chiller or led lights for my sps tank

[Waterobert]

Should I switch to LED lights or stay with MH and get a new chiller?
I want to get this new technology for my tank, however I can't risk my hard earned money on unproven lights. Over the years I have been reading a lot about LED and still have a feeling that they are not ready for sps corals. Some aquarist are happy with them however most have some negative experiences. We all know that growing sps corals is not an easy task and many off us are so quick to spend money on something new in hopes for quick fix. I am doing ok with MH but electric bill is killing me during the summer time. I am on the market for energy efficient chiller and yet I am tempted to switch to LED. Can't afford both :headwally:
What make more sense to you guys? Help!!!

 

[Peter Eichler]

Is you tank hitting the upper 80's without a chiller? If it's staying below that I say skip both... If it's hitting the upper 80's for any length of time then I'd suggest a new AC unit for the house

 

[Kairus]

I'd go LED. A chiller is going to be even more power usage, and an energy efficient chiller doesn't mean it won't consume a lot of power. Still looking at 400-600w draw depending on what hp model you go for.

It also depends what room your tank is in. If it's in a fish room, then a chiller is probably okay. If it's in a living room, do you really want the extra noise and heat in your living room?

 

[trueblackpercula]

Get an led fixture and your old chiller will work less

 

[reefsahoy]

Ive personally seen led on several beautiful sps tanks. If you can find a lfs, or hobbiest who is using one locally, ask them what spectrum and intensity they are using but also take note how high their light are and how deep the tank is and placement of their corals. You also need to know what lens the leds are using. Led's are powerful, and IMHO most of the failed led users, including me, forget the inverse square law of light power and get into trouble of bleaching corals. Ive never used a par meter but ive heard that they only pick up certain spectrum so they can be inaccurate when using it to measure led output. I think the leds are more powerful than MH because the lens are focused light much like a magnifying glass. And because they are more focused, it will trick your eyes of intensity because there is very little refraction of light in the water making it look dim or less bright to your eyes. I think this is the reason most users get into trouble.

 

[rovster]

Ive personally seen led on several beautiful sps tanks. If you can find a lfs, or hobbiest who is using one locally, ask them what spectrum and intensity they are using but also take note how high their light are and how deep the tank is and placement of their corals. You also need to know what lens the leds are using. Led's are powerful, and IMHO most of the failed led users, including me, forget the inverse square law of light power and get into trouble of bleaching corals. Ive never used a par meter but ive heard that they only pick up certain spectrum so they can be inaccurate when using it to measure led output. I think the leds are more powerful than MH because the lens are focused light much like a magnifying glass. And because they are more focused, it will trick your eyes of intensity because there is very little refraction of light in the water making it look dim or less bright to your eyes. I think this is the reason most users get into trouble.

I agree with this 100%. I switched from LED to MH on my grow out tank more as an experiment not because I was unhappy with LEDs. First thing I noticed when I fired up the halide was how much more light there appeared to be. I thought I was going to fry my corals! Long story short, I'm happy with the halide, but at the same time I have not been blown away with explosive growth or anything like that. I'm currently running led and halide, but I have G2 Radion Pros for my upgrade, and I'm kind of looking forward to the switch back to LEDs to see if anything changes.

I think the secret to LEDs is to have more coverage as in more units than the manufacturers recommend and run them lower, instead of fewer units at higher intensity.

 

[trueblackpercula]

I am running a radion G1 and loving it on a 30 x 30 x 31 deep tank.

 

[dadummy]

tough call. Went all LED a few years ago, sold the T5's and the chiller. Then had to buy T5 and new chiller when wasn't happy with DIY CW, RB LED

I am very happy with T5 LED combo

Another option may be to incorporate some LED along with the halides, and not run the halides as long keeping temp down

 

[Waterobert]

Thank you! Two off my local fish stores went with LED on their SPS tanks and after few months most corals didn't look as good as with the halides. One store went back to halides the other is in process of redoing the tank. They will start again with LED and new frags. Old SPS corals did not adopt well to LED lights. I guess I will get chiller and stick with MH for another year.

 

[reefsahoy]

Thank you! Two off my local fish stores went with LED on their SPS tanks and after few months most corals didn't look as good as with the halides. One store went back to halides the other is in process of redoing the tank. They will start again with LED and new frags. Old SPS corals did not adopt well to LED lights. I guess I will get chiller and stick with MH for another year.

Not that I'm trying to change your mind or anything but figured you shouldn't decide based on two users. Here's another led user on an sps tank. I haven't found the sweet spot yet using the same light, but at least I know it's possible.

http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2287628