About to make the switch, another LED / T5 thread

[10Seconds]

If I could run 6 Ecotech Radions Gen 4 Pro on my 6 ft tank I would consider them an option. The best LED tanks I have seen use these and they basically have 1 per ft.

But at that level, any cost savings from LED is gone too.

I am right now in the market for new lighting and really debating between 8 bulb ATI or the Giesemann Spectra. But even woth those options would still add a couple XHO reef brights. I think some sort of hybred option is currently the best bet.

 

[saltyfilmfolks]

Thing with LED, its not about how many. You can cover every inch of your tank, but the light is all coming from the same direction.

That's true with any light. The top.

Unless you're in the bottom middle of the tank. Then it's coming from steep angels from the top left and too right. Adding pucks cures this becuse it adds light to the spots in between and knocks out shadows. A t5 by its nature has light the entire way.
Or like me , I have broad arrays not pucks that run the length of the tank.

 

[Bruce Burnett]

light on an led fixture do not come from one direction that is what lenses do bend the light and increases the angle. People forget that various led fixtures covers a certain area at a given height. Leds in the 400-550 nm do not seem bright to the eye so all the others are mostly added for looks. A 72x24" tank can be covered with 3 radion xr30 since they were designed to cover a 24x24 area. So a 72x30" will not get good coverage. Six of them mounted at an angle will cover tank and not have a lot of shading.

 

[Bruce Burnett]

That's true with any light. The top.

Unless you're in the bottom middle of the tank. Then it's coming from steep angels from the top left and too right. Adding pucks cures this becuse it adds light to the spots in between and knocks out shadows. A t5 by its nature has light the entire way.
Or like me , I have broad arrays not pucks that run the length of the tank.

Which lights are you using. I am using Orpheks and have thought about adding one of their compacts. I am adding one of their new strip lights that they do not even show for sale yet. It is using 410 and 430nm leds I think is will add to my Atlantik v2.1b since that is part of what they did on the v4. I will never go back to MH. Thought about the new Aquatic Life hybrid fixture but I would need two for my tank. They don't have the brackets yet for wider light fixtures. Then I figured $160 in bulbs every 18 months and more heat. Decided that between bulbs and the fixtures it would buy a lot of good led strip lights from a number of sources, Reef Brite, reefbreeders, SBreeflights, Orphek or even dyi.

 

[saltyfilmfolks]

Which lights are you using. I am using Orpheks and have thought about adding one of their compacts. I am adding one of their new strip lights that they do not even show for sale yet. It is using 410 and 430nm leds I think is will add to my Atlantik v2.1b since that is part of what they did on the v4. I will never go back to MH. Thought about the new Aquatic Life hybrid fixture but I would need two for my tank. They don't have the brackets yet for wider light fixtures. Then I figured $160 in bulbs every 18 months and more heat. Decided that between bulbs and the fixtures it would buy a lot of good led strip lights from a number of sources, Reef Brite, reefbreeders, SBreeflights, Orphek or even dyi.

Im just using Bb's. I have more power than I'll ever need, but I wanted the multiple emitters.

I had fantastic results with the SBreeflight in my smaller tank and wanted to see if the same spectrum would result in similar success in a different system.

I have 3 16 x 8 in fixtures on a 48w x12 tank. So it's wall to wall light. A added small diffusers tonthakenthe edge of the shimmer and soften the quality of the light.

It's very similar to t5 in spread and mh in shimmer. Color is a signature of the lamp naturally.

Basically I faked a t5 w led stunners set up using only led.
It's too hot here for my wallet to support mh and this brand led gave me more success than either color of MH I had used.

 

[Bruce Burnett]

Im just using Bb's. I have more power than I'll ever need, but I wanted the multiple emitters.

I had fantastic results with the SBreeflight in my smaller tank and wanted to see if the same spectrum would result in similar success in a different system.

I have 3 16 x 8 in fixtures on a 48w x12 tank. So it's wall to wall light. A added small diffusers tonthakenthe edge of the shimmer and soften the quality of the light.

It's very similar to t5 in spread and mh in shimmer. Color is a signature of the lamp naturally.

Basically I faked a t5 w led stunners set up using only led.
It's too hot here for my wallet to support mh and this brand led gave me more success than either color of MH I had used.

I know what you mean about to hot, Lake Havasu is nice and quiet but it does get really hot in the summer, no heaters during the winter needed for my tank and no chiller during the summer but with halides I would need a chiller year yound

 

[saltyfilmfolks]

I know what you mean about to hot, Lake Havasu is nice and quiet but it does get really hot in the summer, no heaters during the winter needed for my tank and no chiller during the summer but with halides I would need a chiller year yound

lol San Diego here not much need for a heater not much need for a chiller.

 

[Ashish Patel]

I am currently building a canopy and decided to supplement 2 gen 4 radions with 2 T5s (angled front and back). While the Gen 4 radions can provide enough light to anywhere in the reef I feel dialing them down and supplementing with T5 with solid reflector and bulbs (ATI blue plus or something), will help the corals grow towards the front an back panel.

After using my PAR meter for a few months I asked myself "will this par suffice for corals that I glue on the side of the rock work to grow up and outwards? PAR could be 50 on a corals side and 400 on the top coralites (they'll just grow awkwardly towards the top or bleach out from the sides and bottom (similar to a house plant growing thicker branches towards the sun and not so much on the back). I believe as SPS corals become larger the T5 lighting will have more of an impact since its a blanket of intense lighting. In the ocean the light is moving and coming from all directions on SPS. I feel controlling the intensity and having the most areas covered seems to be the best bet to get a natural growth. Sure LED can get growth on their own but I am looking for acropora corals to grow symmetrical as they do in the ocean.

Am I making sense to anyone?

 

[saltyfilmfolks]

I am currently building a canopy and decided to supplement 2 gen 4 radions with 2 T5s (angled front and back). While the Gen 4 radions can provide enough light to anywhere in the reef I feel dialing them down and supplementing with T5 with solid reflector and bulbs (ATI blue plus or something), will help the corals grow towards the front an back panel.

After using my PAR meter for a few months I asked myself "will this par suffice for corals that I glue on the side of the rock work to grow up and outwards? PAR could be 50 on a corals side and 400 on the top coralites (they'll just grow awkwardly towards the top or bleach out from the sides and bottom (similar to a house plant growing thicker branches towards the sun and not so much on the back). I believe as SPS corals become larger the T5 lighting will have more of an impact since its a blanket of intense lighting. In the ocean the light is moving and coming from all directions on SPS. I feel controlling the intensity and having the most areas covered seems to be the best bet to get a natural growth. Sure LED can get growth on their own but I am looking for acropora corals to grow symmetrical as they do in the ocean.

Am I making sense to anyone?

Yes.
Here is my ,but.

If you consider light a field , rather than several individual spots, how much light is the Led giving you ,on average, in the field just above the top of the rock and highest corals?

How much does the t5 add to that in that field?
(I am aware the peaks will be more dramatic in the led only field, also called hot spot )

Ie, if the led is giving you a field of say 300 par, how much more is the t5 giving you, how much par is the t5 alone in that same field?
(And naturally, the t5 field will be more even. )

Asking for a friend. ;Bookworm

 

[Ashish Patel]

Hmm....I think PAR is useful and sometimes its not! T5 have the benefit of giving better blanket of 300 PAR range where as the radions give a lot more 300 Par shooting down (Hot spot). Does not make a difference for LPS and softies since they regulate their lighting needs better by being dancers! My hope is I'll be able to remove some of this disco effect nonsense and provide needed par toward the sides of the tank, back, and front of the tank. I now see why hobbyist angle their LED and T5 lighting on a angle - I used to laugh at this but now see why it can be beneficial as it will have a spot light effect giving corals more PAR coming from a angle.

 

[AubreyLin]

What T5’s did you use with your LED’s?

 

[Ashish Patel]

I ordered 2 LET T5 retro fits and 2 ATI blue + bulbs.

 

[Ashish Patel]

I finally got around to finishing the canopy and installing the T5. Took my time got everything hookedup and bulbs dont work! I suspect wiring or 1 of the bulbs got damaged during installation. i'll check all connections once I get a new bulb tomorrow.

I just added 2 strips to the top of the canopy and the ballast on the back rim. The entire canopy and lights are very light weight and easily removed by me alone. Let me know what ya'll thing!