Power Savings moving to LED?

[Powder_Blue]

Constantly thinking about moving to G4 Pro Led and I noticed power consumption was 190w. I'm running an 8 bulb ati with a reefbrite xho. My tank is 60x24x18, so its shallow and doesn't require a tremendous amount of light. I'm running a 4ft fixture on a 5ft tank and I love it. Wondering if there is really a savings in power consumption? I would only need (2) radions. Seems like the bulb cost is the biggest potential savings although that doesn't seem to be too realistic if you upgrade lights every 3 to 4 years.

I can never seem to make myself truly consider the switch because "why mess up a good thing" comes into play. I like seeing all of the tanks running leds now with SPS but I just can't seem to make the switch.

Help!

 

[hybridazn]

It will only run at 190w when all leds are at 100%. Other than that they will run at a lower wattage. Don't forget that with leds your heater will run a lot more often as well so you should factor that into your power consumption as well.

I also agree with the saying, if it ain't broke don't fix it...

 

[Greybeard]

People always discount inefficiency in transformers... The best are what, 90% efficient? Do our mostly Chinese built power supplies number among 'the best'?

I'm not an expert in these matters, but when an AC power transformer is used to power a variable DC lighting source, does reducing the usage on the DC side really reduce consumption on the AC side? I'm not convinced that it does. Many DC power bricks that I've owned over the years HEAT UP when you reduce the DC load. To me, that would seem to mean that it's converting a good deal of energy into waste heat.

Easy enough to test... put an AC watt meter on a DC power supply, watch it at full power, reduce the device draw, and see what it shows. I'd be interested in seeing the results.

As for LED's... Yes, LED's are supposed to last a long, long time. But... for some reason, I don't know very many people who end up using an LED light for more than a few years. Factory guarantee periods certainly don't indicate a particularly long life expectancy.

Eventually, the LED arguments will be over... LED companies will be producing lights that are simply better than any incandescent or florescent lighting solution, and prices will be low enough to eliminate the competition. IMHO, we're just not there yet.

Lighting my 60" x 30" reef, I picked up a used 4 foot 8 bulb T5 unit for $80, replaced the ballasts with new ones for another $80, put in new bulbs for $160 or so... and got excellent reef quality lighting exceeding the requirements of _any_ coral, for less than half the price of a single Radion XR30 pro unit. I would have needed at least 2 of these, if not 3 or 4, to light the same tank. I DO NOT believe that electrical usage and bulb costs for the life of the system are _ever_ going to exceed what I saved on the initial expense. The bigger the tank, the more T5 lighting makes sense.

 

[redfishbluefish]

I switched from T5's to LED's, driven by potential electrical savings and bulb costs. I have to agree that electrical savings are most likely a wash, from my heaters now needing to run more often. However, I no longer have yearly bulb changing costs of approximately $125. Being a user of Chinese black boxes, it now makes them disposable. If I get slightly less than three years out of my black boxes, they've paid for themselves. FYI, I think I'm over five years right now, so I'm making money....cha-ching. (At least, that's what I tell my wife )

 

[Scorpius]

With the high cost of led fixtures and the amount of actual units you need to reduce shadowing you'll have to run the led units for a long time to make any money back.

 

[jda]

It will come down to bulbs every year vs new fixtures every 3-5 year. There are no power savings in the day-to-day unless you could do without less power in the first place... (like you were running 3x 400W MH and 4x T5s now, which is way too much anyway). Two Radions at 130-160w, plus power supply losses, is about the same as what you have now.

You are on this. Your thoughts are right, IMO.

 

[Powder_Blue]

Thanks for the responses. I agree with all of you. Especially since the technology seems ever-changing with leds right now. I just love the equipment side of this hobby and love new toys. I'm just too happy right now to make a move that will potentially make me unhappy. Most of my favorite tanks are still running halide and t5 so I guess there is a reason for that.