Hygger 24/7 Aquarium LED Lighting Kit Par Tested, Compared & Reviewed 2024

Starting in 2008. Hygger is one of the newer companies in the aquarium industry, but there products are definitely making a splash.

And the Hygger LED lighting kit is no different.

However, at it’s low price point, how does it stand up to other similar LED lights and also the more expensive choices available?

To find out just how good the Hygger kit is, I purchased four different LED lighting kits at different price points to test and compare.

Here are the results:

Review Results Overview

Hygger planted led light total scores

I bought this Hygger light along with four other LED aquarium plant lights so we could perform a head-to-head challenge. I was really surprised with how awesome this light is. It came in second in our overall rankings. It definitely has the power to grow plants, outperforming even one of the pricey lights on the list.

I highly recommend this Hygger light. My only real gripe is that it doesn’t save your settings if it’s disconnected from power. If you’re looking for a budget friendly light, this was the best of the bunch.

hygger 36W 24/7 Lighting Aquarium LED Light, Sunrise-Daylight-Moonlight Mode and DIY Mode, Adjustable Timer Adjustable Brightness Fish Tank Light with Extendable Bracket 7 Colors for Planted Tank
hygger 36W 24/7 Lighting Aquarium LED Light, Sunrise-Daylight-Moonlight Mode and DIY Mode, Adjustable Timer Adjustable Brightness Fish Tank Light with Extendable Bracket 7 Colors for Planted Tank

    Last update on 2024-03-17 / Commissions Earned / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API

    How I Tested The Hygger Aquarium LED Lighting Kit

    The lights we compared were:

    Our testing fell into two main categories:

    PAR Readings

    PAR stands for photosynthetically active radiation. PAR readings measure the amount of energy that a light source puts out that photosynthetic organisms can convert into food.

    A light might look nice and bright to the human eye but actually contain very little PAR that plants can use as energy.

    It would be great if every aquarist could test the PAR of their lights so they really knew what their fixtures were putting out.

    But, waterproof PAR meters are too costly for more hobbyists. So, we were really excited when we found out we’d be getting one for testing out lights.

    Hygger 24/7 led PAR testing

    To test the lights, we filled a spare 55 gallon (208 liter) tank that I had laying around with clear tap water. 

    PAR declines the deeper you get in the water. We tested each light from 0.5 inches (1.25 centimeters), 11 inches (28 centimeters), and 19 inches (48 centimeters) below the surface.

    All of the depth measurements are from the surface of the light to the top of the PAR meter sensor.

    Here’s what we found:

    Planted Tank LED lights PAR depth comparison bar chart

    We were really surprised to see that this Hygger light was much brighter than the Current USA light. The Current USA is touted as one of the greatest on the market. So, it felt crazy that a bargain price light could do better than one of the most expensive lights on the market.

    But, our readings were consistent after several repeat tests. 

    When I had this light on one of my tanks, I had to use the dimmer and turn this light down because full strength was starting to cause excess algae. 

    Real World Testing

    We wanted to get the real user’s experience with all of the lights. Each one was installed on one of my tanks so that it got several weeks of use that really let us experience what it’s like to use it day in and day out.

    We were especially interested in the following things:

    • Installation and Set Up – how easy or difficult is it to get this light installed and set up?
    • Customization – is there a built-in dimmer and/or timer? Can you change the appearance and spectrum of the light?
    • Reliability – does the light save your settings when the power is cut?
    • Appearance – does the light make the tank look appealing? This is subjective, but since I had each light installed on one of my tanks for several weeks, I feel confident in giving my opinion.
    • Economy – how expensive is the light compared to others in the group?

    The lights we used for this head-to-head challenge are meant for 36-48 inch tanks. But each of these lights come in different sizes to accommodate bigger and smaller tanks.

    Hygger 24/7 Aquarium Light Full Review

    Hygger 24/7 aquarium led light turned on

    What’s in the Box?

    There’s not much to unboxing this Hygger 24/7 light. There’s only the light itself and the power cord. There is a wired remote that’s attached to the part of the power cord that’s attached to the light.

    Pretty darn simple.

    Let’s take a look at the feature categories we discussed in the last section. 

    Installation and Set Up

    Installing this light is really easy. You just attach the power cord and adjust the wire bracket feet to fit the length of your tank.

    Turning on the timer and other settings just takes a few button pushes on the wired remote.

    But, this light does not have an internal clock you can set. So, if you want to set the timer, you have to push the button at the exact time you want the cycle to start.

    Customization

    The wired remote makes programming the light super simple. You can set the light for a dynamic on/off setting or for a 24 hour circadian cycle.

    You can also set the light for several different solid colors, like red, green, blue, orange, etc. There’s also a setting that will cycle through all of the different colors.

    You can dim any of the light settings. The dimmer has five different intensity levels to choose from. 

    Unfortunately, you can’t change the spectrum on the regular daylight setting. But, this setting is great for growing plants as it is. Everything in the tank flourished while I was using this light.

    Reliability

    This light will lose all of your settings when the power is cut. 

    The biggest problem this causes is with the timer. Since this light has no central clock, you have to hit the button to start the timer at the exact time you want the cycle to begin. 

    But, if the light loses power at a weird time of day, you will need to wait for the next day and hope that you remember to push the button at the right time. I forgot several times and it was pretty annoying.

    However, I think this is a small price to pay considering how beautiful and economical this light is.

    Appearance

    Hygger 24/7 led lighting set up on fish tank

    In a word: GORGEOUS!!

    This Hygger light makes the tank look amazing. It really made my fish’s colors pop and just showed off the tank wonderfully. 

    I think that this light was even better looking than the Fluval.

    Economy 

    This light was tied for third when it came to price. But when you compare what you get to how much you pay, this light is probably the best value of all the ones we tested.

    At the time this article was written, the Fluval was more than 3 times as expensive as this Hygger light, and the Current USA was more than twice as expensive.

    So, you might not get all the bells and whistles, but for an economy light, this thing is an incredible deal.

    Overall Pros and Cons

    Pros: 

    • Beautiful appearance, just gorgeous
    • Lots of customization 
    • Excellent PAR
    • Built-in timer and dimmer
    • Awesome value for the price

    Cons: 

    • Loses settings when the power goes out
    • No clock you can set; timer button must be pressed at the time you want the cycle to start, which can be easy to forget to do
    hygger 36W 24/7 Lighting Aquarium LED Light, Sunrise-Daylight-Moonlight Mode and DIY Mode, Adjustable Timer Adjustable Brightness Fish Tank Light with Extendable Bracket 7 Colors for Planted Tank
    hygger 36W 24/7 Lighting Aquarium LED Light, Sunrise-Daylight-Moonlight Mode and DIY Mode, Adjustable Timer Adjustable Brightness Fish Tank Light with Extendable Bracket 7 Colors for Planted Tank

      Last update on 2024-03-17 / Commissions Earned / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API

      How Does it Compare To Other LED Lights?

      LED lights for planted rank overall rank scores

      I would say that this light does pretty well for itself when you compare it to the others in the group.

      When it came to PAR, the only light that tested better was the Fluval Plant light. The Fluval is also the most expensive light of the bunch, so its high test scores are expected. 

      But this Hygger light had a higher PAR than the much more expensive Current USA light.

      There are a lot of options for customizing this light, that’s for sure, but I do have to admit that the Fluval and Current USA offer more options.

      When it comes to economy, this light is the best deal out of the bunch. Definitely, if you need a plant light, and you don’t want to lay down a whole lot of dough, this is the light for you!

      I do wish it had a clock you could set and that it would save your settings the way Fluval and Current USA do. That would be really convenient.

      But, I thought this light showed off the tank better than any of the others. It is spectacular when it comes to appearance.

      Final Verdict

      I don’t think it’s hard to tell that I​​ really like this light. I think it’s the best value when you compare how much you pay to what you get for the money.

      If only it had an internal clock and saved your settings when it loses power, it would be damn near perfect!

      Look, of course, if you have the cash, the Fluval light is amazing and it lets you control the light and programming with an app on your phone. It’s the coolest of the bunch.

      But, this light is the next best, in my opinion. It makes the tank look gorgeous and it has more than enough power to grow a lush jungle of plants. You may even need to use the dimmer and turn it down a bit.

      This is definitely the best of the budget friendly options, by far.

      I highly recommend this light. I enjoyed having it on my tank and I plan to use it on one of my tanks over the next few months. It’s great.

      I hope you find this article helpful.

      I wish you and your fish the very best!

      hygger 36W 24/7 Lighting Aquarium LED Light, Sunrise-Daylight-Moonlight Mode and DIY Mode, Adjustable Timer Adjustable Brightness Fish Tank Light with Extendable Bracket 7 Colors for Planted Tank
      hygger 36W 24/7 Lighting Aquarium LED Light, Sunrise-Daylight-Moonlight Mode and DIY Mode, Adjustable Timer Adjustable Brightness Fish Tank Light with Extendable Bracket 7 Colors for Planted Tank

        Last update on 2024-03-17 / Commissions Earned / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API

        Katherine Morgan
        Katherine Morgan

        Hey, there! I'm Katherine from Northwest Florida. An aquarium specialist, I've kept tanks for over two decades, enjoy experimenting with low-tech planted setups and an avid South American cichlid enthusiast.

        7 Comments

        1. I love the light. The only complaint I have is on the 24/7 setting I would like to be able to dim down the middle of the day setting. I have no plants since I have a turtle. I think a little dimmer would be better for him. I worry about the brightness affecting his eyes.

        2. Would it work to add an external timer to make it more reliable? I am looking at getting this light but I really don’t want to deal with setting it when power goes out or I clean my tank.

          • Hello, thank you for your comment. Kate just had a look into this and tried it on one of her timers. She found if you have it on the 24/7 setting, it will start back at ‘dawn’ when the timer kicks on. The light will just turn off when the timer cuts the power later, but you can still enjoy the cool phases it goes through. On the normal just ‘on’ setting, it would function just fine on a traditional timer.

        3. Great review. Maybe it would be a bit more fair to compare the 48W Hygger light to the 46W Fluval, rather than this 36W Hygger. Would also love to see how the test results for both. Though judging by this I imagine they are probably closer

          • Thank you. It’s a fair suggestion. We’ll be purchasing more lights this year and increasing the scope of comparisons.

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