klondike4001
New member
Here are some pics before I do my LED lighting upgrade
5.5 Gallon Nano
- Thread starter klondike4001
- Start date
Zero-2-Sixty
New member
wow! pics too big!
klondike4001
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just wanted you guys to be able to see everything.
sir_dudeguy
Active member
so are you purchasing an LED moonlight? or making one?
klondike4001
New member
No, not moonlight, I'm builing a 21 watt LED setup (7 3W LED's) to replace the PC lighting, it's an idea loosely based on this, http://www.solarisled.com/Products/tabid/56/Default.aspx , I don't need thier entire setup over the tank because I fear it will be too much light, so I'm toning it down and only using 21W because it should be comparable to a 70W MH. The moonlights I'm planning on using are e stock ones that came with my NC, I upgraded that to a thR2 Solutions Moonlight 11000 MC, http://www.marinedepot.com/md_viewItem.asp?idProduct=RM1111.
sir_dudeguy
Active member
oh i see. those led's are comparable to 70w mh?!
wow, those are rediculously high priced lol. How much is it going to cost you to make it? I would be interested in doing that for my 2.5. Also, do they make plain actinic LED's? or do they only come in like 10K 20K, etc...?
wow, those are rediculously high priced lol. How much is it going to cost you to make it? I would be interested in doing that for my 2.5. Also, do they make plain actinic LED's? or do they only come in like 10K 20K, etc...?
klondike4001
New member
The actinics they use are blue Luxeon 3W LED's, it's going to cost me about $150, but in theyor that's about the same cost as a 70W MH retro and the bulbs will last nearly 15 years, also with no added heat to the tank and a break on my electric bill. If you're interested in that I'm doing I can show you what I've done so far.
sir_dudeguy
Active member
yes very!
klondike4001
New member
http://www.jmastreptiles.com/LEDUpgrade.html
I'm working with a friend of mine so the amount of AC adapters should be brought down to 2.
I'm working with a friend of mine so the amount of AC adapters should be brought down to 2.
sir_dudeguy
Active member
wow that looks awsome! so you're gonna get it so theres the dimmer too? imo, that would be the best way to do the sunrise and sunset affect...that would surely be nice for the corals. Also, are you planning on leaving like 1 on at night, to maybe simulate the moon?
klondike4001
New member
On the 5.5 Gallon I'm not using a dimmer, and for the moonlights I'm using the old ones off my NC. But (this is a long shot) I'm hoping by summer I can build a larger version for my NC using the LED's, and with regards to the dimmer, I'm borrowing a couple grad students from TAMU, to create some kind of programs to be able to mimmic the Solaris setup with the dimming and all.
On the 5.5 I'm going to have the blue LED's on a different circuit from the whites so they can be controlled independentlyusing 2 timers, the blues will be on for a 12 hour period(fans will be running on the same timer) whither the whites turning on for 9-10 hours in the middle of the day, I'm figuring 2-3 hours with the actinics on to simulate my dawn dusk.
On the 5.5 I'm going to have the blue LED's on a different circuit from the whites so they can be controlled independentlyusing 2 timers, the blues will be on for a 12 hour period(fans will be running on the same timer) whither the whites turning on for 9-10 hours in the middle of the day, I'm figuring 2-3 hours with the actinics on to simulate my dawn dusk.
Agu
Premium Member
Would the 24 LED units on this page work ? (It's a weird layout, you have to scroll to find whay you're looking for.)
Autoillumination
I've considered using them on a 5.5. I currently use the three LED blue as moonlights on two tanks. The light focus is a bit too narrow but they're reliable and waterproof.
Autoillumination
I've considered using them on a 5.5. I currently use the three LED blue as moonlights on two tanks. The light focus is a bit too narrow but they're reliable and waterproof.
klondike4001
New member
I'm honestly not sure it they'd work, I know the Luxeon's work, so I'm planning on using those, plus they are a lot cheaper. With regards to the beam being too narrow, they aren't on the Luxeon's, you actually have to use a lens to focus the beam it's so wide, the lenses I'm using focus the beam to 25 degrees. The LED's I'm using are single bulbs that operate at 3W and 1000 mA. The white LED's put off 80 Lumens of light while the blue's put off 25 Lumens.
klondike4001
New member
LED's aren't in yet, I'm hoping to be done with the new lights in 2 weeks. I'll start taking pictures of the process on Sunday Morning. Right now the only lights in there are PC's.
sir_dudeguy
Active member
what size pc's you have on there?
klondike4001
New member
The lights on it are 2 9W PC's, 10,000K and Actinic.
klondike4001
New member
It was the biggest of the 3 at the store where I bought it.
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