# Torn between fluval 3.0 and my unknown alternative options



## WetrootsNH (Oct 22, 2018)

Good morning,
I have a standard 75g high tech. Currently running two fluval 2.0's over a light diffuser lid (hate glass lids, just personal opinion)
Anywho, one is older from the era in which they were having touch control issues that they claim never happened and the other is newer and works perfectly.
The issue is, the older one has begun going on the fritz. It swaps between intensity and color settings at its whimsy. Because of this, I am starting to consider newer lighting options.
I am definitely leaning towards the fluval 3.0 due to price point and water resistance.
I understand that it's a touch weaker par-wise than the 2.0 but I will be customizing my lid soon so as to place the eggcrate on top of the lights rather than below them. Doing so, I would imagine that the lower par would actually be similar if not better than my current layout.
I have considered the Finnex 24/7 CC but am standoffish because of the water resistance and the eggcrate residing above my next set of lights. 
Another consideration is scheduling. Right now, my lights come on in the AM turn off mid day and come back on in the evening for maximum viewing pleasure (CO2 is on another time set to an earlier but symbiotic schedule.) I am to understand that with the fluval 3.0 this would not he an option but I am okay with moving to once a day viewing for the sake of better growth.
I am interesting in seeing what you have to say about the 3.0 vs 24/7 CC debate and am also wondering if you all would have better suggestions. I feel like I may have exhausted my resources when I view the price on some of the other units out there and consider my set up options. Cant run lidless due to cats obsessions with water cant really suspend from ceiling or use goosenecks properly.
Thanks for your opinions/criticisms/further questions!


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## Wantsome99 (Nov 27, 2016)

I have used several 24/7's and the Fluval 3.0. Water proofing is an issue with the 24/7's. The paint will come off if they get wet from splashing or whatever. 

I love the Fluval 3.0 but yesterday I found I have a cluster of led's not working. The light has a 3 year warranty and I'm about to contact Fluval. Out of 300 and something led's I have 15 that quit working. 

I've run the Fluval 2.0 for for several years without issue.

I really like the 3.0 and all the built in features. Maybe I just got a bad unit or something. 

I had 3 24/7's 2 of them are dead. I'm not expecting the one that works to last much longer.


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## tamsin (Jan 12, 2011)

My big disappointment with the 3.0 is the lack of control for light periods. You just have ramp up, day, ramp down, night you can't split the photo period, you can't have a moonlight period at the end and then total off. The app, the light, the buttons all function great, but it feels like it needs an 'advanced' settings option that lets you customise it if you want more than the standard option. If you can cope with that it will do everything else you need.


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## WetrootsNH (Oct 22, 2018)

Wantsome99 said:


> I have used several 24/7's and the Fluval 3.0. Water proofing is an issue with the 24/7's. The paint will come off if they get wet from splashing or whatever.
> 
> I love the Fluval 3.0 but yesterday I found I have a cluster of led's not working. The light has a 3 year warranty and I'm about to contact Fluval. Out of 300 and something led's I have 15 that quit working.
> 
> ...





tamsin said:


> My big disappointment with the 3.0 is the lack of control for light periods. You just have ramp up, day, ramp down, night you can't split the photo period, you can't have a moonlight period at the end and then total off. The app, the light, the buttons all function great, but it feels like it needs an 'advanced' settings option that lets you customise it if you want more than the standard option. If you can cope with that it will do everything else you need.


I wouldn't be surprised if it's just the early units. My first 2.0 was one of the earlier units and had issues but my 2nd works flawlessly. I'm definitely concerned about the 24/7 water issues. I think I should just pull that unit off of the list being that it will be sitting directly above the water

Yeah, the split photoperiod would be nice, I currently don't even need an alarm as my lights come on when I should be waking up and the light spills into the bedroom from the living room. It's a nice feature but I can live without it for the right light.
It looks like the app has decent spectrum control? I know we will always want better.
I just wish something like BML was still around but also came with a killer app. But hey, $$$ and all. I'm sure some of the higher dollar models do it, but I think maybe getting a house and out of my apartment should probably be where I'm putting the big money. 
Stupid life getting in the way of my hobbies.

A question and a thought,
How close to the 400nm spectrum does the 3.0 get? Anyone know? It's hard to tell from the spectrum listed on their site. I'm a firm believer that a good light should have a bit of light in the blue, violet, pushing uv spectrum.
I guess I could run 2 puck/can style lights (price on them though...) by cutting a square into my eggcrate and mounting the pucks directly into it. Spread of the light would be an issue though as most of the puck style lights I've seen seem to be intended to be mounted 6 or so inches above the water surface.


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## Captaindemo (Jun 29, 2018)

I had just bought the Finnex cc model and I am not a fan what so ever! My Fixture on the max setting is pretty dim. I had it powered up for roughly 5 min and off the tank it went ! Now I am stuck with this thing and tried to sell without luck


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## Mike A. (Jan 6, 2018)

Overall I'd rank the 3.0 the best of the lights that I currently run which include several 3.0s, a couple of Current Satellite Plus Pro, an older 24/7, and random Beamswork and other more basic lights.

The phone control is kind of a mixed blessing in my case. Great for setting things up but with multiple lights it's kind of inconvenient to open the phone, connect up, and/or switch to whichever light for control outside of that. Which as a result of where the tanks are I tend to probably more than most. Won't be as much of an issue if you stick to whatever schedule and just let it do its thing. I do kind of like the convenience of having simple, immediate control by a remote as in the case of the Current. But then it's not nearly as easy to set up/change and I'd have issues with multiple remotes if I had more than one in the same place so... Always trade-offs. I'd put the 24/7 behind both of those. If I were to buy another today, then it very likely would be another 3.0.


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## WetrootsNH (Oct 22, 2018)

Captaindemo said:


> I had just bought the Finnex cc model and I am not a fan what so ever! My Fixture on the max setting is pretty dim. I had it powered up for roughly 5 min and off the tank it went ! Now I am stuck with this thing and tried to sell without luck


Well that is certainly good to know. My tank is actually a little too bright for my liking with 2x 2.0's with the eggcrate off, but I dont want a really dim fixture.
Perhaps running 2 would help. I like the spread from 2 lights slightly dimmed over one strong fixture anyway.



Mike A. said:


> Overall I'd rank the 3.0 the best of the lights that I currently run which include several 3.0s, a couple of Current Satellite Plus Pro, an older 24/7, and random Beamswork and other more basic lights.
> 
> The phone control is kind of a mixed blessing in my case. Great for setting things up but with multiple lights it's kind of inconvenient to open the phone, connect up, and/or switch to whichever light for control outside of that. Which as a result of where the tanks are I tend to probably more than most. Won't be as much of an issue if you stick to whatever schedule and just let it do its thing. I do kind of like the convenience of having simple, immediate control by a remote as in the case of the Current. But then it's not nearly as easy to set up/change and I'd have issues with multiple remotes if I had more than one in the same place so... Always trade-offs. If I were to buy another today, then it very likely would be another 3.0.


I think I'm sold on the 3.0
I actually agree with you on the remote thing but for more advanced settings it seems that remotes have their limitations. Certainly you could set channels and intensity through a remote but depending on number of channels and an actual reading of percentages rather than just 'eye feel' I think an app eventually becomes a necessary evil.
And for sure, there are most definitely always tradeoffs!

I just wish that there was something I was missing...
I wish someone would just say "Have you considered the aquagreen 92694, it's got a great and fully adjustable spectrum, a killer app and is around the same price as a fluval 3.0"
I guess we can all dream.


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## Captaindemo (Jun 29, 2018)

I would recommend the AI Prime hd freshwater but nobody really knows this light. I have one and really like it but its a trial by error thing trying to dial in the perfect setting. But if this is your cup of tea, it may very well be your light. You can make it bright or dim to your liking as well. Phone app is pretty easy to navigate and the computer program is pretty good as well. Like I said, I love it but its frustrating at the same time. I do know once I find a good setting with good growth in plants and making everything look good at the same time, I will be buying more for sure.


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## WetrootsNH (Oct 22, 2018)

Captaindemo said:


> I would recommend the AI Prime hd freshwater but nobody really knows this light. I have one and really like it but its a trial by error thing trying to dial in the perfect setting. But if this is your cup of tea, it may very well be your light. You can make it bright or dim to your liking as well. Phone app is pretty easy to navigate and the computer program is pretty good as well. Like I said, I love it but its frustrating at the same time. I do know once I find a good setting with good growth in plants and making everything look good at the same time, I will be buying more for sure.


I will look those up right now.
Do you think that the spread would be okay from only 2-3" off of the surface of the water, or do they need to be placed higher for good spread?
If the price isn't too much higher I suppose I could just delay a bit and replace my quirky 2.0 with my old planted plus in the meantime.


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## Captaindemo (Jun 29, 2018)

I have mine 7 inches off the surface of the water on a 20 gallon High tank. It has pretty good spread although I think it could be better. I only have my lights on at just under 50% and plants are doing fine. I am getting the co2 stuff this week so I am kinda anxious to find out the true potential then.


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## Mike A. (Jan 6, 2018)

WetrootsNH said:


> I think I'm sold on the 3.0
> I actually agree with you on the remote thing but for more advanced settings it seems that remotes have their limitations. Certainly you could set channels and intensity through a remote but depending on number of channels and an actual reading of percentages rather than just 'eye feel' I think an app eventually becomes a necessary evil.
> And for sure, there are most definitely always tradeoffs!


They definitely do. The set up and control using a phone on the Fluval is MUCH better than using the remote with the Current. The latter is functional and you can do a lot with it but the interface is not nearly as clear and easy. You'll need to keep the manual handy at first. But on the other side, simply turning it on/off (which I do a lot more of) is easier and faster via the remote. Also the Current remote just kinda sucks in terms of working properly but that's another matter.

You do get 'percentages' on the Current via the LED display that's controlled by the remote. But on it and the Fluval both you'll still rely on your eyes. The percentages aren't always what you'd think they'd look like and I'm not sure that they're even really all that accurate. That is, 50%/20%/5% will be progressively less bright but whether that actually represents 50%/20%/5% is another thing. Practically speaking doesn't really make much difference since you'll end up just setting it to what you think looks about right and accept that's what N% looks like for that light.

Fluval could do various things better in the app but overall it's pretty good.


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## WetrootsNH (Oct 22, 2018)

Captaindemo said:


> I have mine 7 inches off the surface of the water on a 20 gallon High tank. It has pretty good spread although I think it could be better. I only have my lights on at just under 50% and plants are doing fine. I am getting the co2 stuff this week so I am kinda anxious to find out the true potential then.


You'll have to let me know how it goes. I'm definitely curious although I think the only way I could get away with them is if I had a canopy for the tank.


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## Kaiede (Sep 11, 2017)

WetrootsNH said:


> I will look those up right now.
> Do you think that the spread would be okay from only 2-3" off of the surface of the water, or do they need to be placed higher for good spread?
> If the price isn't too much higher I suppose I could just delay a bit and replace my quirky 2.0 with my old planted plus in the meantime.


The Prime is a bit narrow compared to the Fluval (80deg optics vs 120deg), and really should be pulled away from the surface if you want wider coverage. Even the 3.0 in my experience benefits from some distance from the water if plants are growing to the water’s surface, and doing something more low-tech. 

That said, the configurability beats the Fluval hands down, but the fan noise isn’t great if you like a very quiet room. It’s about 30-35dB I believe. Not loud, but my tanks are in pretty quiet areas. But the schedule flexibility is very good.

My personal preference is the Fluval because it is quieter and doesn’t require buying a mount which adds further to the cost. If picking between the two.

I wound up going to a DIY setup, myself. Twinstar E-series with a custom light controller built from a Raspberry Pi. Gives me the trade-offs I personally want, especially when I can implement features I like from existing lights into the controller.


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## WetrootsNH (Oct 22, 2018)

Kaiede said:


> WetrootsNH said:
> 
> 
> > I will look those up right now.
> ...


Yeah, the height off the water is the only reason I don't think the primes would work for me.
Needing 2 3.0's isn't too bad, I rather expected it as I am already running 2 of the 2.0s. I'd rather have 2 and have nice spread and plenty of PAR with the option to dial back as needed.
What I will probably do is replace my messed up 2.0 with a 3.0 for now and replace the other 2.0 later so as to reduce the chances of my girlfriend making me sleep on the couch for spending too much on lights.
I'd really love to do a custom controller like you have. Hell, I'd love to make my own LED strip one day. There is always just a very good excuse why I shouldn't...
One day I'll get sick of making excuses; there was a time when I was always making excuses why I couldn't get a tank yet!


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