(knocking on table)
- Are we going?
- Yeah, yeah.
- Hey, it's Thomas and I'm about to answer
the five most frequently asked questions
about Kessil's A360X Tuna Blue,
starting with how many Kessil A360X do you need?
Thanks to all of the extensive testing that we've done
we have a very clear path to successfully lighting
a reef tank using Kessil A360X lights.
If your goal is LPS and soft corals
with a target par range between 75 to 150 par,
a single A360X
for every two feet by two feet by two feet area
will get the job done.
For those who want an SPS dominated reef,
you'll want two A360X fixtures
for every two by two by two foot area,
which works out to four fixtures
over a four foot by two foot by two foot tank.
How high should I mount the Kessil A360X?
Based on our testing,
the best mounting height for a Kessil A360X
is right around eight inches
off of the surface of the water,
which provides the most even spread of par
with minimal light spill.
With that said,
if you'd like a higher mounting height,
by using Kessil's 55 degree reflector,
the recommended mounting height increases to
13 inches off of the surface of the water
while also creating a slightly higher par zone
in the center of the tank,
which can be an advantage for those looking to create
a mixed reef with SPS, LPS and soft corals,
providing various par zones to accommodate
each type of coral.
So where you should mount it kind of depends
on how much room you'd like
between the light and the surface of the water
and what kind of corals or reef tank
you're planning on keeping,
but ultimately, either that eight inch height
or the 55 degree reflector at a 13 inch height
works very well.
Can a Kessil A360X grow SPS?
Absolutely!
And while you won't be hitting
those higher par numbers for SPS
using a single A360X on a two foot cube tank,
you can either use a pair of A360X fixtures
on that cube to achieve those SPS numbers,
or you can pair your A360X up
with a T5 or LED hybrid fixture,
like an Aquatic Life or a Reef Bright X series.
And not only hit those SPS numbers,
but also greatly reduce shadowing between corals
and even within the individual coral branches.
This gets you the best of both worlds,
Kessil's halide-like shimmer
and wide blue spectrum,
plus lots of fill light and a boost in par.
However,
if you're looking at a nano tank,
like a 18 inch cube or a 12 inch cube,
a single A360X,
especially if you throw on that 55 degree reflector
to keep all of the light inside of the tank,
you're definitely going to be able to hit
some SPS numbers,
you could probably go SPS dominated,
or even just a really nice mixed reef
with a lot of SPS involved.
So, possible with a single light,
just on a smaller tank.
If you're going larger than that,
previous recommendations apply.
How do I program a Kessil dongle for my A360X?
Once you've got your A360X mounted to your tank
and plugged into power,
you can then install the wifi dongle,
download the Kessil wifi app to your smart device,
create an account and log in.
The app will walk you through
setting up your wifi dongle.
Once it's connected,
you can set up a spectrum and schedule.
At the bottom of the screen,
tap on 'Group' and you'll see your A360X
under the default group.
You can leave it there,
or you can create and name a new group for your aquarium
by tapping the plus button at the bottom right,
type in the name,
then press the back arrow at the top left
and you'll get a prompt to save the new group.
Swipe over to the default group.
Then drag up the list of available groups
from the bottom of the screen,
and you'll see your custom group.
Tap and hold the A360X icon
and you can drag it from the default group
down to your custom group.
Then, find your custom group by swiping over to it,
and then tap 'Mode' at the bottom of the screen.
You can now swipe up from the bottom and click
preset 'Tuna Blue' to use Kessil's preset schedule.
If you want to customize your Kessil schedule,
you can start by tapping 'Add Program'.
You can either start from the default template
or from a blank template.
Starting with the default template
is definitely the easiest.
From there you can tap on the various points
to adjust their time,
as well as spectrum and intensity.
You can also save your preferred spectrum
and intensity profile at the bottom,
and then click the colored dot to load in that spectrum
in other points of the schedule.
Naturally you can add or delete points of a schedule
as you see fit.
Once you're all done,
tap the back arrow in the top left corner
and you'll get a prompt to save your schedule
and your wifi dongle enabled A360X
is all programmed and ready to go.
Are Kessil lights worth it?
In my humble opinion,
as well as the opinion of many reefers, I'm sure,
who have created jaw-dropping reef tanks
under Kessil lighting,
yeah, they're absolutely worth it.
And there's a number of reasons why.
First off, they have what is widely considered
to be the best shimmer of any LED light out there
with zero color separation and big dramatic caustic lines,
which are the closest to that legendary metal halide shimmer
of any LED that's out there currently.
They also have a fantastic spectrum
with a nice wide blue band
that has been proven to gross show quality coral colonies.
They are uniquely able to be mounted
at different mounting heights
to accommodate a range of setups,
there are actually two optional lenses,
the 55 degree I showed earlier,
as well as a 35 degree,
which goes even higher.
Kessil Logic's another great feature that comes to mind,
it's their method of allowing you to control the spectrum
of the light,
making it virtually impossible
for you to accidentally get it wrong.
You can tune the color of the light
to what looks best to your eye
and know that their Kessil Logic
is keeping the color or spectrum
in a range that is designed to grow corals,
whether you prefer it really blue
or very white, or somewhere in the middle.
On that note, Kessil's onboard controls
make it a super simple light to work with
if you want to keep things super basic.
You can turn one knob to adjust the color,
the other knob to adjust the intensity,
and then plug it into a simple timer
to turn it on and off.
On the other hand,
if you prefer all the control features,
you can also pair it with the wifi dongle
for full app control.
I mean, it can even be controlled
through a Neptune Systems Apex
using their IOTA wifi, right in the Fusion app,
so you have lots of control options.
You can use whatever suits your style of reefing best.
Kessil also has a range of A360X lights,
so if you want your reef tank,
as well as your macroalgae display
and your Refugium light all within the same app,
you can easily do that.
And being one of the most popular reef LEDs out there,
there are also many options for add-ons,
so if you want to add a T5 hybrid
or even an LED hybrid,
rest assured your A360X will be compatible
with popular brands like Aquatic Life and Reef Bright.
And most importantly, they grow gorgeous corals.
Many BRS tanks have used Kessils
and did really well under them.
A great example being the ULM tanks
and the WWC Hybrid E170.
It's really hard to deny those results.
And if results like those happen to match
your reefing mantra,
you can pick up an A360X for yourself
by clicking right here.