Led Life time.

[Theo Reef]

Hi all reefers. Well, like the title states, what is the life time of LEDs? after how many hours do they loose PAR/intensity?

Come now, where all the DIY gurus?

[pico-reefer]

I think they last like 30,000+ hours, which is why everyone loves them becuase they rarely need to be replaced

[dlp211]

The quoted stat is that Cree 3w LEDs will run for 12 hours a day for 10 years and still maintain 70% of their intensity.

[S13<3]

ive seen some up to 100k hrs, but lets say 50k hrs, 8hr a day x 365 days a year= 2920. 50,000 / 2920= 17yrs

so theoretically it should last what would seem like a lifetime lol

[Theo Reef]

Thanks for the reply all. The thing is I live in South-Africa, and LEDs is very expensive here. So I want to know weather its worth it.

[pico-reefer]

i believe its worth it IMO

[zoolan70]

There are not any real-world long-term tests of the LEDs in reef tanks that go out far enough to really know for sure. They simply haven't been used that long yet. In my case, I only needed them to last 3 years to be worth the purchase, so I was comfortable spending the money.

I bought mine, not for the energy savings every month over MH, but for the bulb replacement costs. I would spend $400 a year in bulbs, so if these last just 4 years, I'm ahead. Add that to the energy costs and lack of heat issues, and it has an ROI for me off less than 3 years.

Just some things to think about...

[Mike31154]

Keep in mind that there are different quality of LEDs out there and also, in the end, they are a 'diode', an electronic component that is subject to random failure at any time. They also do not take well to overheating or user error, so if you happen to inadvertently overdrive a LED, it could fail immediately or die in the very near future. Depending on how the array is put together and how they are driven, a single LED failing could also lead to an unfortunate chain of events where they all go in very short order. A simple driver malfunction can take out part of or your whole fixture.

Now that I've opined some of the negative possibilities, I'm still planning to switch to LED technology on my system in the near future. The technology is advancing quickly, prices are coming down and as mentioned in an earlier post, the payback time is becoming shorter. The flexibility in color choice of LEDs is another plus, as well as the choice of optics or none. You don't need reflectors either, which is another plus IMO. No matter what I've tried, my T5HO & MH reflectors are getting to the point where the salt drops have cut down their effectivity. Can't get 'em clean anymore and if you put glass over them, you lose some of the PAR you're paying so dearly for. Many of the LED fixtures are coated and should be easy to clean up with a quick wipe of a damp cloth.

[Theo Reef]

Thank you guys.
I'm really thinking of switching over to LEDs. The thing though is we really haven't got much experience in LEDS, but what I've read from RC, is that Cree is my best choice. And for that I must import them from our States.
Thank you again for the input guys.

[Phsycodelic81]

what has been said about the life of the led is at 20,000 hrs the led will have 80% of its efficiency left at 8 hrs a day thats 7 years.

[Didac]

LED's will pay by them self with time................

[TheFishMan65]

Look at Cutter out of Australia it maybe a cheaper than getting them from the states.

[Paul B]

so theoretically it should last what would seem like a lifetime lol


Whos'e lifetime?

[jwoyshnar]

No one knows. They haven't been out long enough to tell. Best description is above that states it's an electronics device and can fail at anytime.

[Paul B]

Oh, just like my lifetime :strange: