Chinese Black Box LED or Expensive LED?

[dz6t]

Blackbox are just fine. The spectrum difference is not that much different, and it has less shadow than Radion due to the grid design vs pucks.
The Par is more than enough for most of the coral we keep.
Two blackbox can out shine a single radion.
As far as wattage, most 165w blackbox only draw 120w.
I tested a galaxy hydro blackbox. At full power, it put out more par than a AI sol blue.

It only caused cancer in California.

 

[dz6t]

In term of fire hazard, there is no evidence of the type of blackbox like galaxy hydro/marsaqua that ever catch on fire.
The only cases that were known to Reef community that had caught on fire was ones with different designs.

 

[DSC reef]

But for the price, and on a budget, would the black box led be good enough?

Yes, the black boxes will work. Don't get caught in the drama with all the comments about this light is better than that light. If I was growing acropora, mixed reef then I'd look into a higher quality lights even though I've seen black boxes grow amazing reefs. I never get why people have to make sarcastic comments to defend there lighting choice.

 

[Ashv5]

Yeah, I'm in Illinois. The cancer thing still scares me a bit though. The black boxes are extremely bright and my zoas thrived. I miss my old black box compared to my t5 fixture. Do I need 2 black boxes for a tank 30in by 15 in by 24in? 40 gallon bowfront.

 

[Ashv5]

Black boxes suit the budget, work great for the money and grow corals well. What more?

 

[DSC reef]

Yeah, I'm in Illinois. The cancer thing still scares me a bit though. The black boxes are extremely bright and my zoas thrived. I miss my old black box compared to my t5 fixture. Do I need 2 black boxes for a tank 30in by 15 in by 24in? 40 gallon bowfront.

Black boxes won't cause cancer, it was one of those unnecessary sarcastic comments.

 

[Ashv5]

Oh phew.... Thank you! Do you use black box leds?

 

[DancingShark]

Depending on how high your mounting them you should be fine with one.

 

[WVNed]

Sorry

It was meant to be funny. They also do not cause cat's to have hairballs.
My bad.

 

[DancingShark]

Black boxes won't cause cancer, it was one of those unnecessary sarcastic comments.

Lol now they cause cancer. The propaganda is real.

 

[Ashv5]

LOL thanks no problem! Always nice to take a joke. How high should I mount the lights?

 

[DSC reef]

Oh phew.... Thank you! Do you use black box leds?

I do not. I always used metal halide and T5 combo. I'm not biased when it comes to lighting. Some people defend what they choose to the extreme. I've seen what all kinds of different lighting can do. Our next build will be kessil, I like a lot of shimmer.

 

[Ashv5]

Wow! I love kessils but aren't they expensive. Well... everything in this hobby is expensive

 

[DSC reef]

Wow! I love kessils but aren't they expensive. Well... everything in this hobby is expensive

They are pricey. There's lights to fit every tank and budget and all have pros and cons.

 

[DancingShark]

What is your budget?

 

[Ashv5]

I need a bigger tank than my 40 gallon. Feels like I can't keep any of the colorful fish (also reef safe) like tangs. Did you sign up for the giveaway?

 

[Ashv5]

My budget... $100 that's why I was into black box led.

 

[Gareth elliott]

I see. So making a mount requires a lot of "diy" work. I'm only 14... not sure if I can attempt to do something like this. But thanks for the effort in making a diagram!

This diy wasnt that bad. Only tool needed is a hand saw. I used a mitre saw but hand tools will cut through plastic and less dangerous.

Supplies were:
Pvc pipe

Handful of T couplings, and right angles.
And 5 caps.

3 pvc wall brackets.

And some spray paint.

I think i spent $20 on the stand.

Also i was able to grow sps, lps and softies with my galaxy hydro(think this brand went under)

 

[Ashv5]

I will have to look further into the diy fixture!

 

[sawdonkey]

I’ve used a few black boxes for years. They absolutely grow coral. I used Ocean Revives and grew a tank full of mature SPS colonies all from frags. Everything in the pic below is black box grown.

The downside I found is that they do break. I’ve had power supplies go bad, fans stop working, and diodes burn out. I’m good with troubleshooting and know how to use a soldering iron, so I’ve been able to fix issues myself. Ocean Revive was always good about providing parts, even though their customer service was in China.

I recently upgraded to some higher end lights just because I wanted to see if they would increase my success. The jury is still out.

Here’s my black box build before my neighbor decided to have a fire in our condo building: