Need feedback on this LED light option

Degener8 · May 18, 2012

Well my wife and I are planning/assembling parts for this nifty nano in 90 contest. We aren't going to be the most epic build I am sure but I want to try a few different things than we have done in the past.

I need to get some opinions on this light.
10W Actinic Blue Hybrid Led Floodlight for Aquarium | eBay

Now I know its an Epistar LED but it has what i think will be a great spectrum for the new tank plan.
The tank is really shallow so what do ya all think. The price point can't be beat for my lil budget entry and a small shallow tank.

So tell me what I am missing here I need to know what downfalls I am looking at down the road etc.

Thanks,
Garnet (not a led guru..LOL)

matt_longview · May 18, 2012

With off brand LEDs assume 1/3rd less par from the same number of watts. So this is a 10w LED (minus 1/3rd, goes down to 6.66 watts of crees), so it will be around the same effeciency of running two 3w cree LEDs. I don't know how small your nano is going to be (that info might be in the 90 contest info that I know nothing about haha) but unless it's a small pico (3g or so), this light will not be effecient enough.

Reef Breeders · May 18, 2012

I think that a PAR38 bulb would be your best option, the light you linked is not meant for aquarium use

Degener8 · May 18, 2012

Thx for the input. The tank is a 5.5g tank. I'll continue to look for something new/different to try. Not necessarily trying to go uber cheap but more money I save on this the more I can put into corals. I'll likely go with a Trupop from LEDtric though.

Since the tank is so shallow (like 6 ish inches to the bottom.. how far up would you all recommend hanging the PAR38 lamp or any LED for that matter.. likely not going to be dimmable unless I do like an aquastyles setup.

revsgirl · May 19, 2012

:bump2:

matt_longview · May 20, 2012

Depends on the lenses that whichever fixture you choose comes with. I would choose one without lenses and go about 6 inches... a bit higher or lower based upon looks. You don't want to get too much power unless you're planning on SPS, so maybe try an Evospot from Reefkoi. Comes in 14k or 20k. Here's a link to all of his LED products: LED Lighting : REEFKOI CORALS, SPS, LPS, Zoanthids

Those are off brand LEDs as well, so you're still only looking at an equivalent of 3 crees, but over a 5.5g that'll be fine if you're planning on low light corals.