- Today on "BRSTV Investigates",
will this $30 narrow lens reflector completely change the
way you mount your lights?
Can it open doors to higher mounting heights?
More concentrated par numbers or even better performance
at deeper depths, more specifically,
can we intentionally change
an ultra wide flood lamp performance of the Kessil A 360X
into a narrow angle spotlight
to better match different tools for different jobs?
Those answers are coming up.
(upbeat music)
Hi, I'm Randy with this Friday's "BRSTV Investigates"
where we put popular reefing gear theories and methods
to the test by experimenting on our own tanks,
so you don't have to experiment on yours and last week,
we answered if changing our lights lens design
can change its optimal mounting height and learn that
by using very specialized lenses,
we can achieve some pretty extreme mounting heights
off the tops of our tanks.
But today we're unpacking that question a little further
to show you exactly
what the $30 55-degree Kessil A 360X narrow reflector does
to the 130 degree A 360X wide-angle lens
and see what performances you can gain
and who would benefit the most
from changing the A 360X wide-angle floodlight
into a reef tank spotlight.
To do that, we test three questions today,
all of which you'll see earn our first ten out
of ten reef certainty clean sweep across the board
by answering one, using the narrow reflector attachment,
are we able to effectively raise the ideal mounting height
of the Kessil A 360X up from the optimal eight inches
we found in previous testing?
And if so, will it maintains similar spread
and par performance?
Ten out of ten reef certainty.
Question two, will a 75 degree reduction
in the Kessil beam angle from a hundred thirty degrees
to 55 degrees focus the par intensity in a smaller area
for those who need higher par in spaces smaller
than are 24 by 24 test tank?
Again, ten out of ten reefs certainty.
And that third question, will a narrower 55 degree lens
allow refers to penetrate the light deeper into the tank
where maintaining higher par is harder to do?
That when to gets its 10 out of 10 reef certainty,
but beyond confirming these answers,
today, we'll show you how Kessil is one of the very few,
if not one of the only reef lights that we've tested
that has the ability to adjust its ideal mounting height
to meet your needs.
Whereas most others falls somewhere in
that one size fits all category.
So not every refer has the ability to or even desires
to mount their lights at the same height across the board
and if we're being honest, the phrase one size fits all
doesn't really hold up in the reefing hobby.
So even though our light testing criteria
found lighting options like the Kessil A 360X
to have an optimal mounting height of
just eight inches off the water in a 24-inch area.
Where does that leave other reefers who want to use those
to light tanks that are larger, smaller,
deeper or completely unique other situations?
Can changing the dynamics of the same light help us turn it
into the right tool for our specific job?
Let's find that out today by answering
those three earlier questions, which we plan to do by first,
determining the new optimal mounting height
of the Kessil A 360X using the narrow reflector attachment
by raising the light inch by inch
until we reach a 15 percent loss of efficiency
or light spill and then compare those results
to what we found for the A 360X 130 degree lens,
fresh out of the box.
Then in order to answer question two, we'll look at the data
for both configurations mounted at eight inches
above the water with and without the narrow reflector
and compare the average par in the center,
middle and outer rings just below the water surface
at six inches deep in the tank to see the differences
in par intensity across the 24 inch testing area.
And to test the par penetration depth question,
we'll compare the par data and spread for both focused
and wide angle A 360X lens at 18 inches deep
in our test tank.
Starting with the optimal mounting height test
of the A 360X narrow reflector, remember we're looking
for a mounting height that spreads the par as evenly
as possible across the 24 inch by 24 inch area
until we reach a point where the total average par
is no more than 15% of the total average par
from the start, meeting a 15 percent threshold
for light efficiency, shining outside of the tank.
For this test, we start with the A 360X
with narrow 55-degree reflector mounted
at just six inches off the water and then,
raise the light up inch by inch testing par
in a grid of thirty six data points at six inches deep
in the tank.
What that looks like for the start
of the test six inches off the water is a super focused beam
of light entering the tank with a total average par
of 157 and is 617 par center four inch grid
that rapidly falls off out towards the edges
with an average 49 par in the outer ring.
That's a 568 average par difference
in between the center and outer edges
with the A 360Xs beam mangled being focused down
from 130 to 55 degrees and to put that into perspective
from our previous testing without the neural reflector,
at the same six inch mounting height
using the 130 degree lens, that center
to outer par ring difference was only 160 par.
This type of performance at six inches already shows
how a change in focus of 75 degrees to the beam angle
also changes what's normally a wider angle flood light
into a pretty intense spotlight.
From what we've learned over the past few months
of testing lights with similar spotlight qualities
is that in order for them to achieve ideal spread
and distribution in a 24 inch area, they need
to be mounted significantly higher.
So in that spirit,
we continue to test the narrow lens reflector,
inch by inch, looking for that optimal mounting height.
We found that BRS recommended optimal mounting height
to be right at 13 inches off the top of the water
or five inches higher then the Kessil A 360X
without the narrow reflector.
Comparing the wider angle A 360X at eight inches
versus the A 360X with narrow reflector at 13 inches,
we see the 130 degree A 360X on the left
and A 360X narrow beam on the right,
both showing total average par numbers within
just two par or 131 versus 129 respectively,
yet distributed differently.
But wider angle lens distributes the light more evenly,
whereas the narrow angle lens allows you
to achieve nearly similar results,
yet five inches higher off the water.
So looking at that nearly identical total average par
between the two, we've effectively
changed the Kessil A 360X from the right tool for the job
at eight inches into the right tool
for the job at 13 inches.
Driving this point home even further for those
of you considering mounting the 130 degree lens higher
than our recommended eight inches above the water,
we tested that super wide angle lens
at the same 13 inch mounting height
and found over a 32 percent loss of efficiency
because so much more light is spilling outside
of the 24-inch testing area.
Whereas the narrower beam maintains over 85% of the light
inside that same area, but does so again,
five inches higher off the water.
Because of these results, I'm going to jump straight
into rating first of our three questions today.
A 10 out of 10 reef certainty that we absolutely
can change the optimal mounting height of our lights
and maintain similar performance by focusing the lens
to a tighter beam angle.
Not every reef lighting solution has the ability to do this.
So kudos to Kessil for taking the knowledge
that they've gained from their sister brand, Fiilex
and the stage lighting industry and turning
that knowledge into an opportunity for us reefers
to have more control over customizing our reef lighting
into solutions that are more tailorable to something
that meets our needs.
But we aren't done yet.
We still have two more questions that need to be answered,
so let's move on to that second question and find out
if narrowing the beam angle will allow us
to achieve higher par in those smaller areas.
For example, those reefers trying to light areas smaller
than 24 by 24 inches, but don't want a ton of light spill
outside of their tank or for reefers
with unique lighting needs for spotlight higher par
inside the tank.
As you might have guessed, answering this question
is as simple as comparing the 130 degree wide angle lens
versus the narrower 55 degree
at the same eight inch mounting height off the top
of the water in our 24 inch area.
Looking at both beam angle side by side, it's plain to see
that indeed the 55-degree narrow reflector focuses
more light into a tighter area
with 268 more par concentrated in the center.
However, the 130 degree lens spreads the light out further
towards the outer edges with a 32 par higher average
in the outer ring, right near the edges of the tank.
This narrowing of the beam to accomplish higher par
in a smaller area is also demonstrated in the differences
in total average par with the A 360X wide-angle at 129
in the A 360X narrow angle at 153.
Meaning that in a 24 inch area,
the narrow beam retains more average par inside the tank,
rather than spilling into the surrounding room.
This is also something you can see with the naked eye
where unlike almost all other LEDs out there
with the narrower lens reflector attached,
not only does it keep lights spillage to a minimum,
but it's also not blinded you from a sitting position
at these higher mounting heights.
However, the performance of a narrow beam angle does come
at the cost of creating a spotlight hot spot directly
under the light, which is fine for those reefers looking
to increase par in a tighter area, but probably more useful
to other reefers who are lighting a smaller tank
where the 130 degree lens just might be too wide
for the smaller tank footprint,
earning this second question,
another 10 out of 10 reef certainty.
Now, let's see the differences in par penetration
when we couple the A 360X with that 55 degree narrow lens,
starting with both, mounted at eight inches off the water
and testing a grid of par measurements 18 inches deep
in our 24 inch cube.
With 130 degree lens on the left,
there's an ultra flat distribution of 97, 99 and 96 par
in the center, middle and outer ring,
providing the entire area an overall average par of 97,
while the narrower 55 degree lens reflector on the right
is nearly double that in the center at 184
and has almost 30 more par total average
at the same 18 inches deep in the tank.
Thinking back to both lens performances near the top
of the tank when mounted at eight inches,
the drop in overall average par at six inches deep
to 18 inches deep is relatively close
where the 130 degree lens falls by an average par of 32.
And the 55 degree lens drops by 25 average par,
12 inches deeper in the tank.
Following the scale of average par drop-off in tanks deeper
than 24 inches, I'd expect to see similar results,
but with the narrow reflector here obviously,
upwards of 24% higher par at 18 inches deep.
Yet, does the same hold true fryer mounting heights
of 13 inches.
We mount the light 13 inches off the water
and see a pretty similar performance
where the 130 degree lens had an overall average par
of 87 in the top six inches of the tank.
But at 18 inches deep in the tank, only averages 65 par.
While the 55-degree narrow reflector averaged 131
in the top six inches and 106 near the bottom,
meaning 38% more par in the bottom of a 24 inch tall tank
at this higher 13 inch mounting height.
So this gives us our third 10 out of 10 reef certainty
for today's three questions most certainly
if you narrow the beam angle,
you can maintain higher par numbers deeper in the tank
using a spotlight over a wide angle floodlight.
My biggest takeaway from today's testing results
comes straight from that message that you hear Ryan
and I say all the time, which is the importance
of matching the right tool for the right job.
I wouldn't use a hammer when I needed to tighten a screw
and in that same frame of mind,
I wouldn't use a wide-angle floodlight
when I need a spotlight
and the higher mounting height opportunities
that come with it.
I will say again that this Kessil A 360X is the only light
that we've tested on "BRSTV Investigates"
that has an adjustable ideal mounting height
to match different reefers needs, giving you a range
of options from eight to 13 inches out the tank,
whereas all others have more fixed optimal mounting heights.
However, ideal mounting height is only one-third
of the equation for mastering any reef lighting option.
Whether it's this Kessil A 360X, another LED module brand,
T5 lights alone or really anything you choose
to put over the top of your tank.
To learn what those other two thirds
of mastering reef tank lighting equation are,
the answer is in this playlist right over here.