Considering Radions... from a guy who hates LED's

[dkeller_nc]

Nevertheless, a 10 deg F rise in your aquarium temperature over your room temp still sounds extreme, even with T5HO lighting. What sort of return pump and/or circulation pumps are you running?

 

[DavidinGA]

I've been reading along, and I have an alternate thought for you: fix your heat issue, regardless of what lights you choose to go with.

Radions, Kessils, AI's, Orphek Atlantiks, etc... are all very, very expensive lighting options, and if you expect and want success, they're the only ones you're likely to be happy with. The inexpensive knock-offs seriously lack spectrum - fine for a fish-only or softie tank. Not so great for an SPS or anemone tank.

To that end, you'll be spending thousands on these lights, and there's an excellent possibility that the heat in your hood will cause some major issues with the fixtures. All of them generate heat, and if your system is running 84-88 deg in a cool basement, that strongly suggests that you've little to no air circulation in your hood. Most of these high-end fixtures have a thermal cut-out to try to protect the circuitry, but I doubt you'll want to pay $2400 for Radions for your 140g and have them going on/off constantly throughout the day because they're getting too hot.

I see your ignoring my questioning your statement about led spectrum...

 

[dkeller_nc]

I see your ignoring my questioning your statement about led spectrum...

No, it didn't seem like a question. And not worth arguing/discussing, since it's very easy to simply compare the number and spectrum of the chips included in various offerings. Keep in mind that "full spectrum" means a substantial output below 410 nm, preferably with substantial output in the 380nm - 400nm, though that is hard to find in even expensive LED fixtures (except Kessil).

 

[jlnielsen13]

Nevertheless, a 10 deg F rise in your aquarium temperature over your room temp still sounds extreme, even with T5HO lighting. What sort of return pump and/or circulation pumps are you running?

Hello,

I have 2 external blueline pumps running the system. Inside the tank I have 1 jabeo in each for a powerhead. Both heaters are unplugged. Not sure where I am getting all the heat??

Thanks

JIM

 

[jlnielsen13]

https://vimeo.com/158769805 Went ahead and switched to 4 bulb ati t5 in back and two mars aqua led in front. Nice shimmer and coverage. .. we'll see how corals do!

 

[dkeller_nc]

Hello,

I have 2 external blueline pumps running the system. Inside the tank I have 1 jabeo in each for a powerhead. Both heaters are unplugged. Not sure where I am getting all the heat??

Thanks

JIM

Hmm - well, it obviously depends on what size Blueline pumps. If they're 2 55HDs, that'd be a great deal of heat (360 watts), while 2 20HD's would be 90 watts.

The jebao is unlikely to be adding any significant heat to the water, since I'm thinking it would be using about 40 watts, maximum.

Another possibility is a skimmer; smallish needle-wheel skimmers generally don't add much if anything to the equation, but a beckett-style might be - they tend to be very energy hungry. Also, even small submersible pumps can be significant heat sources as they get old; it's possible for some, but not all, of the winding's insulation to break down, with the result that the pump is drawing a good deal more current than it was originally designed for and dumping that excess power to the water as heat.

For diagnostic purposes, you could run your tank for a day or two with all of the access doors on the hood open, as well as the stand doors (presuming the sump is underneath the stand). If the tank temp stabilizes at 2-3 degrees Fahrenheit above the ambient room temp, then your equipment's probably running right and you simply need to consider adding some additional ventilation (such as cutting an access port on the back of the stand and installing a 6" computer fan, preferably thermostatically controlled). On the other hand, if you're still running 7 - 10 degrees above ambient temp, I'd suggest getting a kill-o-watt power meter (around $20), and using it to get some data about how much power your various equipment's using. That information might give you some insight on replacing some items with more efficient models.

 

[jlnielsen13]

Great points! I have 2 blue line 70s so they could be part of the issue. I also have a large skimmer with 4 pumps on it as well! Aesthetically I love the new look with the LED lights and just going to have to keep a close eye on my Coral. I still have T5 Lighting on the tank so hopefully they will do well just half the amount of bulbs plus the leds which have made the tank pop

 

[Vapour1ze]

Great points! I have 2 blue line 70s so they could be part of the issue. I also have a large skimmer with 4 pumps on it as well! Aesthetically I love the new look with the LED lights and just going to have to keep a close eye on my Coral. I still have T5 Lighting on the tank so hopefully they will do well just half the amount of bulbs plus the leds which have made the tank pop

You know though, Jim and I run similar systems. Blue line/Pan world pumps in the basement. Two tanks. One basement fish room. The same skimmer with 3 needle pumps and a feed pump. I had t5s and my heaters would run for hours. My tank would never heat itself from equipment alone. If my Heaters are off in the winter months I lose heat quick. Which leads me to think it is his canopies. The only difference in our systems is both of mine are near windows and I have no canopies. I keep my house at 66-68 during the winter months.

 

[dkeller_nc]

A lot of this can sensitively depend on placement of the pumps. A couple of blueline 70HDs that are underneath a tank in an enclosed stand will add almost all of the input wattage to the tank water, which for 2 of them would be nearly 600 watts. The same would be true for a skimmer - mounted in an enclosed stand, almost all of the pump power will go directly to heating the water.

 

[SeedlessOne]

Def getting me thinking,

I know the old phrase if it ain't broke don't fix it but in this case my light is "broke" although for $100 or so if I can figure out the issue I can fix it.

I just hate the summer time getting messages from my apex that my two tanks (connected in the basement fish room) are overheated. I keep raising the temp of when to send me a message but honestly spend most of the summer with a temperature of 84-88 degrees in my system. Obviously a lot higher than I would like. In fact, I don't need to run heaters in my system at all year round, the 3 light fixtures heat it up enough even with 100ish gallons/500 total gallons in a cool basement year round.

Maybe this is a good time for me to make the switch! If I can cut down on the heat by 3-4 degrees it is worth the investment to me. I just worry about getting "burned" by LED's again.

I do love the look which is why I wrote the thread on here years ago "LED's: great for people, terrible for corals" . I just wish the t5's weren't so hot, and the bulb cost is getting to me as well!

I have been surprised so far that there have been a number of people on here that are unhappy with radions, I kinda thought these things had worked out the kinks and were plug and play better than what I have right now... maybe not??

Thanks,

Jim

Sounds like you have a heat issue with your environment. If you are already over heating with t5s, something is up. ATI fixtures should not heat up your room or tank like that.

 

[jlnielsen13]

Definitely have a canopy issue, but they are a must for me. I've battled heat issues for 15 years from halides to t5s. Taking the canopy off on hot days in the past, or leaving front open have been necessary in the past. Ati fixtures to me are crazy hot! I have 3 and the dimmable one is the hottest of all? ? My cheap emergency t5 fixture never gets hot.

I ordered 8 led fixtures and 5 computer fans. The 300 will be switching from 2 48" inch 8 bulb ati to 4 bulb units with 4 led fixtures in front. The 140 has already switched from a 8 bulb dimmable ati to a 4 bulb ati t5 and 2 led fixtures, I'll add a third when the new batch comes in. The remaining 2 will go on my frag tank which has been running leds with phenom growth for a year. I'll also be adding 5 fans.

I'll keep an eye on the coral and heat daily and see if this works!

Thanks,
Jim

 

[Turbosreef]

I am going to upgrade my tank. I was thinking of doing the kessil a360 pair vs 2 radions mostly for looks and cost why did you switch to the radion?

 

[kurfer]

I think probably the biggest mistake people make when switching to LEDs is not properly acclimating the corals to the lights. The PAR idea is a good one.

I think people are underestimating how many they need. I had 2 hydra 52's on my 48x30x24 150G and I couldn't grow corals to save my life. Some people on this forum suggested I run more so I went with 4 total for the 150G and it made an incredible difference, I went from not being able to grow the simplest corals to a full blown SPS dominant tank.

On my 300G I went with 8 hydra 52s. Not setup yet so won't know how well it works until later.

 

[kurfer]

I am going to upgrade my tank. I was thinking of doing the kessil a360 pair vs 2 radions mostly for looks and cost why did you switch to the radion?

If I didn't already have an investment in AI i'd gladly switch to the Kessils. My LFS has Hydra 52 HD, Radions, and Kessils on three different tanks in a row and the Kessils make me envious every time I see them.

 

[Hentz]

If I didn't already have an investment in AI i'd gladly switch to the Kessils. My LFS has Hydra 52 HD, Radions, and Kessils on three different tanks in a row and the Kessils make me envious every time I see them.

Which AI are you running?