Need some lighting help….

[Man-made Monsters]

I have a 180 gallon with a Marinelife LED. It has three rows of lights with center row being blue lights. It’s bright enough to be seen from space BUT I have had to replace the power switch and power connection port and it’s starting to fail again after roughly 10 years of service.
So as I’m looking for a new light I’m thinking I want to do something in the RGB color family of LEDs. I’m keeping Vieja Melanura and Carpintis and I want the best lights to help their colors pop. I don’t have plants so that’s of no concern. I looked into the Fluval Aquasky but because of the depth of my tank it was not recommended. I really love the idea of being able to custom set the levels of color via Bluetooth which I know the Fluval 3.0 offers with slightly higher power over the Aquasky. Im not trying to blow a lot of cash, thinking $200-$400, and I’m wondering if anyone out there has some experience with a great system that is working well to showcase the colors of their fish. Thanks everybody.

 

[FJB]

This is what I would do if don't want plants, just big fish and ornaments.
If tank is 6 footer - Use two 36" LEDs. For even light along the whole tank, position them over the full length, in tandem. Alternatively, to create zones, one could double both towards the center, leaving the sides somewhat darker, or at one side, or something like it. That flexibility is achieved by having two, not just a single long one. Heck, depending on how dark you prefer the tank, you may be able to get away with a single 48" LED on a 6 foot tank.
If tank is longer, two 48"s should do it. Perhaps one can have a 48 and a 36 positioned creatively.
I have several Finnex Planted+ lights, 36 and 48 for some years and have been very happy with them. Two either 36 or 48" should run $250-300

 

[MultipleTankSyndrome]

I can't speak for everyone when I say this, but I find that a single light is sufficient for a tank twice its length (as in, 91 cm vs 183 cm). This tank is lit up from corner to corner with this one light, even in the dead of night.
(Unintentional rhyme).



It should be noted, however, that the light is upside down. Therefore the bulbs are facing away from the fish, in fact almost directly opposite.

This configuration may allow the tank to be more lit up than if the light were in a traditional position with the bulbs facing the fish - I'd experiment with upside down lights to see if you can get the effect.

 

[aussieman57]

I can't speak for everyone when I say this, but I find that a single light is sufficient for a tank twice its length (as in, 91 cm vs 183 cm). This tank is lit up from corner to corner with this one light, even in the dead of night.
(Unintentional rhyme).

View attachment 1491190

It should be noted, however, that the light is upside down. Therefore the bulbs are facing away from the fish, in fact almost directly opposite.

This configuration may allow the tank to be more lit up than if the light were in a traditional position with the bulbs facing the fish - I'd experiment with upside down lights to see if you can get the effect.

OK you've piqued my curiosity. Maybe I'm just being dense but I'm not quite sure how you are accomplishing this. Could you provide a pic on what you are doing with the light.

 

[MultipleTankSyndrome]

OK you've piqued my curiosity. Maybe I'm just being dense but I'm not quite sure how you are accomplishing this. Could you provide a pic on what you are doing with the light.

Hopefully this will help you understand.

The light is turned on as normal, just flipped upside down and angled away from the viewer to not harm the eyes.

 

[aussieman57]

OK I see how you do it. Gonna play with that tomorrow.

 

[Man-made Monsters]

Hey everyone, thank you for your responses. It’s interesting to think about how when it comes to freshwater applications, without plants, we can arrange lights anyway we think looks best to our eyes and hopefully is comfortable to our fish as well. I have never seen an upside down angled light before so that’s a new application for sure.
I found a woman on Craigslist selling a Current USA Orbit Marine Pro system and she only lived 30 mins from me. Lightly used, great condition, great price! Is it over kill for my fish only 180 freshwater tank….Yes. But does it look amazing….ohhhh hell yes. The rolling cloud setting is super cool. The RGB LEDs are each independently adjustable and the color effect in the fish is incredible.