AI Leds question

[5380]

I know we have tons of knowledgable people in the LED world. A single 12x6" Led unit is said to cover 24"x24". With the new nano units coming out I am considering trying to cover my 36"x18" footprint tank with nano units. The details on the units aren't out yet, but with 70 degree optics I'm thinking that as few as two maybe a possibility. Did anyone get a good look at these units at MACNA? If so, is the design on par with the 12" units (LEDs, cooling, ?)?

Gracias.

 

[Johnny C]

I have been using them for a few weeks now- planning to mount one 12'' Sol over a new tank I'm currently building. I saw the Nano @ MACNA and a friend of mine tested the PAR. They are great, but IMO for your tank you will need two SOL Blues as the Nanos will not penetrate that much area, especially with 70° optics. JMO

 

[5380]

I would be very interested to know with both the 40 and 70 optics what height is required to achieve 18" spread. Since these units aren't out much of this is speculation.

I think my two island scape may be make the cheapo route more feasible. But it will probably be dim on the edges.

 

[StashuDave]

After playimg with them a bit also, I would also recommend the 2 full size units. I haven't seena firm retail price yet for the Nano version, but it's not gonna be much cheaper than the full size units.... maybe just over $100 cheaper. If you are going to do these LED's it doesn't look like there's a cheap way to do it, I'd just spend the extra $200 and do it right.

Dave

 

[Johnny C]

AI doesn't claim that the 12'' Sol can spread 24'', that's what hobbyists are reporting. AI actually recommends one SOL per every square foot. From the PAR testing I did, there are "hot spots" in the center that dip significantly even inches away from under the fixture. I think the idea of changing the optics is mainly to eliminate those "hot spots" so that it doesn't burn the coral and so the PAR is more evenly spread.

The issue with using two Nanos is that they won't penetrate to the bottom of your (IIRC 24'') aquarium, especially if you switch to all 70° optics and raise the fixtures high enough to spread the length of the aquarium. You'll have great PAR near the top but it will IMO drop significantly and your corals near the bottom may suffer from lack of light.

Remember, this is just my observations from limited testing. Once I get my aquarium up and running I will post a detailed PAR chart and regularly update on coral growth.

PS- I believe the Sol Nano will retail for around $365- like Dave said, it's probably not worth the savings.