question about using led's instead of halides

[sabazerehi]

i'm looking into getting led lights for my tank but i don't really know much about them. i saw some on marinedepot.com, about $50 for 4w. how does 4w compare to halides? that's what i don't understand. how many would i need to light up a 40g tank? i know they're not cheap and i'm ok with that. i wouldl ove to have lights that are more efficient and don't give off as much heat as a halide. any help and info will be greatly appreciated!

[downhillbiker]

i am confused. can you link to what you are looking at? if i understand you right, you are looking at LED and expect a 4w to match a halide of 70w? or 150w? no chance. isn't 4w LED, like the moonlight strips? like 4 single 1w LEDs? the only fixtures that are LED that could sustain your reef are the multi LED fixtures, like Solaris.

[sabazerehi]

sorry for the confusion. here's a link to what i was looking at: http://www.marinedepot.com/ps_ViewItem~category~Current_USA_PowerBrite_LED_Lighting_System__4x1W_10000K_Linkable_LEDs~vendor~Cu rrent_USA~SearchStr~powerbrite~action~view~idProduct~CU01645~idCategory~FILTFILDLK.html
it's the current usa powerbrite led fixture. i've been reading some stuff on people who used them along with other lights (i do have 3 t5s already) and said they worked really great and that corals did well. and that's what i don't understand, how 4w can compare to halides or other lights. so i just wanted some clarification or maybe somebody out there has experience with them.

[downhillbiker]

what this fixture does is add the "shimmer" effect that is seen by halides. i am skeptical of how well they work. t5 lights have a lot of output and may wash out the LED shimmer. they do this because they are a point-source light. like halides. they have all the light coming from one finite location, and it magnifies and shades with the surface agitation in the water. the magnification can actually amplify the output by 200% up to 4x per second. This is great for halides, but for the LED i dont know that it would make much difference. if you really want the ripple go for it, but that is all you will get, i dont think the corals will notice much difference.

[sabazerehi]

thanks that's what i needed to know i guess

[luv4paws2]

I tried two of the actinic powerbrites to add more blue to my tank, but the 150 halides completely washed them out.

[kenko]

Luv4paws2,
If you are looking to replace the T5s and or MH lighting you need to look at the Solaris lights. There is one other company that slips my mind at the moment but they are worth the rice. I am running the Solaris I-5 over my 90g and I have had to turn (dim) them to 50% power because they were "burning/bleaching" the coral. I used to run my chiller about 6 - 8 months a year and I have yet to turn it on this past year and am taking it off this month as it is no longer needed. LEDs are here to stay.

[goochesfish]

The other brand is Aqua Illumination. They are very expensive. Kenko, how long have you had LED's? How is your coral growth with them?

[kenko]

I've had them just under a year. I had to dim them due to bleaching but have come back up to 65% now. I have several SPS frags that have been on the bottom about 25 - 30 inches for the light for the last 6-8 months and have had signifigant growth.

[sabazerehi]

which ones are you using? and are they being supplemented by any other lights?

[geedub]

for the price might as well just keep halides or t5, eesh. i could start another tank for those costs lol marinedepot for a 48" solaris unit Our Price: $2,778.00

[kenko]

Yes that is true but I have not had to run my chiller at all which really heats up the family room and the central AC does not run as much. the water temp has been more stable too. I think I save about $75 per month from electricity I don't use anymore.

I picked mine up from ARB distributing internet order and My 60" was about that with shipping.