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SteveZ15

Advanced Reefer
Location
Ridgewood Queens
Rating - 100%
60   0   0
I would like you led guys to help me out if you can take 5 mins to answer a few questions.
I have t5 mh and I am really happy with it,people say led is just as good,but I dont think its better than mh,not counting energy and heat.I am figure out if the spike in electric is worth it.I gotta look through the bills a few bucks dont matter but if its costing me 60 a month then it might not be worth the slight edge mh might have in growing coral. Can people with led help me and post what kind of fixture you have and what you had before.What you like and dislike about the unit and was it worth the money you paid. Also what difference positive and negative affects did it have on your coral..I now nothing about led and its possible i will make the jump.Thanks in advance to anyone who helps me out..
 

doorag1

Active Reefer
Location
queens
Rating - 100%
15   0   0
i cant give you pros or cons but i did just order me some led ppl i have spoke with and the tanks i've seen do look nicer and the coral looked healthy they say they have nice growth so i made the leap lol but i wanna stick around for this one may get some real good info out of this
 

cmantis

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Rating - 100%
103   0   0
If you can deal with the heat and don't mind the electric then mh/t5 combo will beat LED's imo for coral growth.

I have led's and was actually thinking of doing a comparison as I have two identical tanks plumbed together but don't feel like buying new bulbs for the mh/t5 combo I have to run it.
 

greg 45

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Location
bayonne / nj
Rating - 100%
24   0   0
For years I ran metal halides yes heat was the issue .
I did as much reading as possible at the time about 1 1/2 years ago purchased pacific sun who stated this was a top of the line led. I struggled over that period with the lamps ,e/mail to Poland and local company who sold them. I found Fathom leds on here and purchased them , a local vendor who spent the time to show me what the lamps are growing. My system is all anemones and noticed a difference in two weeks. To make a long story short go to someones home and see what lamp they are running to see for yourself.
 

ducati335i

Advanced Reefer
Rating - 100%
178   0   1
For 60 a month keep what u have.. LEDs are great abd I have them.. But like I tell everyone, LEDs are an 8 out of 10, t5's 10 out of 10.. I never liked mh, idk... I had them all.. LEDs will be equal to t5's soon...
But in the end we all know tank parameters is what really counts/husbandry .. I would check out peoples tanks that have LEDs.. But people that actually know what they are doin
 

ducati335i

Advanced Reefer
Rating - 100%
178   0   1
Btw I hear great things about fathom led, I have ai sols, can't go wrong w either.. Do not get anything else,,, go search on RC for 1000s of reviews on ai..
But like I said, stick to what u have for now, and start looking at tanks.. More than welcome to come check mine out, I have tons is Sps, Lps, soft corals in my tank
 

ducati335i

Advanced Reefer
Rating - 100%
178   0   1
Me? I just love that it's efficient, all controllable, sleek, great customer support, lasts very long(no bulb replacement.. And IMO colors really are great.. Like I said for me the 2% difference is not worth it.. When it's day lights there really is no difference, but when it's actinic some colors may lose their color..
 

ducati335i

Advanced Reefer
Rating - 100%
178   0   1
I'm gonna go there and actually saw my tank is pretty damn good, cone by, it's mixed reef, I have a ton of Sps, I even have an Ora true blue tort I didn't even know.. I've sold many people on LEDs. To me it's more about husbandry, and lights can make a tank look good. I wish I had that camera app to take a pic and adjust white balance, I'll get it soon enough
 
M

Moneymaks24

Guest
Rating - 100%
178   0   1
Ai or fathom that's it nothing else lol, crack me up. Do your own research theres a lot of good lights out there depending on your budget.
 

FastUno

Senior Member
Location
Marlboro, NJ
Rating - 100%
79   0   0
My 250W Phoenix Mogul pair bulb costs:
Year 1 = 150
Year 2 = 300
Year 3 = 450
Year 4 = 600
Year 5 = 750

Add savings for electricity, the money you save on not buying & running a chiller and the pump that feeds the chiller and the reasons add up.

My online buddy, who is a lighting FANATIC & who has been for years, says these lights are the biggest bang for your buck. When looking at the user reviews, I think it speaks for itself. If anyone has one of these, please chime in.

http://www.marinedepot.com/Maxspect...t_Fixtures-Maxspect-0M1131-FILTFILDTS-vi.html

On another note. MH/T5's have been the best combo that I have ever used (never tried LED's yet). From what I am seeing and hearing from others is that a T5/LED combo would be awesome and would be just as effective as MH/T5's.

Check out this T5/LED combo tank:
http://reefbuilders.com/2013/02/09/reef-builders-month-jason-crockett/

This is what he uses:
"Keeping this tank illuminated is accomplished by using a hybrid light system. A Sunlight Supply T5 light fixture outfitted with four 48-inch 54-watt tubes. Types of tubes used are two ATI-Blue+, one KZ Fiji Purple / ATI Purple Plus (pink bulb) (alternate bulbs at each change out), and one KZ New Generation 14k. Three 48-inch Reefbrite LED strips; two blues and one 50/50. Front to back arrangement of lights; RB-Blue LED, RB-50/50 LED, KZ Fiji Purple / ATI Purple Plus, ATI Blue+, KZ New Generation 14k, ATI Blue+ and RB-Blue LED."
 
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SteveZ15

Advanced Reefer
Location
Ridgewood Queens
Rating - 100%
60   0   0
Yeah so true that listening to 1 guy is better than doing actual research to compare LEDs. So true bro

You Can Read Every Thing On Led And Get All Different Reviews ..So I CAnt Own And RuN All Fixtures The Point Of This Is For People To Post What Led They HaVe What They Like And Dont. If THey Switched Was It Worth It This Is Part Of Research.
 
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SteveZ15

Advanced Reefer
Location
Ridgewood Queens
Rating - 100%
60   0   0
The Ati Light T5led I Hear Is Good But Expensive.I Think With Led They Are Most Good Fixtures. Setting The Colors And Intensity Is Key.i Dont Think Ill Beat Mh T5 .If I Decide To Go Led Ill Get A Used One To Start If I Dont Like It I CaN Sell If I Do.i.Can Run For A Year And upgRade. Ill Read The Links When I Get Home On Pc Thanks
 

tunicata

Tunicate Tamer
Location
Brooklyn, NY
Rating - 100%
163   0   0
I personally think it is just about preference and what's the latest trend.

I entered the hobby in 2006/7 and metal halides and T5s were what everyone had and corals, fish, owners, etc were happy.

Then at some point, people started using LEDs and saw that the intense blue color will show you the fluorescence of the corals, reds are much redder etc (more so than 20k MH I guess, and with LED supplementation vs an entire fixture).

Truly, I think that's the biggest selling point of LEDs. People like the visual. I do not believe that typical nano tank owners actually see long term substantial benefits cost wise.

Most tanks under 120g or so (a functional depth under 24" esp. with sand) do not need more than 2x250 watts of light and even then, only if they have SPS (and at that point I'm not sure if it is need vs want...for some particular point of measure as I've seen the same SPS growing pretty and very speedy under T5s, 250w and 400w all in the upper level of the tank) (I do not know why people with tank heights of 16" or less buy LEDs for the strength of the light, especially if their tank has very few to no SPS. What is the point of paying $700 for a fixture that when you are only going to use 10-20% of it's power??).

So, for most nano tanks, I do not think electricity bill should really be that much of a game changer. When I ran 2x250w (run ~6 hrs per day) plus all of my other reef equipment, my bill wasn't over $30 a month if that (due to the tank).

The other aspect of the light issue people talk about is the cost per bulb/unit and electricity bill. Since I constantly see people selling their LEDs I doubt most people get much out of the supposed 5 year life span of an LED. The constant upgrading, changing out of leds for a different color, etc kind of negates the statement that LEDs will be made up in cost over the fixtures life time. LEDs cost 500-700+ for just one unit of the primo fixtures with options you dont NEED (thunderstorms, clouds). Selling that within 2-3 years, makes it more like a pay up front lease kind of deal and depending on the brand, it may or may not have a decent resale value (and of course, what is the next fixture type of interest). Also...my MH bulbs cost maybe 50-60$ each, that's $120 or less per year and is relly the only thing I'd have to replace. On a retro fixture, after 5 years, it still costs less than one of the primo LED fixtures.

Then there is the heat. People without canopies should have less of an issue, and should probably have a home AC if their ambient temp indoors gets above 80 degrees for their own health concerns. But even running my 2x250w in a canopy without an ac 9mos out of the year my ambient temp and tank temp never goes above 80 degrees.
Fans are a good option for heat. AND fans are still used my many people with LEDs. So, it's not like the expense /clutter of fans (or chillers) are being taken away 100%.

So, in my mind, the LED purchase cost over equivalent lighting seems to be a more cost/heat/etc efficient choice for tanks over 150g medium-heavy SPS domination, who intend to keep their purchased LED fixtures AS IS for at least 5 years (i mention 5 because websites and reefers always mention that in 5 years you'll make up the purchase price for what you would have paid in electricity and overall cost).

Anyway, now we have lower cost options on LEDs that work well enough and make the tank look pretty without trying/having good husbandry. So, most of the cost efficiency argument is unnecessary right?

For instance, I will get the D120 value LEDs for $130-179 used or new (2 units) as a back up for if anything happens to my t5 fixture. Why? Because it's inexpensive, it will grow coral, i do not need thunderstorms, I do not need to simulate the passage of the sun, and I can change how blue it is easier on this led fixture than my t5 where i have to take down the entire unit to change bulbs. It's also because of the hype. Running deeper blues look nice. But i'd only run it like that for an hour or two. I prefer a 12-14k look.
 
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SteveZ15

Advanced Reefer
Location
Ridgewood Queens
Rating - 100%
60   0   0
The heat was my main concern because its a spare room off the hall on the front side of the house the sun beats it all day,between the heat comming off the chiller and the fan in the light fixture displacing the heat its like 90 in there the room feels like a sauna I only have one outlet with old *** electric so I dont think the outlet can handle a fan to blow the hot air out of the room.The whole tank is on that outlet.its not so bad now since those really humid days passed.My fishing rod building bench is in that room too.I agree on the selling points I like how you can ramp them up and down for morning and night Ill pro wait it out in the summer and in the colder months I still want to change ill try it out,this hobby you see all different tanks and set ups equipment it makes you want to try all the different things.
 
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FathomLED

Experienced Reefer
Location
New York
Rating - 66.7%
6   3   0
Steve,

Although are postings on here normally spark up huge debates as you can see above, we are going to go out on a limb just to see how long it will last before someone goes into their normal mode of moderation:Lurking:.(basically the sole reason we are taking up a full scale change via FB and national markets for more products and better exposure). Since you are only about 15 minutes from us we are willing to do what NO one will do once again. Shoot me a pm. We will bring a unit to you and let you decide for yourself ON YOUR OWN TANK if LEDs are really for you or not. We will be happy to answer any questions you have, take your current par vs the LEDs and leave. No obligations no strings attached just a chance for you to make up your own mind whether LEDs may be right for you. I only offer because without seeing it on your tank for yourself you'll probably wind up walking away from this post having gained nothing.
 

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