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Moonstream
04/09/2015, 05:32 PM
I found this fixture looking across possible LED fixtures. I like the price, but that and the fact its on ebay makes me weary. anyone have any experience with it?

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Dimmable-Full-Spectrum-165W-LED-Light-For-Coral-Reef-Saltwater-Aquarium-Tank-/331354944363?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item4d264b336b

it would be going over a 40g breeder; tank is going to have low light corals but I like the shimmer effect of LED.

CStrickland
04/09/2015, 06:30 PM
I got this one: http://www.ebay.com/itm/Best-Dimmable-165W-LED-Aquarium-Light-Full-Spectrum-Reef-Coral-Grow-Panel/171608813631?_trksid=p2047675.c100005.m1851&_trkparms=aid%3D222007%26algo%3DSIC.MBE%26ao%3D1%26asc%3D29386%26meid%3D6cc7d49e18dc4768a68a04a79e79 a870%26pid%3D100005%26rk%3D1%26rkt%3D6%26mehot%3Dpp%26sd%3D331354944363&rt=nc&tfrom=331354944363&tpos=unknow&ttype=price&talgo=origal

i think its the same idea, but yours says the LED's are bridgelux
i think mine would be great over a 40b. the colors on these full spectrum leds are miles nicer to look at than the blue / white. do be aware that the dimmer is a knob, so you can't program a sunset into it or have it ramp up everyday. i dialed in the intensity i like and plugged into lamp timers, but it's nice to be able to adjust it.

BigCountry74
04/09/2015, 06:37 PM
it might work. at least if it does not, 99 bucks is not that bad a loss when it comes to this hobby lol

joshky
04/09/2015, 08:12 PM
I have the same light fixture (but from topledseller), and it works just fine. You WILL want two of them on a 40b. You can start with one now, but if you can afford it, go ahead and buy two. Same can be said for most LED fixtures, they generally cover a 24x24 area, so keep that in mind.

Moonstream
04/09/2015, 08:33 PM
this tank is not meant to be up forever- I'll have it up around a year before I go back to school (I'm on medical leave right now). I'll try one of these for now, I can live with some shading on the sides; like you said, worst comes to worst I buy a second and probably still spend less than if I'd gone with a T5 or MH unit.

how did you guys hang this?

JerSaint
04/09/2015, 08:56 PM
I went with this one and I LOVE it!

http://www.ebay.com/itm/165W-Dimmable-LED-Aquarium-Grow-Light-Full-Spectrum-FishTank-Reef-Coral-LPS-SPS-/190999433320?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item2c78741068

cleverbs
04/10/2015, 08:44 AM
Dont get this light! I hope you didnt buy it already. I had these over my 75g reef....I got them because my old lights had failed at the time and my coral HATED the light. Nothing in the tank changed other then the light and things went down hill fast. There are better lights for around the same price. Also IMO/IME not getting cheap "Full Spectrum" leds is the way to go. Get the White and Blue ones if you are getting a cheap LED. One of the best Aquaillumination LED fixtures is the SOL. People have the best growth with it.

joshky
04/10/2015, 09:05 AM
Dont get this light! I hope you didnt buy it already. I had these over my 75g reef....I got them because my old lights had failed at the time and my coral HATED the light. Nothing in the tank changed other then the light and things went down hill fast. There are better lights for around the same price. Also IMO/IME not getting cheap "Full Spectrum" leds is the way to go. Get the White and Blue ones if you are getting a cheap LED. One of the best Aquaillumination LED fixtures is the SOL. People have the best growth with it.

I agree that you get what you pay for, like the OP my 20g has been a temporary thing so I didn't go all out. That being said I know a handful of people using these lights and none of us have had issues. People with SPS, giganteas, magnifica's etc. all thriving and growing. My 5" blue maxima is starting to grow again after I stopped slacking on dosing. I believe you had a bad experience but I do not believe it was 100% the lights fault.

Here is my tank thread for reference.
http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2483760

joshky
04/10/2015, 09:12 AM
this tank is not meant to be up forever- I'll have it up around a year before I go back to school (I'm on medical leave right now). I'll try one of these for now, I can live with some shading on the sides; like you said, worst comes to worst I buy a second and probably still spend less than if I'd gone with a T5 or MH unit.

how did you guys hang this?

I hung mine from the ceiling.

ReefsandGeeks
04/10/2015, 09:20 AM
+ 1, mine is hung from the celin as well. The one I got only has 1 power plug, so all lights go one an off at once, no "blue only" timer for mine :( Pretty sure the pics showed two plugs, but still works well.

hobbzz
04/10/2015, 09:21 AM
Dont get this light! I hope you didnt buy it already. I had these over my 75g reef....I got them because my old lights had failed at the time and my coral HATED the light. Nothing in the tank changed other then the light and things went down hill fast. There are better lights for around the same price. Also IMO/IME not getting cheap "Full Spectrum" leds is the way to go. Get the White and Blue ones if you are getting a cheap LED. One of the best Aquaillumination LED fixtures is the SOL. People have the best growth with it.


AI's have some of the worst spectrum in the business. Just because something sells well does not mean its good. Most of the people who don't like leds and switch back to t5 or halide fall into two major categories: they either buy fixtures with cool white (known for 5 years in the diy market to wash out color) and royal blue only, this combo has horrible spectrum. Or they have AI, Kessil, or radions. These fixtures also lack spectrum. Multiple stores where I live have stopped putting sps under these fixtures.

Personally, I've been using bridgelux leds, same ones in this fixture, for 4 years in my diy fixtures with no problems and great growth. I did just start supplementing with t5 actinic, but that's because the output of all actinic leds suck, regardless of brand. I'm sure these fixtures are the same as evergrow and reefbreeders, products that have been know to work well. I just ordered one of these fixtures to fill in since upgrading to a larger tank. I haven't received it yet, but based on four years of using bridgelux, I'd say they should work well.

cleverbs
04/10/2015, 09:27 AM
Well I have used These, I have used AI Vegas, Hydras and I didnt like any of them, Went to MH/T5 and have 20x the growth and color in my sps corals. Sorry I just didnt have a good experience with them and the Op asked what people thought of them, so I told him what I thought of them.

joshky
04/10/2015, 09:33 AM
Well I have used These, I have used AI Vegas, Hydras and I didnt like any of them, Went to MH/T5 and have 20x the growth and color in my sps corals. Sorry I just didnt have a good experience with them and the Op asked what people thought of them, so I told him what I thought of them.

FWIW I'm going either t5 or hybrid on my 80g, so I understand your point of view. Some people can compete with the best tanks using LEDs, but I miss my t5s.

hobbzz
04/10/2015, 09:46 AM
JoshKy you just have to do it right. Most people replace a full spectrum t5 or mh setup with virtually zero spectrum fixtures and blame leds instead of the fixture. Actinics haven't caught up yet, so I would suggest hybrid.

Mael
04/10/2015, 10:12 AM
The chinese black box fictures work great, just depends on what features you want as to the price you pay as they have the 2 knob dimmables for 100 or under and they have full programmable units for 200-250 that do sunrise/sunset/moonlight etc.

I have been running the knob style units for a cpl years now and all corals grow great under them, even sps, the key, especially if you are switching to these from anything else is acclimation, if you run them at 100% from day one your probably going to burn some coral. I run mine at 40-50% white channel and 80% blue channel and everything is happy under these.

That said, I am starting my upgrade from manual to programmable today through 21ledusa.com, pointed out by my brother it seems to be the best light for your money especially those of us on a budget. I will be getting 2 48" full spec pro bars and the ramp timer.

PIPSTER
04/10/2015, 10:45 AM
I got a similar light over my 40B, and it is enough light span.
I removed the lenses, and it still has lots of shimmer. Shimmer is determined by how much you point your powerhead upward towards the surface.
I retro-fited some 420nm violet leds in, amongst other colors for more actinic spectrum.
I'm very happy. The only thing is it doesn't dim all the way down to 1%...just to about probably 50%, which is fine. I have a thread about the custom led colors that I put in, if you want to know about other colors.

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2474827

If you want to solder in some leds, I would recommend minimum 420nm and 495nm.

JerSaint
04/10/2015, 11:17 AM
These lights are very strong, start off slow. I am at 20% whites and 35% blues. I will be working my way up over the next few months to 50% W and 65% B.

Moonstream
04/10/2015, 11:56 AM
I ordered one; it's supposed to get in the 20th. super pumped! by then I should be on my way through a cycle.