Your opinion counts... MH vs LEDs...

[zportell]

Along with my 100 gallon build, I'm wanting to possibly try out the LED technology. Currently my 40 gallon DT has 200 watt, 14k MH, my corals are growing at an excellent rate. They're healthy and light reaches the bottom (24-inches) of the tank. Since I am new with LED technology, I came across the "48 inch Panorama Marine" fixture on Ecoxotic. They seem very sleek, and from the video, it seems you only need one of these lights to be enough to grow corals both sps and lps and clams and well you name it...

Besides the electric savings from LEDs and the heat issues MH create, what are some of the other issues or benefits from these LEDs one should know about before making the switch?

http://www.ecoxotic.com/panorama-marine-led-system.html

 

[Herbie]

Yogoshio is the prophet of panorama.

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 2

 

[yogoshio]

Metal Halides are great, but LEDs are far more cost efficient. Lifetime cost of LED is less than 1/2 of Halides. You'll find a lot of us on here use LEDs and get great growth from SPS and others.

Most importantly, no bulbs, no ballasts, and 1/3 less per month on your energy bills.

I switched from power compacts to LED's and saw a $10 per month savings. Imagine what the difference of 250 halides or more would be.

The options are endless, the color spectrum is fully available, and you can get completely crazy with whatever depth, coloration and anything you want.

It is a little more upfront, but the lifetime costs are significantly less, and there are dozens who can attest at their ability to grow sps and others with great results.

 

[yogoshio]

And yes, I have ecoxotics over my tank. From my reseach, it was the best bang for your buck with expandability, color spectrum options, and ease of use. The single strips are for LPS, not SPS. If you want SPS, get their Panorama Pro 24" system, or get several 48" strips.

Their site even says that the single strips are only for LPS, not SPS.

For SPS you're better off getting their 24" fixtures which has 6 12" strips in a fixture. I have two of these over my 55, and it will be enough for my 110 I'm upgrading to.

 

[Lil BamBam]

I'm just waiting for people to test more before I try LEDS.. I know a few have bleached their corals already and won't confess and refuse to blame the light

But I love MH, just dislike the cost and heat. I currently run T5's and like it, just not getting the same growth rate and my shimmer

Over all and JMO

LEDS are the way to go and cost up front is the hard part. Also when doing LEDS, you will have to do a Parr reading to find where you stand with the old fixture and know your max once color is achieved.

 

[yogoshio]

Most people get wayyy overpowered systems like Radions, and don't acclimate their corals to the new lights properly, that's the main issue.

Ecoxotics do require some acclimation, but for they aren't overpowered like other systems. I run mine at 100% and my coloration and corals are doing great. I have 1" of growth on my chalice in 3 months and 1.5" on my acros and montis.

 

[Kevin Says]

When t5s first came out, manufacturers quoted its mtbf of 20,000 hours and said it will last 3-5 years. It didn't quite turn out that way. While t5s can last 20,000 hours, its useful life for reef use is only like 6000-8000 hours. We don't yet know how long LEDs are really good for. Marine depot says 5 years now. They said it was 5-7 last year. One thing for sure, it is not 50,000 hours. So take that in to account when you are pricing this out.

 

[yogoshio]

Most LED's will be down to 70% power after 5 years, and every manufacturer recommends changing around that time. We do know how it turns out because manufacturers when testing their products push the outputs on the lights past recommended wattage to estimate a burn out time, which is the same thing tire makers, engine makers, and every manufacturer does to test their products useful life. LED's have been used in aquariums for over 20 years now, just not mainstream, and their lifespans have been verified.

Moreover, let's say LED's only last 3 years, and do the cost comparison there. In 3 years, with bulb replacement every 6 months, with radiums, $80 a piece. In 3 years, with bulb changes every 6 months, thats 6 changes, so 12 bulbs

12*80= $960


And depending on the LEDs, the energy savings can vary, but with 2 24" ecoxotic fixtures, and using the national average of .11 per kWh, and 10 hours on, the halides would cost $230 per year for two fixtures, and the ecoxotics would cost $75 per year.

So over just a 3 year span, not even the full 5, Halides energy is $690, or the cost of one ecotech radion, compared to $225.

So, just in bulbs and electricity over 3 years, you've saved a total of $1425, and that leaves 2 useful years of life left!

I'd say that would cover any of the initial expense....

 

[BADGUS]

Pretty much any led fixture capable of supporting SPS will save you a ton of money in the long run. It's a personal preference as to which brand you decide to go with. The important part is what components are inside the fixtures you Decide to go with. The best led diodes come from Cree,bridgelux and Phillips rebel. As long as the units have good components inside and are properly driven,it's a matter of how much technology you want to spend on or simply a matter of what visually appeals to you. The shimmer the leds put out is far greater than MH's shimmer. Good luck on whatever you do get,you will be happy i'm sure.

 

[poidog]

I am not a fan of just LED lighting over a reef tank, especially SPS. I'm not entirely sold yet, and have seen plenty of people switch back to MH/T5 after a year. The only all LED fixture that I would try is the Ecotech Radion (infact I may be trying it over a new tank I'm starting).

HOWEVER, Gus's prestige-LED LED/T5 combo unit would be the only LED unit I'd use over a full reef tank. It uses all the same CREE LEDs that the radion uses and also has 4 T5 bulbs, so you get the best of both worlds. I believe these are launching Sept 1st, and you can buy them directly from him or several other retailers that he has contracted with.

 

[FishBeard]

I went from t5 to led, then back to t5, upgraded tanks and got another t5. Now debating gutting the fixture to retrofit into my canopy and add a couple strips of royal blue and full spectrum LEDs to supplement the t5 for pop and shimmer.

 

[maidia]

DIY leds is worked for me. My main tank (120 gallon) all SPS doing fine for over a year now. Lost of gentleman here saw my tank. Right now in the market have a lot of good LEDs fixtures and cheap too. My frag tank doing great with zoanthid, palys and some SPS under cheap LED fixture and they all look good. I thought the sps in my frag tank will be death but they are not, their color and grow as good as in my main tank.
If you have time check, search and build your self, if not then try to buy some ready built fixture. You are welcome to stop by my house and see if you like.

About the PAR:

My main tank - 200-250 (bottom) to 500-700 (top). Fixture are 10 inches (not sure may be 12 inches) over the water surface. 4'x2'x2' tank
My frag tank - 250-300 (bottom) to 600-800 (top). Fixture are 10 inches (not sure may be 12 inches) over the water surface. 24"x24"x12" tank.

 

[jrpark22000]

I went with LEDs to avoid the MH heat. After almost a year most of the SPS look better than ever, but others are lagging behind. (Even using a par meter I bleached too many corals during the transition from MH) I also find it challenging to get corals placed properly with the optics. I’m hoping a color spectrum closer to a 14k ushio will bring them around. I’m in the process of a DIY supplement build and adding a forth AI for more even distribution. Overall I’m happy with LEDs, but far from completely satisfied.

 

[zportell]

And yes, I have ecoxotics over my tank. From my reseach, it was the best bang for your buck with expandability, color spectrum options, and ease of use. The single strips are for LPS, not SPS. If you want SPS, get their Panorama Pro 24" system, or get several 48" strips.

Their site even says that the single strips are only for LPS, not SPS.

For SPS you're better off getting their 24" fixtures which has 6 12" strips in a fixture. I have two of these over my 55, and it will be enough for my 110 I'm upgrading to.

Ben, I want to make sure we are talking about the same fixture. Is the following the 48" strip you reference: http://www.ecoxotic.com/panorama-marine-led-system.html. They have it for $309.00

You're saying one 24" of: http://www.ecoxotic.com/24-panorama-pro-led-fixture.html one each side of the tank is what you have and your SPS grow well under it?

The site makes it look like their 48" strip (first link) will be enough to light and grow any coral. SPS, LPS, etc.. (see picture)
View attachment 5704

Do you think this is their marketing strategy or do you think (have experience with) how these lights actually emit light? It's such a sleek and good looking design (which is what my wife want's!!) that it would be perfect if I only need one. I don't know if I can get $600 bucks out of savings to get two of these things for my 100.

 

[Soapfish]

LED's all the way.

 

[poidog]

The site makes it look like their 48" strip (first link) will be enough to light and grow any coral. SPS, LPS, etc.. (see picture)

Do you think this is their marketing strategy or do you think (have experience with) how these lights actually emit light? It's such a sleek and good looking design (which is what my wife want's!!) that it would be perfect if I only need one. I don't know if I can get $600 bucks out of savings to get two of these things for my 100.

The site only says soft coral. No way for SPS or stony corals. Low light LPS maybe okay. Tech sheet says they use 1.25w LEDs

 

[markitekt]

Ben, I want to make sure we are talking about the same fixture. Is the following the 48" strip you reference: http://www.ecoxotic.com/panorama-marine-led-system.html. They have it for $309.00

You're saying one 24" of: http://www.ecoxotic.com/24-panorama-pro-led-fixture.html one each side of the tank is what you have and your SPS grow well under it?

The site makes it look like their 48" strip (first link) will be enough to light and grow any coral. SPS, LPS, etc.. (see picture)
View attachment 5704

Do you think this is their marketing strategy or do you think (have experience with) how these lights actually emit light? It's such a sleek and good looking design (which is what my wife want's!!) that it would be perfect if I only need one. I don't know if I can get $600 bucks out of savings to get two of these things for my 100.

Looks like the aesthetics overtook function with that strip thing. I'd stay away from it. Looks like it was made to light up a painting on the wall.

 

[Greg]

Tried led for a year and a half, going back to mh/t5.

AI sol leds work great for 6 months or so. Colors improve, growth is great, etc. However, you can quickly tell something is missing as corals slowly decline after being in tank for a while. They are healthy with great pe and everything, just brown/pale.

HOWEVER (lol), I am also thinking of giving the prestige led/t5 a shot. Need to see how spread is though because my tank is 25 wide and sps in every corner. Going to probably have to go with 120* optics or high number.

 

[markitekt]

I've tried many different optic combos and found that the honeycomb lenses give the best spread by a mile.

Tried led for a year and a half, going back to mh/t5, if i find a fixture that fits my tank...

HOWEVER (lol), I am thinking of giving the prestige led/t5 a shot. Need to see how spread is though because my tank is 25 wide and sps in every corner. Going to probably have to go with 120* optics or high number.

 

[ReeFantasy]

. Looks like it was made to light up a painting on the wall.

Hahahaha funniest/truest comment of the year!!