Longtime member been awhile since I've checked in here. I have a 50 gal with a single MH 250wt 10k Ushio with two actinic 36" VHO's I would like to upgrade. Any recommendations on a complete retrofit setup that will fit in my 36" canopy? Best place to buy? Approx cost? Mostly LPS and maybe a few stonies but never a full blown acropora setup. A few fish inverters etc.
Converting to LED
- Thread starter dpdash
- Start date
jonnyu
New member
If it ain't broke don't fix it. If your tank doing awesome don't change lighting. It's not that much in saving looking at the long haul. A rapid led fixture takes about 180 watts to run. You will be running them longer than your mh. A 250 mh runs about 250 to 275 watts. It's not that big of a difference. I switch from mh to led back to mh as certain corals do as well.
Chrisjbarry
New member
3 - 360 kessils doing great, been using leds for 8 years now.
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View attachment 308513
Uncle Luke
Active member
Only upgrade I would do is go Radium and add Reefbrite actinics for pop.
AquamanE
Active member
OMG!!!! I couldn't agree more!!!! :wildone::hammer:
I thought i was the only anti- LED guy on this forum, LOL. :headwally:
AquamanE
Active member
This is EXACTLY what i did a 4 years ago.:bounce2:
dadummy
Active member
I am not anti-LED, they are useful for supplemental lighting. nano tanks, softies , LPS however I find that corals look healthier and grow faster under T5 or Halide.
You can also change the LED spectrum, photo shop and give the same coral 50 different names and sell it for mad $$$, but that's a whole different "ANTI" discussion lol.
I went all LED from T5 a few years ago and ran LED for a year. Ended up adding T5 back into the mix. Some coral did great under LED and some not so much. After adding the T5 back ALL the corals started growing. The tank has been broken down and set back up. Lighting will be 3 250w DE M80 halides, with old diy LED's to supplement which are currently in pieces on the dining room table. Hopefully be able to get some pics up tonight
Interesting, just assumed LED would be better as they seem to be replacing a lot of other lighting. Tank is doing ok, I'm not real into it now, just maintaining but everything in it is more than 10yrs old, blue tang is 12ish and my clown pair is well over 15 yrs old. Bermuda skimmer and water changes every month, no dosing or additives whatsoever. BTW I use Hillsboro inlet water only.
Jgoal55
Active member
LED's are still a fairly new technology and they are still developing. Newer units have UV added in and some are reporting better results with those LEDs.
They are replacing trusted MH and T5s because there is no doubt that LED is the future of lighting not only in our hobby, but almost everywhere. It is a much more efficient, cooler, controllable form of lighting.
That said, for reasons I cannot explain (though I'm sure others can), I just don't think they've gotten to the point where they match the results you get from MH or T5.
Yes, there are countless successful LED tanks, but you'll notice that many times those tanks also have a ton of other equipment and are being dosed with this, that, and the other.
Essentially, I think what I'm trying to say is that with LED's you need much better husbandry than is needed to achieve the same growth/color as you can with perhaps a bit less husbandry in a T5/MH tank.
Try them...theyll stop itching..
They are replacing trusted MH and T5s because there is no doubt that LED is the future of lighting not only in our hobby, but almost everywhere. It is a much more efficient, cooler, controllable form of lighting.
That said, for reasons I cannot explain (though I'm sure others can), I just don't think they've gotten to the point where they match the results you get from MH or T5.
Yes, there are countless successful LED tanks, but you'll notice that many times those tanks also have a ton of other equipment and are being dosed with this, that, and the other.
Essentially, I think what I'm trying to say is that with LED's you need much better husbandry than is needed to achieve the same growth/color as you can with perhaps a bit less husbandry in a T5/MH tank.
Try them...theyll stop itching..
3FordFamily
In Memoriam
My leds are fantastic in all three of my tanks. Coral grow like crazy. Just my 02. Bulb replacement of t5 and mh was expensive and irritating. I bought 3 aqua star led fixtures on ebay. Every bit as good as my 3 reef brites xho on my other 180. I have 4 36" led fixtures on my 125 that are great also but I forget the brand. The aqua stars were less than 300 shipped. You can control whites/reds and Blues/greens/purples separately to adjust color temp and are too bright for my 180! (With only three).
Running 60 3W emitters at 100% rated current would be 180W, but that would be one HELL of a powerful array for a 36" tank.
LED pros: You'll use FAR less power per lumen to illuminate your tank. something like half as much, in fact; MHs are hideously inefficient. You have more control over both the brightness and spectrum, versus MH/T5s. They run much, much cooler, which is of concern of your lights live in an enclosed hood, but less so in a pendant. They don't burn out or change spectrum over any realistic time scale, so you don't have to buy new bulbs every six months.
Cons: You have more control over brightness and spectrum. :lol: This can lead to people building arrays with four white emitters and seven hundred royal blue and UV emitters, to try to make the UV-sensitive colors of their corals show up like they did at the store. You don't HAVE to do it that way, though. They're also slightly more expensive initially, and theyre electrically more complex, which can mean they're more difficult to set up. There are spectrum questions with LEDs, but this can be solved with emitter selection and array layout. Lots of people also see LEDs with a bit of superstition, as I've heard of quite a few going back to MH (not just the ones in this thread,) after an experiment with LEDs, but simultaneously, I know of several AMAZING LED-only tanks, whose owners wouldn't give up their lights for anything.
It's a matter of taste. Also, if your current MH setup is working, it can be hard to justify the upgrade. As I said, they are legit expensive up-front, if you want them done properly.
3FordFamily
In Memoriam
Also, like audio equipment, led and other lighting equipment runs at less power than advertised. My 165 watt fixtures are about 120-130
brians4671
New member
Buy the LEDs that way when you have an issue you can't explain you can blame the LEDs haha
mrx66699
New member
L.E....fn D.'s Man.....
Did someone say LEDS....just moved all my ballest and got all of them back hung up.....IMO do whatever makes you happy if your on here asking about switching then you must not be happy....make the switch and dont look back till your not happy again and then of course you can come back on here and get 501 explanations, excuses, and opinions all over again......
<a href="http://s17.photobucket.com/user/mrx66699/media/New%20files/20150216_174643_zpsrv3pxz0z.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img src="http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b70/mrx66699/New%20files/20150216_174643_zpsrv3pxz0z.jpg" border="0" alt=" photo 20150216_174643_zpsrv3pxz0z.jpg"/></a>
Did someone say LEDS....just moved all my ballest and got all of them back hung up.....IMO do whatever makes you happy if your on here asking about switching then you must not be happy....make the switch and dont look back till your not happy again and then of course you can come back on here and get 501 explanations, excuses, and opinions all over again......
<a href="http://s17.photobucket.com/user/mrx66699/media/New%20files/20150216_174643_zpsrv3pxz0z.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img src="http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b70/mrx66699/New%20files/20150216_174643_zpsrv3pxz0z.jpg" border="0" alt=" photo 20150216_174643_zpsrv3pxz0z.jpg"/></a>
Last edited:
How about this one? Pros/Cons? For $300
http://www.championlighting.com/product.php?productid=72433&cat=1679&page=1
http://www.championlighting.com/product.php?productid=72433&cat=1679&page=1
The only drawback to a Hydra26 I can think of is possible coverage issues. Here's their spread chart, I assume for a single 13 emitter puck, with the standard 80° optics.
I don't know what size or shape your tank is, or how deep it is, but even lighting can be rough with just two pucks, on a rectangular tank, particularly if you plan on or already have asymmetric rockwork.
The Hydra lights are NICE, though.
I don't know what size or shape your tank is, or how deep it is, but even lighting can be rough with just two pucks, on a rectangular tank, particularly if you plan on or already have asymmetric rockwork.
The Hydra lights are NICE, though.
