PJ Reefs is a new enterprise who’s Kickstarter campaign we featured a little over a year ago. In that time the little LED-lit reef jars have almost been shipped to all of its backers and this past weekend in Southwest Florida we had the opportunity to see these novel miniature reef creations in person.
On paper the PJ Reefs less-than-nano sized reef environments are little more than a jar, with an LED light, but if you’re aiming to place these on coffee tables and other places of display, it takes a special kind of look and finish to pull off something that is “coffee table” worthy. This is where PJ Reefs has created something actually unique, in the form of a heavy aluminum base and light stand which gives PJ Reefs ocean-in-a-jar a very well put together look. The design and finish of the aluminum components are top-notch and other features fine tune the reef environment for success.
A high output Bridgelux LED with blue and white diodes provides well balanced light color while an opaque diffuser helps to diffuse the powerful light rays into an even light field. Included in the PJ Reefs kit is also the world smallest algae-scrubbing magnet which is so small, it disappears between two fingers but is more than sufficient to give a good cleaning to the curved surface of the jar. Speaking of the jar, the curved surface creates a magnified effect when filled with water which makes the entire system a magnified view into a miniature world.
The successfully crowdsourced miniature reef aquarium ecosystem was never intended for diehard reefers, reefers who read Reef Builders and could slap together a comparable solution with spare parts we have lying around. No the PJ Reefs pico marine environments were first conceived and offered to a public that knows very little about marine aquariums, but with one easy and self contained kit they could themselves dabble in the wonders and fascination of having a little reef world to observe. [PJ Reefs]
