XM 10k with LED Actinics

[austin93]

So, I want to increase both growth and color at the same time. I am hoping that by going with 250w xm10k bulbs on an hqi ballast I can increase the growth. I guess my question is can I improve the color by adding 24 XP-E Royal Blue leds controlled by my apex. I currently run radiums and am happy, but could use a little less blue or at least increase the brightness of the tank in general. Any input would be appreciated, thanks.

[sirreal63]

The LED's will help balance out the color but here is your real concern...the difference in par. Using Sanjays results, going from a Radium 20K to an XM 10K on HQI will change the par from 85 to 182, and that is before you factor in the par from the LED's. That is a serious jump in par. The XM 10k is one of the most powerful bulbs you can get. If you acclimate properly, you can do it, and the growth will be good once everything is adapted to the light. I used to run all XM 10k's and had fabulous growth. I used VHO actintics to balance out the color and it worked great. I see no reason why you couldn't use LED's.

[austin93]

Thanks for the response. I would really watch how I acclimate the corals for sure. I am especially concerned about balancing out the color of the 10k bulbs. I can't find anywhere local that is running them so I am unable to see them except in pictures which can be a mixed bag of ballast choice and photography. My m80 ballast fires radiums well, but If I could reproduce this by using leds and the xm's I would be happier as I could tone down the blue at my leisure. Hopefully others will continue to contribute. Thanks.

[tinkerman]

What reflecter are you using as I have problems bleaching corals on my sand bed of 125 gal?

[austin93]

I use spider reflectors. Are you using xm 10k and leds?

[tinkerman]

I am using 3 radiums, reeflex hqi ballasts(m80), and lumen bright mini reflecters. I had spider reflecters before. There is a big difference is light by getting better reflecters. I have a red planet that if it is not in the shade it slowly turns white when moved out in direct light on the sand.

[austin93]

Sounds like a nice setup. I'm not interested in new reflectors, mainly want to use leds, but just scared about the look. I just can't get a grasp of how the colors seem to look off a little in pictures. I'm sure its probably a photo artifact, but still I'm concerned. I was hoping that by mixing the MH and led I would get a safe alternative to all led but still get the taste I need to get me through till next year when I'm sure there will be new technology and advances in lighting.

[austin93]

I'm going to bump this back up to the top. I need some input here. There has to be some people running leds just as the actinic portion of their lighting.

[bevoboy]

I'm going to bump this back up to the top. I need some input here. There has to be some people running leds just as the actinic portion of their lighting.

I'm running stunners for actinic but only dawn/dusk, not to supplement. The output from the 5 stunner strips is nearly undetectable with the halides on (3x250 Radium on IceCaps).

The color I get from the stunners is fantastic but they are nowhere near bright enough to run as supplements. Actually considering a switch to ReefBrites or something else with a bit more power.

I ran XM 10Ks with 2xT5 supplementation (UVL super actinic) and got a really nice color combination. But those suckers are so bright you would probably need a boatload of blue LEDS to color them up.

[austin93]

I think if I DIY something with cree royal blues, I will get much more powerful lighting than your stunners. Aren't they just 1w each?

[austin93]

So the plan is moving forward slowly. I am waiting on a check for some extra work I have done before I jump. How much of a par increase could I get with 24 xp-e cree leds with 60 deg. optics? Would it be enough to make a serious increase?