Switch from MH/T5 actinic to LED?

[mtnrunner]

I have a 90 gal mixed reef mostly SPS. I have been in the hobby for years and have always used MH/actinic with success. I current fixture which houses the MH/actinic/moon is having issues with the electronic touch controls scheduling.

Should I switch to LED? Will my corals handle the switch and grow as well?

So few combined fixture hoods compared to the LED options and I wouldn't have to worry about bulb change and associated cost.

I've been looking at ecotech Gen3 and Gen3 Pro.

I do have 2 Ecotech MP40s that I am satisfied with.

I would like the ability to control lights via an app.

What other lights would one recommend?


Thank you

 

[Joeganja]

I have a 90 gal mixed reef mostly SPS. I have been in the hobby for years and have always used MH/actinic with success. I current fixture which houses the MH/actinic/moon is having issues with the electronic touch controls scheduling.

Should I switch to LED? Will my corals handle the switch and grow as well?

So few combined fixture hoods compared to the LED options and I wouldn't have to worry about bulb change and associated cost.

I've been looking at ecotech Gen3 and Gen3 Pro.

I do have 2 Ecotech MP40s that I am satisfied with.

I would like the ability to control lights via an app.

What other lights would one recommend?


Thank you

Radion gen 2 or 3 are probably the highest rated ones. I have the 2 hydra 26s on my 90 and absolutely love them. Grow sps like crazy. So if you got 2 hydra 52 HDs you'd be set. Awesome lights from personal experience and you can control them on an app

 

[cocochanelno1]

Okay, my answer is that many people say Kessil was the best. I am currently diving back into reefing, I myself just sold all my halogen/actinic "was" going to purchase the Kessil. now I am a bit confused.

 

[saltyphish]

Radions are better than kessil ime, but kessil are nice lights and you can't go wrong with them either.

 

[d2mini]

I have a 90 gal mixed reef mostly SPS. I have been in the hobby for years and have always used MH/actinic with success. I current fixture which houses the MH/actinic/moon is having issues with the electronic touch controls scheduling.

Should I switch to LED? Will my corals handle the switch and grow as well?

So few combined fixture hoods compared to the LED options and I wouldn't have to worry about bulb change and associated cost.

I've been looking at ecotech Gen3 and Gen3 Pro.

I do have 2 Ecotech MP40s that I am satisfied with.

I would like the ability to control lights via an app.

What other lights would one recommend?


Thank you

If you want good growth, color and overall healthy coral like you've been getting with your mh/vho (or t5), you will need a lot of LEDs. Not for intensity but for light spread.
For a standard 90g, if you are looking at Radions, I would suggest 3 at a minimum. Ideally 4.
Most people are finding a combination of LED and T5 work better for them because they get the coverage of the t5 with the running cost and adjustability of the leds, and less led.
You could do 2 radions and 2-4 t5 bulbs.

 

[Reefnjunkie]

I switched from halides to LED about 4 yrs ago, all DIY initially and have tried quite a few since. Presently I run Ocean Revive over the display and one of the 4 SPS frag tanks with great results.

I've watched LED units evolve and IMO the newest Ecotech and Hydra units seem to be the better as far as components with controllability- I've recent order 2 Hydra 26 units for a 5th frag tank to see how they compete with what I have.

For an off the shelf light either of those would get my vote since you want the controllability, if you don't need that feature there are plenty of other options- the 10 OR SO26 I have over my display ran me 1300.00 vs 4800.00 for hydra LOL

 

[mtnrunner]

I purchased 2 Radion 30 Pro and the Reeflink from Eco Tech and am very pleased so far. Eco Tech has done a great job with their Ecosmart cloud based integration app. I now have full control over my Radion lights and my 2 MP40 Vortex power heads. The mobile apps are very nice. The process of setting up and integration was quick and easy, and their documentation was very good. Way to go Eco Tech!

I'm running my lights at 85%, since I'm transitioning from MH. I'm looking forward to see how my corals react to the new lights.

 

[Jimbo662]

I ran two Kessil 360's on my previous tank and liked them well enough. I ended up switching to the XR30 pros on my new tank and like that I'm able to control the colors better.