Reef Builders | The Reef and Marine Aquarium Blog

EcoSmart Live allows users to control their Radion from web enabled devices

EcoSmart Live is an exciting new platform from EcoTech Marine which allows users to control their Radion LED lights from any web enabled device. Previously the Radion Configuration Utility was only accessible to Windows PC machines, but now any device with a web connection can get in on the full control of Radion LED lights. Closely following the announcement of the Radion TIR Lens cluster, the Ecosmart Live service adds extra functionality to Radion LEDs, and non-PC owners who were on the fence will greatly appreciate being able to control their Radion from an iPad on the couch.

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AquaBee’s UP11000 DC water pumps is one interesting not-so-little water mover. Unlike many of the DC water pumps that use the same old modified Laguna motor block, the AquaBee UP11000 is built from the ground up by AquaBee to be super efficient and extremely quiet. The controllable AquaBee UP11000 is rated for up to 11,000 liters per hour (2,905 gph) while only consuming 130 watts. At this level the AquaBee UP11,000 is still extremely quiet and it pushes water up to a very high head pressure of up to 9 meters high, almost 30 feet.  Read the rest of this entry »

The Pacific Sun introduced the Pacific Sun Triton R2 as the latest modular LED aquarium fixture in the company’s impressive line of products. The Pacific Sun Triton R2 features a blend of 10 different LEDs grouped into eight channels of control and is available as either master or slave unit. Read the rest of this entry »

The PowerRoll FIlter E200 is an exciting new product from D-D The Aquarium Solution. At InterZoo 2010 one of the most innovative products we came across was the Evo3 Titanium by Genesis, whose booth was conveniently located adjacent to the D-D booth. Well after a couple years of work, designing and engineering, D-D has licensed the idea of the Evo3 and produced a ‘knock-down’ version of the automatically replenished mechanical filter, called the PowerRoll Filter E200.  Read the rest of this entry »

Another new product that is being added to the Fluval Sea line is the new circulation pumps. The Fluval Sea Circulation pumps (CP1, CP2, CP3, CP4) are super compact, use broad stream current and offer a 270 degree adjustable flow direction.  There will be a total of four different models to choose from and if they look familiar with other budget solutions like Hydor Koralia then your eyes aren’t teasing you—Fluval Sea is trying to claw market share back from other low cost solutions. We have no ETA of when these are expected to hit retail distribution channels—like most new Interzoo timed products, the odds aren’t in your favor for a speedy release.

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Fluval Sea, Hagen’s saltwater specific line of products that we first broke in 2011 is seeking to get a slew of new products.  Back then Fluval was perfectly happy with using this line for aquarium additives and marine salt. However, this year Fluval is expanding their Fluval Sea line into something completely different: saltwater equipment. Specifically, Hagen (the parent company to Fluval) is introducing recirculation pumps. The Fluval Sea recirculation pumps (aka sump pumps) (models SP2, SP4, SP6) which offer low heat transfer to energy consumption, external or internal use, “smart energy saving pump technology” (whatever that means), “alumia” ceramic bearings and threaded fittings that allow easy connections to your sump systems. Pricing wise, these products are slotted to fill the “budget” slot in the hobbyist community, meaning Tunze and Vortech devices will not compete head to head with Fluval Sea’s equipment line. Read the rest of this entry »

Tunze LED are here with a very different form factor and definitely straying from the pack. Tunze’s LEDs will come in three colors, the 8810 LED Marine with white and blue, the 8820 Tunze LED white and the 8830 Tunze LED blue. Each of Tunze’s LED strips has 62 high efficiency LEDs for a total of 14 watts per strip. 14 watts for each of Tunze’s LED strips sounds like an underwhelming amount but these light can be placed very close to the tank, making the most of the up to 130 lumens/watt for the whites LEDs. Read the rest of this entry »

Reef Builders is live at Interzoo 2012, the world’s largest Pet Show. The event is located in Germany,  Nuremberg, a city that is famous for the “ring”, a race circuit that every major automobile manufacturer uses to measure their latest creation. Besides that though, when Interzoo comes to town the focus is pets. While dogs and cats are nice, the aquatics industry is our focus here and for the next four days we will be live at the event covering everything that we feel our readers will like to see. Hang tight and hold on for the ride.

Schieferberg, a new Switzerland based company has come roaring onto the aquarium scene. Schieferberg was founded in late December 2011, the founding owner ran an aquarium shop for the past several years and decided to take matters in his own hands with reef aquarium design. All of the products are designed and produced in Switzerland—the source for famous pieces of keeping time. Read the rest of this entry »

The TIR Lens for the Radion LED light is a new lens cluster from Ecotech Marine which gives the Radion XR30w a lot more depth penetration in the aquarium. Ecotech Marine’s TIR Lens is designed with Total Internal Reflection (TIR) with an unspecified beam angle, but more with purpose of getting a good light spread at 30 inches deep, over a 24″ square area. Read the rest of this entry »