The original pendant fixture over this aquarium and the subject of the first measurement work on this site. Out of service since September 2026 and kept as the comparison baseline.
Why I chose it
Chosen for its color rendition, reliability, and long-standing reputation in high-end planted aquascaping. It was bought from Aqua Forest Aquarium as the centerpiece fixture for a pendant-mounted layout.
What I've learned
·Reliable across approximately six years of daily use with no failures.
·Produces a concentrated center hotspot rather than an even field. Measured PPFD at the outer positions is a fraction of the center reading.
·The fixture is narrower than the tank is long, so coverage appears to be the limiting factor on a 90P rather than peak output. Raising it would widen the footprint, but this fixture has no output to spare for the height that would take.
·The ADA Shade has been fitted throughout. ADA states it prevents light leakage and “enhances downright-illuminance up to approx. 15%”. That is a manufacturer figure for illuminance, which is not PPFD, and it has never been tested here. The shade was on for every reading, so whatever it contributes is already inside the published numbers rather than something to add to them.
·Small changes in front-to-back centring shift the measured distribution noticeably.
Installation
Suspended over the center of the tank at 12 inches above the water surface, with the ADA Shade fitted. It was later found to be mounted slightly off-center front-to-back, which the PAR survey exposed.
Configuration
·While in service: mounted 12″ (about 30 cm) above the water surface, the distance ADA quotes its illuminance figures at
·ADA Shade fitted, and fitted for every reading in the baseline survey
·No dimming. The fixture is on or off, so there was no output setting to record
·Photoperiod while in service: 9:30am – 4:30pm, switched by the controller as a scheduled outlet
·Out of service since 17 September 2026
Maintenance
·Wipe the lens when condensation or salt creep appears.
·Check the suspension and cable seating when the fixture is moved.
Known limitations
·The emitter array is narrower than a 90 cm tank is long, so measured intensity falls off sharply toward the ends.
·Raising it to widen coverage appeared to reduce measured PAR at the ends rather than improving it.
·No published PAR distribution data is available from the manufacturer to compare against.
Controller integration
While in service, switched as a scheduled controller outlet, so the photoperiod was held by the controller rather than by a timer on the fixture.
Current observations
·Out of service since the 17th of September 2026, when a Chihiros WRGB II Pro 90 was hung in its place. It is being kept, not sold, until that fixture has been measured and judged against it.
·Ran on a 9:30am–4:30pm photoperiod while in use. It has no dimming, so the only variable was how long it was on.
·Its nineteen-position survey of 8 August 2026 found strong centre output and uneven coverage. That survey is the baseline the replacement is compared against.
What this item is doing now, as distinct from what has been learned over time.
Maintenance history
No service dates recorded yet. Scheduled replacement applies to consumables; this item is tracked by condition instead.
Six years of trouble-free operation and color rendition that was never the thing to fix. On a 90 cm tank coverage was the binding constraint, and this fixture did not have the output headroom to buy spread by hanging it higher. Whether the bar that replaced it covers this layout better is what Experiment 006 is for, and it is not finished.
Future upgrade considerations
·Its 8 August 2026 survey is the baseline the Chihiros measurements are compared against (Experiment 006).
·A comparison against the ADA Solar RGB II (Experiment 004) is deferred: the tank moved to a different fixture instead.