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Unread 01/29/2018, 11:06 AM   #24
oreo57
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Join Date: Apr 2013
Posts: 1,793
Quote:
Originally Posted by ReefkeeperZ View Post
I already have a 150W halide pendant that I was considering going back to, but I was hoping for an LED option for energy efficiency, which is why I created this thread, if there arent any LEDs that can truly give me what I want I will go back to other lighting.
Well first off you can get energy efficiency in almost any current premium LED fixture.
This comes in 2 places.
1)watt efficiency. MH are on the order of 100Lumens/watt.
current LED's are approaching 200Lumens/watt
now a visible metric but used to show a concept

2)Directionality.. no matter how you look at it MH/T5's are 360 degree emitters. LED start at about 120 degree and are collimated to 90-60 degrees.
That alone makes them more "efficient" light sources.
Regardless of reflector efficiency there will always be losses bouncing back/forth absorption.

Whether it pays off the increased investment costs is another story.

LED strength is in color tailoring, targeting and control.
A 30W LED (currently) will never produce the same amount of photons over a 150W MH.
'Best" estimate is to use a factor of 2 or less.. watt wise..
75W LED = 150W MH.
BROAD assumption but one needs a starting point..

In a sense LEd's are not any limiting factor (in output or cost really) but current designs are..

for a 40B I'd recommend any "panel" light (like the Orphek Atlantic) over pucks.
As to pucks.. you are forgetting Aquaticlife Halos.. Kind of a compromise between Radion density and Kessil density..

2 Radion xr15 gen4 are big $'s 190W exceeding (theoretically and practically)the output of 400W Mh

Pucks can be moved even tilted to cut down on shadowing (shadows are just basic geometry) ect.

One puck will generally be enough for a 40b w/ some caveats..
w/ diffuser and proper height it will meet or exceed a 150W MH.

Others will chime in if I'm way off base here but see little in the way of gross errors..


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