# Finnex 24/7 planted+



## morfeeis (Jan 15, 2015)

So i know this is an awkward question seeing the the product has yet to hit the market, but after looking at the other Finnex led's on this site i went ahead and put in my pre order for the 24/7 planted+. My question is, would one 48 inch model be enough for a 55 gallon planted tank? I will only plant jungle val, wisteria, moneywort, amazon sword and a few other lower light plants. 

I have a coralife 24" HO T5 on a 20G tall that seems to work well with the above mentioned plants and wanted to know if i could expect the same results? The reason i ask is with the T5 on my 20G tall i am pushing 2.4 watts per gallon, but with the 24/7 planted+ Finnex states on their site that it pushes 46 watts which is less than 1 watt per gallon. I know that leds are measured differently than that of other types of lights when it comes to their results with plants (i think). but will this work out ok or should i start looking at another setup to add to the 24/7?


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## Freemananana (Jan 2, 2015)

Yes, it should be enough. It will put out medium light to the substrate. However, the light cycle puts out less intense light throughout most of the day on that light. So you may have to use it the old fashion way with a timer if you want a longer photo period than the 24/7 cycle gives you.


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## anastasisariel (Oct 4, 2009)

For sure. The new model has nearly identical PAR than the original planted +
The fixture will be able to grow even more needy plants than the ones you listed. I have an HM carpet in my 75 gallon that is being grown by a standard 48" planted+ without co2 supplementation. The carpet is lush and sends up bubbles giving the illusion that I'm injecting co2. If you were to add a second light, you would be in the danger zone without co2, but I've used planted plus and a current satellight before without problems dosing excel.


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## mattinmd (Aug 16, 2014)

morfeeis said:


> Finnex states on their site that it pushes 46 watts which is less than 1 watt per gallon. I know that leds are measured differently than that of other types of lights when it comes to their results with plants (i think). but will this work out ok or should i start looking at another setup to add to the 24/7?


Yeah, WPG is silly... My heater consumes 150 watts in a 36 gallon, but doesn't grow plants very well even though it is over 4WPG .



> The new model has nearly identical PAR than the original planted +


I've been under the impression it is higher than the planted+, hitting 60 PAR on a 20-high (24" fixture at 16"), that's Ray2 turf...

That said, the 24/7 has a dimmer, so being too strong isn't a big deal if you use it without the 24/7 mode...


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## anastasisariel (Oct 4, 2009)

https://youtu.be/UJsYweqNtig


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## mattinmd (Aug 16, 2014)

Yes, that video is where I got the "60 PAR on a 20 high" number from...

That video is, at this point, the *ONLY* par data for the 24/7 out there, so any time anyone is discussing its par it comes from that video...

This will eventually change..

edit:
That said, the same source does have another video showing the Planted+ at ~57 PAR with the same meter and kind of tank...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vD7QaRzf1Qw

And the 24/7 is around 60-61 per the above, so I guess that is confirmation they are similar... 5% higher seems negligible...


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## anastasisariel (Oct 4, 2009)

Yes I'm aware of the other video also. Some believe the original planted+ will have a slight advantage due to the quality of its red leds. The planted+ is a huge seller and I'm sure they wanted similar par for the 24/7 which is a reason it wouldn't make sense to give it the par of a Ray 2. Not everyone can handle the Ray 2.


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## mattinmd (Aug 16, 2014)

Well, since the 24/7 has a dimming capacity, it wouldn't be a problem if it had Ray2 level PAR output.. if it is too much, just turn it down (assuming you're not using 24/7 mode).

And the same argument on the Ray2's par also applies to the Planted+.. Not all tanks can handle a Planted+ either (ie: shallow tanks like 20 long...)


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## MoreyFan (Jul 3, 2014)

The heatsink is of the lower quality Stingray correct? 

I wish I could compare it in person to the Current USA Satellite LED+ so I could see how tunable the color is.


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## mattinmd (Aug 16, 2014)

Well, quality is a subjective thing...

That said, from the pictures, and video reviews the 24/7 seems to be based on the same black aluminum body as the stingray, or some slightly modified version of it. It is possible they widened it a little bit as the 24/7 has 3 LEDs in each row, while the stingray only has one, but I don't think that they had to.

I own both a 30" planted+ and a 20" stingray, so I can compare the body designs of those competently, and you probably can at your own LFS too.

In terms of acting as a heatsink, the body of the planted+ has a lot more surface area, but it is unfortunately silver, not black. Without forced airflow, this is a major efficiency disadvantage, as it greatly reduces the emissivity of the surface. I don't think the old design has a huge advantage in total heat dissipation capacity.

I think the stingray is overall a more attractive package, being sleek and black, but that's also subjective. The Planted+ looks more solid, but realistically it just has a larger aluminum tube. The body of the fixture is essentially hollow with nothing significant in it, just the switches and a few wires going to the LED board. (yes, I have dismantled my planted+).


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## morfeeis (Jan 15, 2015)

Thank you all for your responses, I have been reading them but didn't have much to add. Just didn't want anyone to think I didn't appreciate their input......

PS: I so hope they release the 24\7 before may 15, it is painful looking at the USA led everyday while trying to wait for the 24/7.


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## mattinmd (Aug 16, 2014)

While I'd love for them to put it out sooner, I'd be very surprised if they were able to pull it off... Who knows, maybe they'll go out a couple days early, but I very much doubt they'll be significantly earlier than May 15.

As for the Current USA products.. well, I hate that too, but I also hate wishing the Sat+ had more PAR and the Sat+ Pro had a lower price tag.


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## mattinmd (Aug 16, 2014)

mattinmd said:


> Well, quality is a subjective thing...
> 
> That said, from the pictures, and video reviews the 24/7 seems to be based on the same black aluminum body as the stingray, or some slightly modified version of it. It is possible they widened it a little bit as the 24/7 has 3 LEDs in each row, while the stingray only has one, but I don't think that they had to.



Ok, going back to an older thread, since I made an inaccurate assumption here.

I can confirm the 24/7 chassis looks to be based on the same ideas as the stingray design, but it not the same.

For starters, the 24/7 is considerably wider, I'm guessing they did that to fit the electronics and/or improve heat dissipation:

24/7: 3 5/16" wide
stingray: 2" wide

Also, with the stingray the edges are thinner than the middle portion where the lights are. Thus, when viewed from the side you see an edge, then further in you see the edge of the light-cover sticking down a bit.

The 24/7 has edge segments that are as thick as the section holding the lights, so viewed from the edge you only see one surface, and in general the fit and finish is a bit different.

But the differences, beyond the width, are small refinements.


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## ichy (Apr 6, 2015)

I'm skeptical of the may 15th date. I think even Finnex confirmed that the dock strikes are holding things up...arggh I can't wait for mine either!


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## sindy777 (Apr 9, 2015)

I'm dying to get mine... I will be ordering mine this Friday but I really hope that they don't push the date again. I am super excited to get this light and waiting is killing me slowly haha.


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## mattinmd (Aug 16, 2014)

By the way, a few comparison shots between a 30" 24/7 and a 20" stingray.

Click thumbnails for larger...





Edit a few more shots:

Leds up close with metric scale (numbered marks are cm):



And here's the 30" 24/7, 30" planted+ and 20" stingray:


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## jeffkrol (Jun 5, 2013)

mattinmd said:


> By the way, a few comparison shots between a 30" 24/7 and a 20" stingray.
> 
> Click thumbnails for larger...
> 
> ...


How about the power supply specs? for curiosity's sake..


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## mattinmd (Aug 16, 2014)

The 30" 24/7 is using a 15v supply that operates in 110-240v input, just like the 30" planted+ does.

In fact, externally the power supply is nearly identical, other than being connectorized on the 24/7 with a screw-on locking connector. It still has the same short AC cord, same power brick casing with 3 stripes on the top, etc...

I haven't dissected the supplies to compare them internally yet.

Finnex also appears to still in the habit of labeling the power supply with the fixture's wattage. So the 30" 24/7 says the power supply is 29 watts (the 30" Planted+ is lower at 21w).


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## mattinmd (Aug 16, 2014)

So, I'm probably going to be working on tinkering with and doing experiments on the 24/7 over the next few days.. (In case anyone hasn't put 2&2 together, I now have a pre-release unit, the one pictured above)...

I intend to do some time-lapse recording to figure out how the PAR of the 24/7 mode varries over time on a more granular basis than the 3-hour interval measurements done by Aquarium Co-Op..

Anyone have any particular requests for information, tests or observations?


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## ichy (Apr 6, 2015)

:hihi:IR remote codes so we can start coding an Arduino controller?:hihi:


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## mattinmd (Aug 16, 2014)

Sure. I can probably do that tonight or over the weekend.

edit:
done, I put them over in the DIY forum where they probably belong:
http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/showthread.php?p=7826193


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## sindy777 (Apr 9, 2015)

Will the 24/7 be enough for a planted tank that is 20" high? Would this be considered high/medium/low light? I want my tank more for medium-high tech plant so would this light be sufficient or would I need another? The dimmable feature is awesome but if I need more light then I need to know before pre-ordering


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## mattinmd (Aug 16, 2014)

Well, I just started a 24-hour time lapse of the light with a PAR meter, so I can't really take any measurements right now..

That said, it was 60 PAR (on max) at 16" (on a 20-high) for Aquarium Co-op. I'm guessing it is going to be somewhere around 40-45 PAR at 18 inches.. that's solidly medium light, but not really pushing the high-light boundary (which is around 50).

If I don't post in-tank measurements by Saturday night, prod me again and I'll take some. My 36" bow is 20.8" high with 3-3.5" of substrate and I can do about 18.5" from light to substrate in that.

edit:

Also I can add one new PAR number to the mix.. I get 102 PAR at 7.5", in air with my hoppy 2015 meter

I chose the 7.5" height for my 24-hour time-lapse with PAR meter, as it sets "max" at close to 100 PAR, making it easy to treat the PAR readings as intensity percentages.

I also found that at more practical heights like 18", a large portion of the time-range just zeroed out on the PAR meter. Bringing it closer gives a bit more dynamic range to measure over.


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## ichy (Apr 6, 2015)

do you think this will hit high levels on a 20 long at about 12" to the substrate?


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## Phyzix (Mar 20, 2015)

Really appreciate the advance info while I wait on mine. 

Any thoughts on running the 30" 24/7 on the back with a planted+ on the front during peak hours? 29g tall tank so 18" height. 

Algae farm waiting to happen?


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## mattinmd (Aug 16, 2014)

ichy said:


> do you think this will hit high levels on a 20 long at about 12" to the substrate?



It hit high (60 par) on a at 16" on a 20h. It should easily go higher on a 20l at 12".


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## mattinmd (Aug 16, 2014)

Also, note that my 102 PAR at 7.5" above are measurements made in air... In-tank par at 7.5" will be higher because the air-water boundary bends light inward and focuses it more.

If you want to see how this works, try a refraction calculator:
http://scienceprimer.com/snells-law-refraction-calculator

For a 120 degree no-lens LED fixture, the angle of incidence at the edge of the light is 60 degrees (half of 120).

Air has a refractive index of 1.000293, but for that calculator can't go that many digits, so just use 1. Water has a refractive index of 1.333. When it hits the water, the light bends so it is now traveling at 40.6 degrees... So what was a 120 degree spread is now 81.2 degrees.


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## mattinmd (Aug 16, 2014)

Phyzix said:


> Really appreciate the advance info while I wait on mine.
> 
> Any thoughts on running the 30" 24/7 on the back with a planted+ on the front during peak hours? 29g tall tank so 18" height.
> 
> Algae farm waiting to happen?


I missed this one earlier...

I plan on doing something like this on my 36 bowfront, although I've got a dimmer on my planted+ and the 24/7 is dimmable...

If you've got CO2 injection, you'll probably be OK with both. If you're low tech, you probably can't have both going full bore for very long without getting algae problems..

That said, stay tuned for me doing planted+ with 24/7 in-tank tests over the next week or so...


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## Phyzix (Mar 20, 2015)

mattinmd said:


> I missed this one earlier...
> 
> I plan on doing something like this on my 36 bowfront, although I've got a dimmer on my planted+ and the 24/7 is dimmable...
> 
> ...


Look forward to it. Seems like the best of both worlds if it works.


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## morfeeis (Jan 15, 2015)

mattinmd said:


> Also, note that my 102 PAR at 7.5" above are measurements made in air... In-tank par at 7.5" will be higher because the air-water boundary bends light inward and focuses it more.
> 
> If you want to see how this works, try a refraction calculator:
> http://scienceprimer.com/snells-law-refraction-calculator
> ...


So with the 48" model on a 55 gallon with 17-18 to the substrate would this light cause my tank to become high or medium? i saw that you said the 24/7 hit a 60 par and 50 par is the limit of high (or am i as lost as i think i am?).

Bump:


ichy said:


> I'm skeptical of the may 15th date. I think even Finnex confirmed that the dock strikes are holding things up...arggh I can't wait for mine either!


Just got a response from Finnex and thought i'd share.....



> Hello Lenny,
> Thanks for your preorder. Yes, that strike delayed all of our products, including our new 24/7. We do have a very limited supply of the 24/7's in stock now, but we are still waiting for the parts to complete the lights.
> Hopefully the parts will arrive soon, and we can ship the completed lights to Amazon.
> 
> ...


http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/showpost.php?p=7798514&postcount=13

So it looks like a few units may be going out but they may not have enough to fill all preorders....


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## mattinmd (Aug 16, 2014)

morfeeis said:


> So with the 48" model on a 55 gallon with 17-18 to the substrate would this light cause my tank to become high or medium? i saw that you said the 24/7 hit a 60 par and 50 par is the limit of high (or am i as lost as i think i am?).


Yeah, so a while ago back in March Finnex sent a 24" unit to Aquarium Co-op.

They did a quick video review of it, and in the review they stuck it on a 20-gallon high tank (16" deep) and stuck in an Apogee PAR meter. It was a store-tank with minimal substrate, no decor, etc.

In that setup, on MAX they got 60 PAR, which is high light... They also tried out a few other settings and measured those.

This post has that video:
http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/showpost.php?p=7517673&postcount=29

In the top post of the page below, Freemananana transcribed most of the results of the video into a table: http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/showthread.php?t=821505&page=7

I'm pretty sure they measured the "all red' "all blue" and "all green" modes too, but those aren't in the table.


However, I'm not sure how different models of 24/7 "scale up" their PAR with length. Since I'm not sure of that, I'm not sure if the 48" length will be enough to keep it in high-light territory when you increase the distance from 16" to 18"... I suspect it will be.


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## mattinmd (Aug 16, 2014)

FYI, I just finished my time-lapse video and uploaded it to Youtube...

edit: here's the fixed URL after re-uploading the video...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J10MIv4YIXI

Conditions:
30" pre-release 24/7 fixture in 24/7 mode. 
2015 model Hoppy DIY PAR meter in frame at 7.5"
Distance chosen to set max light level at 100 PAR
White balance set to neutral and locked to prevent camera from adjusting out color difference.
Exposure locked and set to 48 ISO and 1/20sec, in part to expose actual scale of brightness, and in part to prevent flicker-aliasing as the fixture dims.
Time lapse of 2 exposures per minute, rendered at 30fps.
Shots taken in dark closet to prevent stray light interference.
Time stamp in corner of frame aligned with the fixture's sense of time (I set the fixture to 12am and the camera to 12am right before starting the shoot).


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## ichy (Apr 6, 2015)

can't wait to see it!


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## mattinmd (Aug 16, 2014)

No need to wait anymore... All fixed.


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## rebelbuck1993 (Sep 3, 2014)

So if you would be kind sir what is the par at 18" from the light? And what is the par at 18" with 6in off center i am debating on this light or a BML custom for my 75g


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## ichy (Apr 6, 2015)

argggghhh just watched it..now I want it tomorrow! LOL.

Nice work and thanks so much for all the work you have put in on this light!


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## birbaliktanki (Jun 18, 2014)

mattinmd said:


> Yeah, so a while ago back in March Finnex sent a 24" unit to Aquarium Co-op.
> 
> They did a quick video review of it, and in the review they stuck it on a 20-gallon high tank (16" deep) and stuck in an Apogee PAR meter. It was a store-tank with minimal substrate, no decor, etc.
> 
> ...


nice work!


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## mattinmd (Aug 16, 2014)

rebelbuck1993 said:


> So if you would be kind sir what is the par at 18" from the light? And what is the par at 18" with 6in off center i am debating on this light or a BML custom for my 75g


So, I'm using a 30" fixture.. a 48" like you stick on a 75G may be higher..

Regardless, I made a few in-tank measurements.. be aware that these are far from optimal. Due to plants, center braces and other non-transparent objects, I measured these about 8" from the left edge. It's where I have a fairly clear spot in my tank and could get the highest readings.

I also had to take all my readings lightly off center due to a willow hygro putting itself in the way. 



```
depth/offset    1"     6"
        12" -   75
        16" -   65
        18" -   48    45 
        20" -   45    40
```


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## mattinmd (Aug 16, 2014)

birbaliktanki said:


> nice work!



Well, that video with the person talking about the fixture and measuring par in tank is not mine. That is aquarium co-op.. (Who did do an awesome job)

My video is the time lapse with no sound measuring par over time in air.


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## rebelbuck1993 (Sep 3, 2014)

mattinmd said:


> So, I'm using a 30" fixture.. a 48" like you stick on a 75G may be higher..
> 
> Regardless, I made a few in-tank measurements.. be aware that these are far from optimal. Due to plants, center braces and other non-transparent objects, I measured these about 8" from the left edge. It's where I have a fairly clear spot in my tank and could get the highest readings.
> 
> ...


thank you this is all i needed to know to get a feel of the par i would be looking at for that depth, and it looks like med to high lighting would be where i am at so that is perfect if i go this route,


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## Phyzix (Mar 20, 2015)

Thanks for the vid!


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## mattinmd (Aug 16, 2014)

Last night I extracted the data in 15 minute increments and graphed it..

You can find that posted over in the Finnex vendor thread (cross-linking to avoid reposting):

http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/showpost.php?p=7839081&postcount=209


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## The_Perrycox (Mar 19, 2015)

Thanks for the videos! Just ordered a 30" for my upcoming 20l high tech project. Your video solidified my decision! Will be interesting to compare to my 36" Sat + Pro


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## crazy4fids (Dec 3, 2014)

Anybody preorder one of these from Amazon? Anyvody get theirs yet? Ichecked the status of my order and they are "currently out of stock".


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## agro (Nov 29, 2013)

The_Perrycox said:


> Thanks for the videos! Just ordered a 30" for my upcoming 20l high tech project. Your video solidified my decision! Will be interesting to compare to my 36" Sat + Pro


Spread is not as good as sat+pro and think the penetration would be better but for half the cost @12" it does a lot that the pro can't do.


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## The_Perrycox (Mar 19, 2015)

After speaking with Amazon support, it seems the strike has affected their inventory. My estimated ship date isn't until Thursday, July 2 =(


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## grizzly_a (Sep 9, 2014)

The_Perrycox said:


> After speaking with Amazon support, it seems the strike has affected their inventory. My estimated ship date isn't until Thursday, July 2 =(


Ditto. Just got confirmation from Amazon they delayed the shipping date. Very dissapointing...I was looking forward to getting it tomorrow!


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## megaman987 (Mar 27, 2015)

surprisingly I got mine a on Monday now i just need plants -_-


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## sindy777 (Apr 9, 2015)

Well I'm glad you have yours.. I haven't even gotten an estimated date... Just a notice of the delay... I'm super bummed right now... Hopefully I'll get mine soon. Good luck everyone and I'm happy for those of you that did get it.. Give us updates on how yours is doing with your tanks so we can know what to look forward to.


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## Mikeygmzmg (Mar 19, 2015)

Dude I hope that July 2nd date is way off. I really want this thing sooner, I returned one of my Ray 2's to get it!


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## Lowe (Nov 11, 2011)

Mikeygmzmg said:


> Dude I hope that July 2nd date is way off. I really want this thing sooner, I returned one of my Ray 2's to get it!












We've hired extra help to get more inventory to Amazon locations to make up for their miscalculated release date. :wink:


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## Kindafishy (Jan 14, 2015)

Mine came yesterday. I have to say, It doesn't seem as bright as I expected. I got lucky enough to buy one of Hoppy's newest PAR meters and will try to get some readings this week. I hope mine isn't a bad unit that needs replacement.

I have replaced a Beamswork pent light with the 24/7. The Finnex does give much better color rendering to my red plants.


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## fishbone11 (Sep 11, 2014)

Kindafishy said:


> Mine came yesterday. I have to say, It doesn't seem as bright as I expected. I got lucky enough to buy one of Hoppy's newest PAR meters and will try to get some readings this week. I hope mine isn't a bad unit that needs replacement.
> 
> I have replaced a Beamswork pent light with the 24/7. The Finnex does give much better color rendering to my red plants.


My thoughts too. My 24/7 (36", 38gal) replaced a Coralife twin 96w cfl and the tank now looks dim.
I had the light period dialdin in on the cfl, but 24/7 seems like the on-time wil have to be increased a lot.
Even if I get the Finex dialed in, the plants in the tank look dingy.
Disappointed!


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## mattinmd (Aug 16, 2014)

Neither of those brightness differences should be surprising.. 

196 watts of compact fluorescent over 36" is a *LOT* of light.. Even though coralife fixtures are notoriously inefficient with poor spacing around the reflectors, and LEDs are very efficient, the coralife is still 5.47 times more wattage than the Planted 24/7 (36" model is 35.8w)... 

Usually the rule-of-thumb between LED and fluorescent is LED is equal brightness to a fluorescent somewhere between 2 and 3 times as many watts.. In this case I'd stretch that to 4 times.. but almost 5.5? I'd be shocked if it could compete unless you had bare bulbs with no reflectors on the fluorescent.

Similarly the Beamsworks Pent fixtures should also much higher output.. the 36" model there is 65w of pure LED, up against the 24/7's 35.8w.. Sure efficiencies come into play, but the Beamswork has an 81% higher wattage going on. Is the 24/7 going to be almost twice as efficient? doubtful.

The 24/7 is at the low-end of high light on 16" deep tanks (60ish PAR), and distinctly medium light on deeper ones. In my tests it comes in only slightly ahead of my Planted+, and isn't a powerhouse like a Ray2 would be.

If you've got high light on a deep tank (18"+) don't expect a 24/7 to have similarly impressive light levels. It is a nice fixture and all, and way brighter than a Sat+, but it is not *that* bright.


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## fishbone11 (Sep 11, 2014)

Thanks Matt, for the above info and the earlier tests posted.
From what you said, it seems I'll be ok.
My substrate is at 16" deep.
With the CFL I ran 4hrs on, 3 off, and 3 on, for a total of 7 hrs on.
The 24/7 is set for 4 / 3 / 3 1/2, for a total of 7 1/2 hrs on.
I'll watch and see what happens.
As I understand, the 24/7 feature will not provide 7 hours of full light.


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## Edub (Mar 23, 2011)

Mine will not be shipped until sometime in June they say. I'm hoping the plants I ordered in anticipation of receiving this fixture can hang on until then haha.


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## mattinmd (Aug 16, 2014)

fishbone11 said:


> As I understand, the 24/7 feature will not provide 7 hours of full light.


You are correct, it's only at actual full power for a very short period of time, something like 30 minutes...

At a 7-hour span (10am-5pm) it is starting off and ending up somewhere near 40%. I got 43 at 10am and 40 at 5pm (17:00).

I attached a quarter-hour interval measurement of PAR (with max at 100) over here:
http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/showpost.php?p=7847849&postcount=222

You could average all the numbers from 10am to 7pm together to get an average level... it's probably somewhere around 80, because the middle part is a bit flat-topped.


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## Kindafishy (Jan 14, 2015)

Are the plastic legs rather fixed in position? When I put them on, I can only slide them in a short distance. Unfortunately, this distance is a little longer than my tank. I don't want to push too hard and break something.


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## mattinmd (Aug 16, 2014)

I can play with it a bit tonight, but I recall they do stick quite a bit, but do eventually move inward...


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## sindy777 (Apr 9, 2015)

They just sent me an email stating that my light is suppose to be shipped sometime between June 17th-July 28th!!! This sucks!!! Oh well... I hope it's worth the wait because I'm dying to add plants and fish to my tank.. By then my tank should be fully cycled.. Hahaha


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## mattinmd (Aug 16, 2014)

Kindafishy said:


> Are the plastic legs rather fixed in position? When I put them on, I can only slide them in a short distance. Unfortunately, this distance is a little longer than my tank. I don't want to push too hard and break something.


Ok, so I played with it, and they do move inward fully:



One of my legs was able to slide in pretty easily, but one of them stuck and took a bit of working it to get it moving.. I'm wondering if something was stuck in the track (glob of paint?), because it now moves more easily...


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## Kindafishy (Jan 14, 2015)

Thanks for that, Matt. I'll play with mine tomorrow.


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## Freemananana (Jan 2, 2015)

It is a great light, but depending on depth, you may have to substitute additional lighting during the day to get the par and photo period you want. The 24/7 mode is incredibly cool though.


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## rebelbuck1993 (Sep 3, 2014)

Anyone know if this one gives better spread than the planted plus? Wider par area? I know the width on my 36" planted plus is only about a good growing area of 12" at 18" high


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## HolyAngel (Oct 18, 2010)

rebelbuck1993 said:


> Anyone know if this one gives better spread than the planted plus? Wider par area? I know the width on my 36" planted plus is only about a good growing area of 12" at 18" high


I'm pretty sure they're both the same 120 degree optics, so should be the same spread.. I don't have either one yet though so can't be positive.


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## mattinmd (Aug 16, 2014)

HolyAngel said:


> I'm pretty sure they're both the same 120 degree optics, so should be the same spread.. I don't have either one yet though so can't be positive.


Actually, the spread is a *little* bit better.. Even though the optics are still 120 degree, the 24/7 stands taller above the tank on its legs than the planted+ does. Mind you this isn't a huge increase in height, maybe an inch, but it does help.

And despite it standing a tad taller, I register slightly more PAR out of the 24/7 on MAX than I do out of the Planted+.


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## rebelbuck1993 (Sep 3, 2014)

mattinmd said:


> Actually, the spread is a *little* bit better.. Even though the optics are still 120 degree, the 24/7 stands taller above the tank on its legs than the planted+ does. Mind you this isn't a huge increase in height, maybe an inch, but it does help.
> 
> And despite it standing a tad taller, I register slightly more PAR out of the 24/7 on MAX than I do out of the Planted+.


is the width of the units the same where led's are placed? wondering if it will give me better coverage than the planted plus for my 75g


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## jeffkrol (Jun 5, 2013)

mattinmd said:


> Actually, the spread is a *little* bit better.. Even though the optics are still 120 degree, the 24/7 stands taller above the tank on its legs than the planted+ does. Mind you this isn't a huge increase in height, maybe an inch, but it does help.
> 
> And despite it standing a tad taller, I register slightly more PAR out of the 24/7 on MAX than I do out of the Planted+.


Every 1" higher increases cone of light diameter by 3.5 inches approx. @ 120 degrees
1" above water = 3.5" cone
2" = 7"
3" = 10.4"
4" = 13.8" approx...
also note light falloff is fairly large and not exactly linear, so near the edges of the cone is relatively "dim"...









http://archive.luxmagazine.co.uk/2012/05/efficacy-explained/

fun w/ optics:
http://www.ledgroupbuy.com/choosing-the-right-optic/


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## mattinmd (Aug 16, 2014)

jeffkrol said:


> Every 1" higher increases cone of light diameter by 3.5 inches approx. @ 120 degrees


True, although a bit simplified since the cone doesn't stay 120 degrees.. 

Once it hits the water it bends inward to become 81 degrees. Thus, distance above water has a greater impact that distance below water.



jeffkrol said:


> also note light falloff is fairly large and not exactly linear, so near the edges of the cone is relatively "dim"...


It isn't linear with distance, but is linear with surface area covered. Thus PAR varies with distance squared (with some multiplier based on light cone angle, etc).

Ever notice that all of hoppy's curves have a 1/x^2 type shape to them?
http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/showthread.php?t=184368


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## jeffkrol (Jun 5, 2013)

mattinmd said:


> True, although a bit simplified since the cone doesn't stay 120 degrees..
> 
> Once it hits the water it bends inward to become 81 degrees. Thus, distance above water has a greater impact that distance below water.


agreed, the tank/water interface "focuses" the light some..Point was 1" up does make a fairly large difference to overall surface coverage..Once in the water things do change.


mattinmd said:


> It isn't linear with distance, but is linear with surface area covered. Thus PAR varies with distance squared (with some multiplier based on light cone angle, etc).
> 
> Ever notice that all of hoppy's curves have a 1/x^2 type shape to them?
> http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/showthread.php?t=184368


Actually due to the multiple light sources, refraction and reflection, the slope is fairly linear and not really adhering to the distance squared "rule"..
http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/showthread.php?p=7879657&highlight=#post7879657



> A long tubular light source - like a T5 bulb - doesn't work like a point source when you are trying to estimate how far to move it to reduce the intensity a given amount. When you measure PAR close to a tubular bulb, only the portion directly above the sensor adds any light. But, as you raise the bulb, more of the bulb is adding light, so it partly offsets the reduction in PAR. This makes the PAR drop at a rate closer to directly proportional to the distance instead of to the square of the distance


holds fairly good for small tight emitters..


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## rebelbuck1993 (Sep 3, 2014)

what i am trying to ask is if the lights are spread out more giving better par from the light width wise than the planted plus, say if the planted plus is good for growing things 5in out the 24/7 is good for things 7in out from the source?


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## mattinmd (Aug 16, 2014)

rebelbuck1993 said:


> what i am trying to ask is if the lights are spread out more giving better par from the light width wise than the planted plus, say if the planted plus is good for growing things 5in out the 24/7 is good for things 7in out from the source?


To summarize everything above: Yes, the 24/7 spreads out better.

Since I own both lights, I can do some specific in-tank measurements if I have time, but I'm not sure when that will be.


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## rebelbuck1993 (Sep 3, 2014)

mattinmd said:


> To summarize everything above: Yes, the 24/7 spreads out better.
> 
> Since I own both lights, I can do some specific in-tank measurements if I have time, but I'm not sure when that will be.


no worry if you get time that would be awesome and good info for people but if not now i know,


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## crazy4fids (Dec 3, 2014)

I have had my 36" finnex 24/7 light for five days now (Its on a 29 gallon). I definately see an improvement in plant growth. I will be scaping it with a larger variety of plants to see what I can grow.

I love the narrow profile and will be purchasing one for my 10 gallon shrimp tank. It currently has a marineland LED on it. Everytime I want to open it, I have to slide the light back, then reposition it for best light coverage. I think the 24/7 wii fit perfect!.
The most difficult part about setting up the 24/7 was removing the plastic piece to make the bracket fit to my rimmed tank. However, they are well built and quite durable! You have to use a mighty bit of force to get them to slide off. I thought I was going to break them before I could even use the light.
One insomnia night, I was in the spare bedroom playing around with the remote light settings. Suprisingly, the fish really didn't seem to be bothered by the "thunder" setting.
I'm contemplating getting one for my 90 gallon, howerer with the depth of it, I don't think it would be much better than what I have now.


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## rebelbuck1993 (Sep 3, 2014)

a 90g tank should have a ray2 for the depth


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## crazy4fids (Dec 3, 2014)

rebelbuck1993 said:


> a 90g tank should have a ray2 for the depth


I'll look into the Ray2. However we do enjoy the auto of the current light we have as well as the moonlight.


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