Archive for the 'Commercial Projects' Category
When you think of Wal-Mart, the first thing that probably comes to mind is a slew of discount products, crowds of people rushing through the doors on Black Friday and perhaps your neighborhood McDonald’s tucked into one of the corner entrances. But what about a 2.5 million gallon aquarium?
No? Not the first thing you were thinking of? Probably not. But in Mission, Kansas, that is exactly what the locals are thinking about.
Back in 2005, a deal was proposed to put a Wal-Mart in town to beef up the economy. The locals weren’t too excited to have this giant, discount center stealing business from the mom and pop shops, so there was an added bonus to keep people happy. Not only is there going to be a Wal-Mart, which is said to not look anything like your normal neighborhood super-center, but there is also going to be a slew of new space for businesses, apartment buildings, a fitness center, a movie theatre and you guessed it, a giant aquarium.
The town decided that not only would the aquarium be a regional draw, but it would also make the center feel more like a place of education, instead of just a place to shop and see a movie. There aren’t many details yet about the exact type of species that will be swimming around but with 2.5 million gallons, it is sure to a fun place for kids to wander while parents get their deals on remote-controlled helicopters. Let’s hope more towns jump on the Wal-Mart/aquarium train. And if it’s anything like the 2.5 million gallon aquarium in the Dubai mall (2 photos at right), it’s sure to be a splash – hah!
The Blue Moon Aquatics P3 is a new option for small accent lighting with actual PAR output, and dubbed a ‘power moonlight’ by it’s manufacturer. The BMA P3 LED features a single three watt royal blueLED with an emission peak of 445-460nm that can get some PAR into tight places at the bottom of a tank via an interchangeable 40 or 60 degree lens. The lightweight body and multi-angle neck of the BMA P3 LED can easily be positioned anywhere you need it, and with a 50,000 hour life these power moonlights should be plug in and forget it lights. BMA P3 LEDs can be used in tandem to create some intense shimmer effects or more versatile moonlighting and with only 3 watts each, they add virtually no heat. These little units will come in at just $49.95
Blue Moon Aquatics gets extra marks for the packaging on the P3 LED something which is often overlooked in the marketing of many reef aquarium products. Until now, accent lighting has been primarily composed of long strips that were cumbersome to install, useless for PAR output and expensive, but the BMA P3 ‘power moonlight kind of has a nostalgic feeling of the original 3/4 watt Marc Weiss moonlight which originally cost about the same. A small area can easily be singled out with the P3 LED’s beam and made into a super photosynthetic zone to house the animals of your choice. This is definitely one use for LEDs so far that goes well with any type of lighting. Hopefully with the development out of the way on these little lights, we may soon see more colors or even an RGB version.