LED Retrofit for an Elos Aquatop

[mv123]

Hi,

I have an Elos 90 gallon tank, with an old Elos Aquatop2 lid. I like the look of the lid and hope to keep it. Unfortunately the LED strips in it are mostly burned out, and I need to replace them. I am hoping you can suggest something that I can retrofit into the lid.

Below is a photo of the lid (not mine, image from another reefer)

The main problem is that the lid is close to the water. The bottoms of the current strips are about 2 inches from the surface. So I do not have much room to play with.

I was considering the Orphek LED strips. However, some people are telling me they may be too strong to put that close to the surface, especially since they are not dimmable. Would these work if I don't put any corals in the top 6 inches or so?

Others have suggested the Fluval 3.0, but this seems too dim and weak.

I have also considered something like 2 AI Hydras, but not sure of distance and waterproofing.

Do you have any suggestions? I’m willing to do some DIY, but most importantly I want this to be safe so anything I install has to have some degree of waterproofing. The Fluval and Orpkek are IP67 waterproof which seems good, but not sure about other lights.

I’d like to keep mostly soft corals and some LPS. I don’t need SPS level lighting, although that would not be a bad thing.

Thanks for your help!