DIY LED build and spread question

[Jonreefer]

ok so i bought the 36LED dimmable 60degree kit from aquastyles with the 16x7 heatsink.
Aquarium 36 LEDs Dimmable DIY LED kit with optics
My question is..i currently have a 20L tank I was originally gonna only buy the 24LED kit with the 16x4 heatsink but I got a killer deal on this..I am contemplating on moving my 20L into my 30breeder I have sitting in my garage. the dimensions of that tank are 30x18x12. Now would this 36LED kit work for the size or is it better if i only put say 20LEDS on this heatsink buy another small kit with another 20LED to go over the tank. I would prefer to just use all 36 LED on this and think it would cover enough..

 

[Onedesign1]

good formula for coverage is (LxW)/16= # LEDs

 

[Jonreefer]

that come out to 33LEDS but that doesnt do much good 33LEDS with say 30degree optics are not going to have same coverage as 33LEDS with 80degree. also 33LEDS would cover ALOT more on a larger heatsink vs a smaller one as well. .I am just trying to figure if I will get enough coverage of 36LEDS on a 16x7 heatsink with 60degree optics on a tank 30x18

 

[Onedesign1]

ok I had my coffee now....if you want to pack that many LEDs on that heatsink then your concern is valid. Good rules of thumb are to space each LED about 1.5-2" apart and each row about 2-3" apart. However, if you want to pack that many LEDs onto that small footprint with 60 degree optics you can....if you can hang it pretty high. The higher you hang it the more coverage you get. You will might deal with heat issues as well with that high density but that depends on what those drivers are driving them at.

I am not personally high on small footprints but you have what you have so now what to do with it? I would do with 3 rows of 10 LEDs on that heatsink and leave the optics off for now and put it over your tank and see what you think. You have plenty of power its a matter of your question of coverage. I do prefer optics if for nothing else they help a couple other things out. I use 90degree optics on my fixture which is 9" above the water and my tank is 24" tall....they can be had from China as well for cheap. hope that answer helps a little more

 

[Jonreefer]

the place i got teh light from sells 80degree optics for .50 cents a piece..I guess when i get it and put it together see how the 60degree go..so you think i should only 30LED on it..I guess that would be enough since the 30breeder I have is only 12" deep

 

[CJO]

That link doesn't seem to be working for me.

CJ

 

[dakotasreef]

I have 36 crees over my 30 breeder with no optics. I have 24 royal blues, 4 xml t5 cool whites, 4 xpg neutral whites, 2 blue and 2 green. With the xml's I can't turn the whites above 30% without cooking corals.

 

[Jonreefer]

how big is your heatsink for the spread of the tank.

 

[Onedesign1]

the place i got teh light from sells 80degree optics for .50 cents a piece..I guess when i get it and put it together see how the 60degree go..so you think i should only 30LED on it..I guess that would be enough since the 30breeder I have is only 12" deep

honestly 30 is more than enough and you'll cook everything in your tank if you crank it...dakota basically tells you same problem. You don't need the optics...what harm is there is just placing it over the tank before you put the optics on?

 

[Jonreefer]

no harm..I am just trying to figure out if I should split up the kit between 2 heatsinks for better coverage if I move to the larger tank..say 15LEDS on each heatsink

 

[uxdesigner]

It should work out just fine for you. That's a lot of LED light, I doubt you will ever use it to its full potential.

 

[polojeff2003]

It's always good to have for when years down the line, when these people say that they get to 70% when they start to wear out, then you can turn en up.