primes.it's not going to be perfect but close enough as you said. I'm not sure what your whole rant was about when you agreed with me at the end of it. If you are using an AI prime I think it's safe to say for the most part you are keeping corals that are good with close. Tbh even the most demanding corals aren't gonna care if you are 20 par off from whatever you perceive to be the perfect number.

Because that's almost never the way it actually goes. Someone gets a new light, "Hey what schedule should I run?" Twenty-seven people say, "I run ________! It's great!" The OP, "Thanks! I decided on _______!"

Then months later after killing a bunch of coral and/or not having any success, they're back doing the real research and asking the important questions.

 

[bert236]

Because that's almost never the way it actually goes. Someone gets a new light, "Hey what schedule should I run?" Twenty-seven people say, "I run ________! It's great!" The OP, "Thanks! I decided on _______!"

Then months later after killing a bunch of coral and/or not having any success, they're back doing the real research and asking the important questions.

This is a thread with a person asking what they should be doing with their new prime so it's the opposite of what you said in that comment. I'm really not sure what your point here is other than to argue so I'm just going to leave it at that.

 

[Hooz]

This is a thread with a person asking what they should be doing with their new prime so it's the opposite of what you said in that comment. I'm really not sure what your point here is other than to argue so I'm just going to leave it at that.

The OP came here with the right questions, but if you reread the thread from the start, you'll see why I posted what I did. I'm not arguing, just trying to head some of the "noise" off at the pass.

 

[Reign1]

Was going to come on the thread to share this video as well. It’s exactly what I used to set my light up. It will give you a good idea of par levels for your tank. I ended up renting a par meter to verify this data. It will cover mixed reefs vs LPS/Softie tanks. So you need to decide if you’re going to put SPS in the tank or just LPS/Softies to determine which AB+ to use. I’m running this at the 70% setting in my 14g. The only thing I’ve done is cut the whites down to 10. I just don’t like the whites that high and believe that the whites contribute to more algae growth than coral growth. Lots of reefers here run minimal to no whites.

I guess I am crazy I have one on my 14 planted and am blasting it like 84%

 

[Not woodyarmadillo]

The OP came here with the right questions, but if you reread the thread from the start, you'll see why I posted what I did. I'm not arguing, just trying to head some of the "noise" off at the pass.

I agree with this. I chose the BRS AB+ formula because after watching the video, I could get a rough estimate of my par in different areas of the tank and feel decently confident in it, but I rented a par meter to verify and made some adjustments. I would absolutely recommend OP actually rent a par meter or buy one. Guessing isn’t worth it in my opinion when you have hundreds to thousands of dollars of coral in your tank.