# Setting AI Prime Freshwater



## Dakrisht

Just received the AI Prime Freshwater light.

A bit buggy at first but seems to be working well now.

The app isn't the most intuitive out there; no user guide and/or tips on how to set various LED values, schedules, or timers but you get most of it eventually after tinkering around. The app also has issues with connecting to the light. I'll do a full write up on the light a bit later as I learn and understand it better.

I've read up on PAR values here on the forum and was wondering on how you guys would setup the spectrum for this light for a planted tank?

AI claims a max PAR of 86µMol with a spread of 24" x 24"

Attached is a screenshot of the various LED settings within the app.

From what I understand, plants don't absorb light / photosynthesize in certain wavelengths and prefer the blue / red ends of the spectrum.

A good primer on light is here: Lighting Spectrum and Photosythesis - Lighting - Aquatic Plant Central

So it appears to me that a combination of 1) red / blue light (for optimal photosynthesis) and 2) a touch of green / white light for purely aesthetic reasons is the best recipe.

Oddly enough, ADA doesn't even emit much red spectrum on their Aquasky G here: AQUASKY G - Advanced LED grow light | ADA - LIGHTING SYSTEM

Let's discuss!


----------



## Dakrisht

Friendly bump


----------



## Breaking_betta

Following. I just received my AI Prime Freshwater. The app is problematic but once I switched to using a laptop it was a lot easier. The amount of control you have over the lights and timing is incredible. It amazes me that more electronics don't have this type of controls (AC, lights, etc etc...)
Unfortunately the stand did not arrive with the light so, I'm waiting on that. I'm interested in any advice on settings for this. I already programmed the timer to gradually come on for 4 hours/ off for 2 hours/ and on again for 4. I skipped any moonlight, but I might add it in for an hour later once I figure out the setting more.

Back to the app... I accidentally clicked the wrong network name and the app refused to stop searching for the wrong network. I quit the app, turned off my phone for several minutes, then deleted the app. When I selected my light again after reinstalling the app went right back to searching for a neighbors network. That is when I switched to the laptop. I did contact support and they answered with a suggested solution the next day. I have not followed the advice yet but will try this weekend. 

If anyone is interested, I'm using this over an eight gallon aquarium. 
(yes, it's overkill but this light had all the features I wanted in a light) 
(yes, I heard about this on the King of DIY videos)


----------



## jeffkrol

run the color you like and at the intensity your tank can take.
Ramp up the warm whites first for sunset.. last for sunrise.. Add a bit of red if you want.

Prefer cyan for moonlight so a bit of blue/green if you want it.. 

Just minor suggestions. Fun is playing..


----------



## Spiffyfish

Please do update this I'm wanting to buy two of them but trying to see how people like them first.


----------



## smurfz

Thanks for sharing the article!! I have two Prime HD (older non-plant) over a 50g high tech tank. I was struggling with algae, and it seems like I have a new option to try.

In the article this helped me with my lighting logic below:









So, here is my new lighting plan:

1. UV LED is likely 340um. So that would have been feeding nothing but both phyco's -> turning that off totally.
2. Violet LED is likely 420um. So that will start feeding both chlorophyll. So I will leave it on at 70%.
3. Royal Blue LED is likely be 450um, which would be peak absorption wavelength for chlorophyll. Push this to 100%.
4. Blue LED is likely be around 475-480um. This only helps Carotene. Turning it off.
5. Green LED 570um. OFF!!
6. Deep Red LED 660um. Good for both chlorophylls. 100%.
7. Cool white LED. This has a wide range spectrum (obviously), and includes wuite a hump of green range. Turning it off and rely on the above targeted LEDs.

(Above LED spectrums weren't from AI, as I couldn't find any info. But AFAIK, most LEDs share the same spectrum due to semiconductor chemistry. So they should be right)










Other tank details:
- both lights are 25cm above the water
- Light schedule 7am 4h-on, 5h-off, 4.5h-on.
- During the day, the tank gets some natural (non-direct light)
- 50g : 90x45x45cm
- CO2 bottle : 2-3 bpm
- daily flourish excel dose: 2-3ml
- daily chelated iron (except for mid week flourish)
- weekly 50% water change
- mid week flourish dose: 3ml

I will give this a go for a while and report back.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Oh BTW, it looks terrible. But I will test it.









With all LEDs on, looks like this:










Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


----------



## Breaking_betta

I think the capabilities of the light, app, wifi connection control and overall controls are incredible. I was willing to pay a lot for the light to simplify my lighting setup on this aquarium. I have it set and let it go through its cycle now. I still need to get the color and amount of light where it needs to be but I'm getting closer. 

I will say I finally got the stand (bracket version) and I think it sucks. The mounting clamp is huge and I personally think it's ridiculous that there are no rubber grips to prevent scratching the aquarium. My tank is frameless and this bar would easily scratch glass. I decided to clamp the light stand on a board between the wall and the aquarium stand until I come up with a better setup.


----------



## Bfishy

Any disco effect with this light?


----------



## Spiffyfish

Any pictures?


----------



## Barleysoda

I have two of these. I like using the app and the ability to change colors but the warm white LEDs on this light is way too much for me. I always hear many planted tank people say they like the warmer white in 6700k areas but I cant stand the look. With the AI prime FW it seems to be so yellow and washed out that you cant hardly even see into the tank. Its so washed out and no definition. Makes the water look dirty. When I run just the cool white Led's then its nice and clear and everything pops including the fish if I keep the blue and red turned up too. With just the cool whites running I can see all the different shades of green in the plants. With the warm whites also running then all I see is piss yellow everything. Its like I planted everything into a giant beer.

I run both warm and cool whites at 100% during the day while I'm at work so that the plants can have more light but then I have the warms slowly come down in late afternoon and eventually 0 by around 7pm when I am usually around looking at it. 

I run one on each end of a 180 gallon and two finnex stingrays in the middle over a large wood piece heavily planted with lower light Anubias. High light plants on the end thirds and the middle 3rd is low light plants is what I am trying to say. Running Co2 with a Rex Grigg 4"x3ft reactor. Way too many bps to count, basically right between still seeing bubbles and not a solid stream. I blame it on my overflow and wet/dry set up.










trying to get photos on this site is a pain. I have moved things around since I posted this and wanted to post another picture but I see photobucket doesnt 3rd party host anymore and my original picture was pulled.


----------



## Breaking_betta

My plant grouping/placement is weak but it is a work in progress. I’m slowly taking out hairgrass and trying to decide what to put in the back left corner. Low tech at the moment but it is the day GLA brought back their paintball GRO regulator so that may change soon.


----------



## smurfz

Reporting back with the blue/red experiment on the effect of algae.
Algae grew better than my previous lighting plan.
I'm expecting this was the case because the intensity of the blue and reds were significantly greater than what I had before (all LEDs at 50%). Other plants grew well too.

Now the next natural step would be to just lower the brightness of the blue/red LEDs, but the look of the tank is so bad. So I've decided to introduce white and green LED a bit too.

The following is what I'm going to test for next week:

















The look of the tank is as follows: (top is all LEDs on and bottom is the new plan)










Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


----------



## Spiffyfish

Breaking_betta said:


> My plant grouping/placement is weak but it is a work in progress. I’m slowly taking out hairgrass and trying to decide what to put in the back left corner. Low tech at the moment but it is the day GLA brought back their paintball GRO regulator so that may change soon.


What are your settings with the light in these pictures? it is not at full intensity correct?


----------



## Breaking_betta

Spiffyfish said:


> What are your settings with the light in these pictures? it is not at full intensity correct?


I'll take a screen capture when I have time. I have the intensity at about 50%. It's only an low tech 8 gallon so I'm monitoring algae and plant growth closely before changing the intensity.


----------



## Spiffyfish

I'm just wondering because I have a 36×18×18 tank and trying to figure if 1 will be enough or if I'll need 2.


----------



## Breaking_betta

Spiffyfish said:


> I'm just wondering because I have a 36×18×18 tank and trying to figure if 1 will be enough or if I'll need 2.


Check on their site for information on the how far the light spreads. I think it’s 24 inches but I could be wrong. Unfortunately I think you would need two placed at a height to get a 18 inch spread. The app can control multiple lights so it should be easy to control them together. Multiple is where these really get expensive. I did it for one aquarium but I couldn’t afford all my tanks to have them. 

I hope they could make nano or bar lights in the future.


----------



## Barleysoda

Spiffyfish said:


> I'm just wondering because I have a 36×18×18 tank and trying to figure if 1 will be enough or if I'll need 2.


I think you will need two for a 3 foot tank unless you dont mind some dark areas on the ends. You would need the light at least 24"s above the substrate in order to get 24" spread on the substrate.


----------



## Dakrisht

Breaking_betta said:


> I will say I finally got the stand (bracket version) and I think it sucks. The mounting clamp is huge and I personally think it's ridiculous that there are no rubber grips to prevent scratching the aquarium. My tank is frameless and this bar would easily scratch glass. I decided to clamp the light stand on a board between the wall and the aquarium stand until I come up with a better setup.


Agree 100%

One of the worst and poorly engineered brackets I've seen in a while. Flimsy construction, poor attachment method to the AI light and the massive hard plastic without any padding is a killer. The almost 2" long screw that goes INSIDE the tank is also beyond idiotic, not to mention that even though the base has plenty of bulk the light is still not even that stable.

The bracket really kills the light, it's atrocious. Really big POS.

I'm thinking of either hanging it from the ceiling or mounting it on the wall with the arm extending out towards the tank.


----------



## Dakrisht

Something to note for people reading this thread:

The Prime Freshwater has different LEDs than user @smurfz posts.

Not sure any of those posts are relevant to this thread as Prime *Freshwater* users (if they exist) do not have UV, Royal Blue Or Violet LEDs!


----------



## Spiffyfish

Anyone have updates on these lights? Plant growth, etc?


----------



## tmann51

What I'm looking for are actual settings for AI Prime HD Freshwater that are successfully being used to grow plants with minimal algae growth. I'm also aware that that the Freshwater version has not been available for very long and such information may not be out there in the hobby, but it don't hurt to see what people know that has verifiable results. I've ordered the fixture and have researched information on the app, I just don't want to "reinvent the wheel" if I don't have to. Dakrisht was the only poster that had a screen shot for the Freshwater light, others are from the Prime HD Marine (I believe). While the settings are roughly the same there are fewer colors on the Freshwater light. My experience has been with T5's, I'd used 2 Giesemann PowerChrome Tropic (6500K) and 2 Giesemann PowerChrome Super Flora (Grow light), all of these were 24 watt tubes. The 6500K was white full spectrum. My guess on the Super Flora was blue and red. We'll see if I get any bites on this info. Thanks


----------



## jeffkrol

first, best get up to speed a bit...


> *From what I understand, plants don't absorb light / photosynthesize in certain wavelengths and prefer the blue / red ends of the spectrum.*


Errr... not quite..
Lighting Theory of a Planted Aquarium- RQE/PFY- PAR, PAS, & PUR


> Section Summary
> The PAS graph shows the two spectrums absorbed for the plant growing process of Chlorophyll a & b. The RQE/YPF graph shows the total light used through the entire Photosynthesis process, as oppose to the light, which starts the action of Photosynthesis.
> 
> Blue and Red light is responsible for the action of Photosynthesis. Greens and yellows are not used in this process as seen in the PAS graph.
> 
> Green and yellows are shown in RQE/PFY Mcree graph to be used in the whole process of Photosynthesis.
> 
> People will think with RQE/PFY, if green or yellow light are the only color light available to the plant, Photosynthesis cannot take place as these colors do not provide any photosynthesis action. In fact, this light slow Photosynthesis if provided in higher amounts.
> [As depicted in the first picture of this article]
> 
> *We do know now, that even if a plant is grown under all green light, it will grow, it will just use have less of a grow rate. [Reference 7]- Influence of Green, Red and Blue Light Emitting Diodes*
> 
> We also know different amounts of Blue, Green , and Red can affect different growth rates and mass of the plant (as in weight or more leaves).
> [Reference 8]- Green light: Is it important for plant growth?


Second suggest finding a "daylight" color you like by tweaking the channels.. Then decrease intensity as required..

Nature is best emulated by starting w/ low K white and red(to taste) Ramp up/down for as long as you like going into your favorite high light period.. Length/intensity determined by how much one fertilizes and CO2 levels..to avoid algae..


----------



## tmann51

Thanks for the quick answer. Sometimes I think I make more of something than is needed but then that's one of the fascinations of this hobby.


----------



## tmann51

I agree, I ordered a 12" Flex Arm and a Hanging Kit when I ordered my Prime HD Freshwater. I was good that I did. I used the hanging kit, which is also a bit strange but it worked. I'd ordered from BRS and they had great videos on the Prime HD (saltwater) but none for Freshwater. I fired off a question regarding that to them to which I hope they will respond.
I'm using the Android App with 8:00 am sunrise, 6:00 pm sunset and 2 hour ramps. Presently, I'm using 80 blue, 19 cool white, 15 warm white, 4 green and 4 red. I'm also using the Lunar Cycle 7 blue, 8:00 pm to 8:00 am. I'm not using many watts, 7 or 9, I think. I just set this up last night, this is my first program. I'm using CO2 on a timer to match the 10 am to 6 pm period, then off.


----------



## tmann51

Once I dropped a PAR probe into the tank that said 40 PAR at GZ I made changes. Blue 8, Green. 3, Red 12, Warm White 64 and Cool white 48. I used the acclimation program to knock that back 20% for 5 days but the PAR will be 70- 75 (maybe too much?) I may also switch the levels of warm and cool whites around. Yes, I clearly am LED schizophrenic. I also moved the sunset to 5:00 pm.


----------



## Spiffyfish

Tmann, do you have any shots of the light installed?


----------



## tmann51

Not yet I don't, I should soon.


----------



## ChandlerTX

*PRIME HD Fresh*

I have two of these running at full capacity over 65G angel South American aquarium. The lights are fantastic, but agree with over users, its hard to find templates. I reached out to AI to get their suggestion for my High-tech, High-Light, High-Fert setup. They recommended 12 hours with a 2 hour ramp time (8 hour full intensity). Plants and algae are doing great, but was in middle of an algae outbreak before install 2-3 weeks ago. 

Currently sunrise ramp is at 8 am, to morning light (by 10AM) is 125 cool white, 110 blue, 20 warm, 37 green, 100 red then as the day progress the lighting switches to (5pm) Warm 125 Cool 81 Blue 100 red 115 green 100. Greens and Reds intensify at in the morning, wane during afternoon light, then increase to peaks toward dusk (125,109 7pm). I agree with previous posters regarding the yellowish-water 6700k lighting however the plants are loving it, thus why I added the green and reds to clean up the look and sharpness. The Blue led being left high also shimmers the water and bubbles further enhancing the look. I also have 3 storms which can occur daily to provide a random photosynthesis break. I did my best to follow the 2.5 hour amazon sunrise and 1.5 sunset. 

Algae is a battle, possibly due to the red and intensities, but as of now I'm reluctant to change the lighting as it is improving, slowly. All in all great lights, interested in seeing what others experiences are.


----------



## aubie98

was wondering if anyone had any updates on this light? thinking about getting one and hanging as a pendant over a hi-tech 54 gallon corner tank I'm planning.

Even though the tank will be about 23 inches deep, and 27 inches to a side, I think the light will give pretty good PAR at depth (minimum of about ~30 at the very front edges). I'm not trying to grow super high light plants, and the plants that like higher light will be more in the center of the tanks, so I think I'm good there.

A couple of people have said the app doesn't work great, but works better on a laptop. Any experience running the app on a chromebook? 

And lastly, has anyone used the hanging kit? I don't think the bracket or flexible arm mounting options will work with the corner aquarium.


----------



## HBdirtbag

I'm still liking mine. It's on my "insomnia" tank. I'm about to swap out my two 48" sat plus pro's on my 120P for two of these. But, i may have different goals, i'm going to make my 120P a mid light tank, as I need something i'm not doing 50% weekly water changes on.


----------



## prostudent4life

Spiffyfish said:


> Tmann, do you have any shots of the light installed?




I recently installed these lights on a 75 gallon. I had to relocate one of my mounts due to the center brace of the tank being in the way, but this is essentially what I ended up with.
























Still have some adjusting to do, but I really like what these lights are capable of. Also, many people have mentioned the buggy app, but for me the app has been very easy to work with. Nothing like the fluval app I was used to with their WiFi controller for the 2.0 lights. That was a mess. 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


----------



## Greggz

prostudent4life said:


>


How come I have never seen this tank before??

Very, very nicely done. Healthy looking plants and beautifully presented. 

And of course, some really nice looking Bows are a great touch!!!

Where are you at in Michigan??


----------



## Spiffyfish

The app is a little goofy, I still haven't figured out if and how you can edit an already created schedule. It seems like its easier but still kind of a pain to just create a new schedule.


----------



## Maryland Guppy

Be easy @Greggz , some of my Boes are on "Free Lease" @ other locations!>


----------



## Immortal1

Maryland Guppy said:


> Be easy @*Greggz* , some of my Boes are on "Free Lease" @ other locations!>


Hey!


----------



## prostudent4life

Spiffyfish said:


> The app is a little goofy, I still haven't figured out if and how you can edit an already created schedule. It seems like its easier but still kind of a pain to just create a new schedule.




You can edit a created schedule. Just click on the timer event on the graph of the lighting schedule to select it and click the edit button below. From that screen you can adjust the light color and intensities. To adjust the times, just click on the timer event and drag to a new time. 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


----------



## prostudent4life

Greggz said:


> How come I have never seen this tank before??
> 
> 
> 
> Very, very nicely done. Healthy looking plants and beautifully presented.
> 
> 
> 
> And of course, some really nice looking Bows are a great touch!!!
> 
> 
> 
> Where are you at in Michigan??




Thanks. I’m in the Lansing area. I haven’t posted about this tank very much, still working on getting it to where I want it. I recently had a nice dwarf hairgrass carpet die off due to a dosing pump failure that took a little too long for me to notice, combined with rainbows that loved to pluck out the less than healthy grass that remained. Just starting the carpeting process again with a new plant. 

I’ve followed your tank for a while. It’s the reason I went with rainbows. They don’t look like much in the store, but are certainly worth the wait once they mature. 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


----------



## Greggz

prostudent4life said:


> Thanks. I’m in the Lansing area. I haven’t posted about this tank very much, still working on getting it to where I want it. I recently had a nice dwarf hairgrass carpet die off due to a dosing pump failure that took a little too long for me to notice, combined with rainbows that loved to pluck out the less than healthy grass that remained. Just starting the carpeting process again with a new plant.
> 
> I’ve followed your tank for a while. It’s the reason I went with rainbows. They don’t look like much in the store, but are certainly worth the wait once they mature.
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


Well you should post more often. You have something there I am sure others would like to learn about.

And looks like you have some very nice Bows. 

Look forward to hearing more about the tank sometime. If you want to add some different varieties of plants, let me know and I could send you some trimmings.


----------



## HBdirtbag

Thought it'd be a good idea to get visuals of how we are all running this. 

Tanks: ADA 75P (18" deep x 30" wide x 24" tall)
Gallons: 55 

- This is my massive shrimp tank, all slow growing plants for the most part. Lots of buce, moss, but some others that require a good amoutn of light, co2, etc.

Journal for tank is here: http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/12-tank-journals/1177537-insomnia-ada-75h-2.html

settings are:


----------



## prostudent4life

I like this color combination. I have added in really low levels of morning and evening light just so the tank remains visible. 



Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


----------



## prostudent4life

Greggz said:


> Well you should post more often. You have something there I am sure others would like to learn about.
> 
> 
> 
> And looks like you have some very nice Bows.
> 
> 
> 
> Look forward to hearing more about the tank sometime. If you want to add some different varieties of plants, let me know and I could send you some trimmings.




I’d love the opportunity to add more plant variety! I’m always looking for something new at my local shop, but the supply is rather consistent. Thanks for the offer. 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


----------



## HBdirtbag

prostudent4life said:


> I like this color combination. I have added in really low levels of morning and evening light just so the tank remains visible.
> 
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk




I actually like that really low level call. My tanks are in my office and i hate the shutdown during the day. 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


----------



## LiQuiD SmoKe

tmann51 said:


> I agree, I ordered a 12" Flex Arm and a Hanging Kit when I ordered my Prime HD Freshwater. I was good that I did. I used the hanging kit, which is also a bit strange but it worked. I'd ordered from BRS and they had great videos on the Prime HD (saltwater) but none for Freshwater. I fired off a question regarding that to them to which I hope they will respond.
> I'm using the Android App with 8:00 am sunrise, 6:00 pm sunset and 2 hour ramps. Presently, I'm using 80 blue, 19 cool white, 15 warm white, 4 green and 4 red. I'm also using the Lunar Cycle 7 blue, 8:00 pm to 8:00 am. I'm not using many watts, 7 or 9, I think. I just set this up last night, this is my first program. I'm using CO2 on a timer to match the 10 am to 6 pm period, then off.


I was curious if you wouldnt mind sharing your light settings? I just purchased these lights for my 125, and was looking to see how others with high tec set ups are running theirs. I would greatly appreciate it!:grin2:




prostudent4life said:


> I like this color combination. I have added in really low levels of morning and evening light just so the tank remains visible.


Just curious if this is still the way you run your lights? I just got 4 of these for my 125, but am only starting off with 3. Im worried I will create an algae farm if I dont do it correctly. Im not very savy on what lights are best to run.


----------



## Kfactor

I really want to get this for my 10g tank I know it’s over kill just want to see how u guys are liking it and if it’s worth the money and how well it grows the higher demanding plants ?


----------



## rival81

I have it on my 10 gallon, it's not overkill if you have co2 and growing stem plants. I'm not running it at 100%, more like 70% or 30watts. That's 3 watts per gallon... so about right.


----------



## rollinghighlander

Anybody running these with red plants? I'm running mine, and red plants are green up top, but pure red underneath. 

I run the lights at 10-20% on all colors. How do u get the red hue on the plants to return?

Sent from my SM-N950W using Tapatalk


----------



## LiQuiD SmoKe

prostudent4life said:


> I’d love the opportunity to add more plant variety! I’m always looking for something new at my local shop, but the supply is rather consistent. Thanks for the offer.
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk



*Bumping my last post. Would you mind sharing your "%% numbers for each and are you still running the lights this way?

Thanks!


----------



## rebelrebel

Prime HD is the marine version isn't it??

There is a freshwater version which might be better suited for a planted tank.

Both will grow plants fine I am guessing. Marine might be overkill for intensity.


----------



## LiQuiD SmoKe

ChandlerTX said:


> I have two of these running at full capacity over 65G angel South American aquarium. The lights are fantastic, but agree with over users, its hard to find templates. I reached out to AI to get their suggestion for my High-tech, High-Light, High-Fert setup. They recommended 12 hours with a 2 hour ramp time (8 hour full intensity). Plants and algae are doing great, but was in middle of an algae outbreak before install 2-3 weeks ago.
> 
> Currently sunrise ramp is at 8 am, to morning light (by 10AM) is 125 cool white, 110 blue, 20 warm, 37 green, 100 red then as the day progress the lighting switches to (5pm) Warm 125 Cool 81 Blue 100 red 115 green 100. Greens and Reds intensify at in the morning, wane during afternoon light, then increase to peaks toward dusk (125,109 7pm). I agree with previous posters regarding the yellowish-water 6700k lighting however the plants are loving it, thus why I added the green and reds to clean up the look and sharpness. The Blue led being left high also shimmers the water and bubbles further enhancing the look. I also have 3 storms which can occur daily to provide a random photosynthesis break. I did my best to follow the 2.5 hour amazon sunrise and 1.5 sunset.
> 
> Algae is a battle, possibly due to the red and intensities, but as of now I'm reluctant to change the lighting as it is improving, slowly. All in all great lights, interested in seeing what others experiences are.


Hey Chandler, looking to see what others are doing with this light as well. I have 3 on my 125, and could use some advice. Are you still running your lights like this? What kind of fertz do you use? Thanks in advanced.

Bump:


rebelrebel said:


> Prime HD is the marine version isn't it??
> 
> There is a freshwater version which might be better suited for a planted tank.
> 
> Both will grow plants fine I am guessing. Marine might be overkill for intensity.


They are both are kinda called Prime HD, one either says Freshwater, or FW. People here have both I have noticed. I have the freshwater version, and struggling to get a good template to set on my 125. :frown2:


----------



## rebelrebel

I see I didn't realise that about the HD part.

Can't help you with the setting though. My suggestion is to play with the light until you get the colour you want and then just ramp up and down sunrise/set over half and hour.


----------



## fortheloveofcrabs

Am I missing something? I am trying to upload an API file to my Prime HD Freshwater though the web app but I am missing the 'share' button (see screen shot).

Any ideas?


----------



## cwschoon

Did you ever get the setting you were looking for? To get good growth without algae? I do not have time now to look through the entire thread. I am enjoying this light but learning as I go along, as I have only done salt water for the last 30 years or so.


----------



## Joeturbo

A friendly bump here! 

Newbie here—also running the Prime Freshwater. Just read through this entire thread, trying to find what seems to be that sweet spot for inhibiting algae growth but allowing plants to thrive! 

I’ve got the prime on a 23” long 18” high 21 gallon. This last week I’ve been in an algae nightmare, and I suspect lighting is my number one cause. 

I run my prime ramping up 2 hours to full power for 8 hours then down for 3 hours. I leave green on at 1% overnight. This is probably all wrong LOL. 

I also agree with a previous post that the warm white just looks dirty.... and I know that Prime makes a red light that focuses on refugium algae growth, so in my mind it makes sense to cut the red.... 

Anyone have any suggestions/template they can share that is that sweet spot for optimum high light carpet plants with minimum algae growth? 

Some photos for you.... 








At full power


----------



## OVT

Joeturbo said:


> ... that sweet spot for optimum high light carpet plants with minimum algae growth?


Cute. My tank <> your tank and my numbers are next to useless to you.


----------



## Joeturbo

OVT said:


> Cute. My tank <> your tank and my numbers are next to useless to you.




What size tank are you running them on? Maybe if we take dimensions and put it into a math problem I can find a solution LOL


----------



## Wobblebonk

That's a science experiment that you need to figure out on your own for each tank to some extent :/ There's not just some setting that just works for everyone. If the tank is set up recently the early weeks are just weird for algae also. I suppose if you are trying to fix this using only the light you would probably want to reduce the brightness and/or length of the "day" period...


----------



## Asteroid

Joeturbo said:


> What size tank are you running them on? Maybe if we take dimensions and put it into a math problem I can find a solution LOL


It doesn't work that way. Every tank is different based on plant type, mass, your maintenance habits, co2, etc, etc. etc.

If you started you tank with a long light period and used 8 hours of top light that more than likely caused the issue. Most tanks can't handle that especially at startup. There isn't a mature bio-filter or fully adjusted plant when you first start. The process for algae is initiated by the excess light before you actually see the algae.

Your best bet IMO is to use just a few hours of intense light and reduce your overall lighting period to around 7 hours or so. I have grown beautiful HC carpets with just 2-3 hrs of intense light. Do more water changes than you need, and perform good maintenance and things should turn around.


----------



## Jbubba001

I have a prime to fill in a dark spot in the middle of my 135.
I only have it at 45%
100% is equal to about a 84 wat flourecent.


----------



## LiQuiD SmoKe

Joeturbo said:


> and I know that Prime makes a red light that focuses on refugium algae growth, so in my mind it makes sense to cut the red....
> 
> Anyone have any suggestions/template they can share that is that sweet spot for optimum high light carpet plants with minimum algae growth?



I was running 3 of the AI HD Prime FW, and now Im running 4 on a 125gal. I posted earlier in this thread and I ended up copying Prostudents layout for a while. I got decent growth, but all my stem plants seemed to grow very tall and stringy. I got frustrated with the way the stem plants were looking so I took them out. After a re-scape, Im re-adjusting my lights to find a sweet spot. After doing some reading on red lights and plant growth in the aquarium, I realize now why my stem plants looked the way they did. So im turning it down from 100 to 75.

I think you should not keep red light out though. It enhances all red looking plants, and encourages red color. It also encourages flowering which I have had a decent amount of. BUT - TOO MUCH will get you the long/tall stringy plants reaching for the light. Never had a major algae issue though. I only recently added a 4th light to even out the coverage area more. With only 3 in a 72in space, it left shadowy spots inbetween the lights, and the plants placed there suffered for it. Here is my current set up.


----------



## Crazygar

Yes, I'm posting in dormant thread. Yes, I have recently purchased an AI Prime Freshwater.

My views; AWESOME. Before I had 2 Finnex Planted+ over my little high-tech 8 GAL (11.8 X 11.8 X 13.75) Nano. Now, after the tank has settled in for a few months and growth is insane, I have decided to move onto something that allows me;


To peer into the tank without lights getting in the way
Remove my Timer/Cable Farm by 2. Other than my CO2, no more timers.
Customizable. While the Finnex has proven it's worth, it's still not cutting the mustard when it comes to fine tune adjustments

Now, I know the heater and HOB (being removed shortly, I went through hell setting this up) makes it look a bit ugly but this picture is with the Finnex Planted+ (8hrs, 4hrs two, 4hrs just one),










Now, those A.reineckii were recent purchases from none other than Petsmart (if they only knew what high lights can do for these plants they'd charge more).

This is the tank currently with the AI Prime Freshwater;










And even from the top without lights blocking the view;










Light is 16" off the lowest point in the substrate.

Personally, I see a huge difference. I have it ramping up from 12 (noon) to 2pm. (CO2 on at 1pm). 2pm to 8pm Full Power. Ramp down from 8pm to 10pm. (CO2 off at 9pm).

Even in the last couple of days, the A.reineckii has improved. My Blyxa is pearling (never did this before) and everything seems to be responding much better now.


















My current setup. This was taken off the AI website, I have a feeling I might have to back off on the duration...

Gary


----------



## Botia dude

Crazygar said:


> Yes, I'm posting in dormant thread. Yes, I have recently purchased an AI Prime Freshwater.
> 
> My views; AWESOME. Before I had 2 Finnex Planted+ over my little high-tech 8 GAL (11.8 X 11.8 X 13.75) Nano. Now, after the tank has settled in for a few months and growth is insane, I have decided to move onto something that allows me;
> 
> 
> To peer into the tank without lights getting in the way
> Remove my Timer/Cable Farm by 2. Other than my CO2, no more timers.
> Customizable. While the Finnex has proven it's worth, it's still not cutting the mustard when it comes to fine tune adjustments
> 
> Now, I know the heater and HOB (being removed shortly, I went through hell setting this up) makes it look a bit ugly but this picture is with the Finnex Planted+ (8hrs, 4hrs two, 4hrs just one),
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Now, those A.reineckii were recent purchases from none other than Petsmart (if they only knew what high lights can do for these plants they'd charge more).
> 
> This is the tank currently with the AI Prime Freshwater;
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> And even from the top without lights blocking the view;
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Light is 16" off the lowest point in the substrate.
> 
> Personally, I see a huge difference. I have it ramping up from 12 (noon) to 2pm. (CO2 on at 1pm). 2pm to 8pm Full Power. Ramp down from 8pm to 10pm. (CO2 off at 9pm).
> 
> Even in the last couple of days, the A.reineckii has improved. My Blyxa is pearling (never did this before) and everything seems to be responding much better now.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> My current setup. This was taken off the AI website, I have a feeling I might have to back off on the duration...
> 
> Gary





Probably going to have to back off on both duration and intensity. I have a pair of these over a 22" deep tank and at 16"s was getting a PAR reading of over 200 directly under the light at 85%. You might try the same ratios at half the intensity and maybe 1-3 hrs less duration. When I had one 12-14"s over a 5g tank I was running it at about 25-30%.


----------



## jeffkrol

Spiffyfish said:


> I'm just wondering because I have a 36×18×18 tank and trying to figure if 1 will be enough or if I'll need 2.



Geometry would normally dictate 2..


----------



## Crazygar

Update; I have reconfigured it and now here is what I have...

Ramp Up: 12 noon to 3pm
Ramp Down: 7pm to 10pm
Full Intensity: 3pm to 7pm, the 4 hours it was originally getting with my Finnex

Still have the CO2 coming on at 1pm and off at 9pm









Much better than the mega-wattage I was pumping in. Still keeping my reds on the higher side









This is the setup I managed to come up with.

For one month I am going to run this setup and gauge algae (some on the rocks, but I am betting duration and wattage of the default config caused that) and growth. Though I believe I have found the sweet spot.

Tank pictures to come, I removed some of the hardware.

Gary


----------



## Crazygar

The tank now. Giving it a month with this setup and see how things go. I had to start cutting back the A.reineckii.

Gary


----------



## richmassacre

Any update on the progress? I'm struggling with my settings as well. Trying to find the optimum setup to reduce the algae growth.


----------



## overclocked_tanks

I would also like to know how it's progressing. How is the algae/plant growth?


----------



## Crazygar

Tank is doing amazing. The HC started to lift up and I spent more time keeping it down, so I replaced it with Eleocharis acicularis var.'mini'. This picture is from 2 months ago, it's grown in even more lush since then. 

I'll take some recent pics and post them this weekend.

No algae issues, photoperiod is 8hrs. Lights on at 1pm off at 9pm, or in spring-summer-fall 2pm to 10pm. 

This light has been the best aquarium purchase ever!

Gary


----------



## TheOnlyHyland

Hi everyone, my first ever post. I invested in 3 ai prime hd freshwaters for my tank and have been looking into how to set up and best schedule for my tank so it looks good and helps plant growth. Would anyone be able to help me out with adding profiles ? I'm finding it difficult to find them. I attached an image of my tank, once it get moved back to the living room I intend to do soil substrate and plant properly.


----------



## LiQuiD SmoKe

Crazygar said:


> Tank is doing amazing.
> This light has been the best aquarium purchase ever!


Wanted to see if you had an update by chance on your tank? I posted here a while ago with the 4 lights I run on my 125. Still not happy with my results, but I can see how this light would be great for smaller tanks. Would you mind sharing your settings? Much appreciated.


----------



## Crazygar

LiQuiD SmoKe said:


> Wanted to see if you had an update by chance on your tank? I posted here a while ago with the 4 lights I run on my 125. Still not happy with my results, but I can see how this light would be great for smaller tanks. Would you mind sharing your settings? Much appreciated.


Tank is doing wonderfully, I have redone the scape a few times since the last picture. I am considering picking up an 18 X 18 X 18 cube and another light to see how it works with that.

This should work fine with larger tanks, what is the depth of your 125? Remember 24 X 24 X 24 coverage

Gary


----------

