How many Noopsyche K7 pro IIIs for a 48 x 20 x 20?

[JoJosReef]

I currently run 3x K7 Minis on my IM Nuvo 40L AIO (35.4" x 15.3" x 13" [-1" sand bed] in display part):

Lights works great for the space. Getting 150-200 PAR on the sand bed in most spots, and bit cooler in the corners. 300-350 on the rocks. Basically one Mini over each island. I'd like to replicate this spread/intensity in my upgrade to an 83gal 48"x20"x20" tank with polycarb lid (instead of screen lid as on the 40L):

During the tank transfer, the Left and Middle rock island will be transferred to the left and left-middle of the 48" tank, and the right rock will transfer to the right of the 48" tank. A new rock island will be placed in the right-middle. I also have a 4th Mini to go over the right-middle rock.

Thinking of eventually swapping our my K7 Minis for the Pros in the upgrade tank, because I don't know how well the minis will do with the extra width (~5") and height (~7" extra). I will be starting out with 4 K7 Minis since I already have them, but wondering if I need 4 K7 Pros or if 3 would work. I would put them front-to-back orientation instead of side-to-side orientation to get better coverage of the front and back sides of the rocks.

Both the Mini and the K7 Pros have 90degree spread, but the Pros have two lenses each putting out 70 watts vs the single K7 Mini putting out 60 watts (perhaps just the extra colors on Pro?).

1. Would 3 K7 Pros work as well as 4 or 5 K7 Minis? With a 5th Mini I would stagger them a bit front and back for width coverage with 3 forward and two back. But 3x K7 pros would likely be situated inbetween the rock islands.

or

2. Would 4 K7 Pros be needed to get equal coverage side-to-side.

3. Alternative is to orient the e K7 Pros with the two lenses side-by-side instead of front-to-back with a bit more distance between them. This presumably gives the same front-to-back coverage as the 4x Minis. Perhaps there would be some shading.

Thoughts? Thanks! @exnisstech are yours oriented front-to-back or side-to-side, and what LxW coverage do you have yours?

 

[rhitee93]

I think you could probably use only two. I have 3 over a 48x24x24 in tank, and only have them at 40% 65% at the peak of the day. That gets me ~400par at the top of my rocks, and almost 200 on the sand.

EDIT: Just checked my profile and I was wrong, I'm running closer to 65% at the peak of the day.

 

[JoJosReef]

I think you could probably use only two. I have 3 over a 48x24x24 in tank, and only have them at 40% at the peak of the day. That gets me ~400par at the top of my rocks, and almost 200 on the sand.

This is a perfect example! Love the elegance, too, which is what I hope to get in the upgrade. How much space is yours taking?

 

[rhitee93]

Not sure I understand the question correctly, but the bar is 12" over the top rim of the tank.

I forget what the bar is. It was sold as a mount to one of the popular lights, and I just adapted it to the K7s. I may have put it in my build thread...

 

[exnisstech]

I currently run 3x K7 Minis on my IM Nuvo 40L AIO (35.4" x 15.3" x 13" [-1" sand bed] in display part):

Lights works great for the space. Getting 150-200 PAR on the sand bed in most spots, and bit cooler in the corners. 300-350 on the rocks. Basically one Mini over each island. I'd like to replicate this spread/intensity in my upgrade to an 83gal 48"x20"x20" tank with polycarb lid (instead of screen lid as on the 40L):

During the tank transfer, the Left and Middle rock island will be transferred to the left and left-middle of the 48" tank, and the right rock will transfer to the right of the 48" tank. A new rock island will be placed in the right-middle. I also have a 4th Mini to go over the right-middle rock.

Thinking of eventually swapping our my K7 Minis for the Pros in the upgrade tank, because I don't know how well the minis will do with the extra width (~5") and height (~7" extra). I will be starting out with 4 K7 Minis since I already have them, but wondering if I need 4 K7 Pros or if 3 would work. I would put them front-to-back orientation instead of side-to-side orientation to get better coverage of the front and back sides of the rocks.

Both the Mini and the K7 Pros have 90degree spread, but the Pros have two lenses each putting out 70 watts vs the single K7 Mini putting out 60 watts (perhaps just the extra colors on Pro?).

1. Would 3 K7 Pros work as well as 4 or 5 K7 Minis? With a 5th Mini I would stagger them a bit front and back for width coverage with 3 forward and two back. But 3x K7 pros would likely be situated inbetween the rock islands.

or

2. Would 4 K7 Pros be needed to get equal coverage side-to-side.

3. Alternative is to orient the e K7 Pros with the two lenses side-by-side instead of front-to-back with a bit more distance between them. This presumably gives the same front-to-back coverage as the 4x Minis. Perhaps there would be some shading.

Thoughts? Thanks! @exnisstech are yours oriented front-to-back or side-to-side, and what LxW coverage do you have yours?

When I ran 6 over my 180g 72x24x24" I had them front to rear. I was able to get 300 par on the bottom where I kept clams. The tank thrived under them
This acro on the back wall grew from a tiny frag under the noops

FTS The two closer together on the left were over my clams.

I moved them over to my WB 330.7 84x30x25" and have them side to side. I can't remember the par I'm getting now but all of my rocks are in the center of the tank so the fish can swim all the way around.

Three would probably work fine for you but 4 run lower would give you a cushion. I like to have more vs less when it comes to lights and just run them lower. Can't always do that with higher priced lights but the noops are cheap enough I keep a spare.

 

[JoJosReef]

Not sure I understand the question correctly, but the bar is 12" over the top rim of the tank.

I forget what the bar is. It was sold as a mount to one of the popular lights, and I just adapted it to the K7s. I may have put it in my build thread...

I was asking how much space your elegance is taking. Bit off topic!

 

[bigbugoutfitters]

Yea, i think two would be fine. Ive got 2 over a reefer 250 and it is more than enough. Upgrading to a 5’ 150 and will only have three for now with supplemental t5.
That being said, i plan to eventually have 4 over my tank to reduce shading, so possibly 3 could be better for you in the long run?

 

[SliceGolfer]

Personally, I would go with three K7 Pros and then determine portrait vs landscape mounting of the light depending on PAR measurement. I would also recommend researching Nicrew Hyperreef Gen 2, A8se radion copies, ReefFi, and Quanta/Helix. Also seeing good reviews on ReefBreeders Meridian.

 

[rhitee93]

Lol, apparently I can't read very carefully today

The elegance eats up about a 12x12 space right now. It has 4 mouths now. Not sure what I'll do in another year.