Is a light controller worth it?

[rbs]

Is a light controller worth it?

I found I can mod my light with a Bluefish mini for 100 bucks BUT is it really worth the time and effort?

Ocean Revive T247b

If it matters I also have an Apex Jr. so if there an option to use my controller instead of the bluefish chime in!

 

[terry]

rbs;1093578 wrote: Is a light controller worth it?

I found I can mod my light with a Bluefish mini for 100 bucks BUT is it really worth the time and effort?

Ocean Revive T247b

If it matters I also have an Apex Jr. so if there an option to use my controller instead of the bluefish chime in!

I have the bluefish mini and can tell you it is amazing. The short answer is YES!
Without sounding like a sales rep. It does just about what I want it to. I use the Fuji weather station to simulate the sunrise/sunset/clouds/storms/moon cycle.
I recommend it!

 

[enderg60]

Aside from being able to say your lights are programmed off of Fujis weather, no I dont think they are worth it.

They mess with your lighting times so sometimes the lights are off when you want them on, cloudy and thunderstorm simulations are incredibly annoying....Hey why is my tank dark and flashing?

Corals want lots of bright light, they dont respond to clouds or anything else and fish just need to see food to eat it. Why complicate things?

 

[danh]

I have the OR light and the 2 channel timers do all they need to do for me. Most of what I've read is that ramp up and down lighting doesn't really do anything... And that weather simulation doesn't do anything but scare fish..
With that said, if I had an Apex ready light, I'd definitely buy the cable to use the Apex to control it just to have things in one place.

 

[civics14]

personal preference - I don't have that controller, but my ReefAngel ramps my Onyx up and down. I prefer the gradual light increases to decrease. I don't do any of those clouds or storm.

 

[rbs]

Would everyone agree that dimming is pretty much a human enjoyment factor and has no effect on coral health/growth?

 

[enderg60]

Yup it serves no point. Since they dont dim past 10% at best there is still a flash of the lights going on or off that scare the fish.

Only reason I wired up the dimming on my lights is because I got an APEX and was bored one day.

 

[terry]

rbs;1093597 wrote: Would everyone agree that dimming is pretty much a human enjoyment factor and has no effect on coral health/growth?

I try to simulate the sunrise/sunset ramp up and down. At certain times of day some waves of light are stronger than the other bands of light. I find I can enhance the colors of some corals by giving them more white or blue or red, etc.. When I go to the ocean I don't just want to see it at noon, I want dawn and dusk as well.
Moon light is part of nature too. The cloud emulation is one of my favorites.
It doesn't storm much in Fiji either, if it does it must do it in the daytime when it doesn't have much effect on the lighting.
I built a typhon controller back in 2011 and got hooked then. Before that I had 2 timers, one for blue and one for white. I enjoy watching the tank go from night to day to night instead from dark to bright daylight to dark.

It is personal preference. I do this hobby for the beauty and enjoyment. I think the lighting controller enhances the tank. If I was doing this for profit I probably wouldn't care.

<u><span style="color: blue">The opinions expressed here do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the Atlanta Reef Club or it's affiliates</span> </u></em>