Do you really need a chiller with LEDs?

[artilespm]

If I go with LEDs instead of MH. Do you think I still need a chiller? And if so, can I get away with a smaller chiller? The price difference between a 1/4 HP chiller and a 1/10 or 1/15 HP chiller is huge. Tank size will be 60" x 24" x 24". Also do LEDs visually look as good as MHs? The light output that is. I know you get that shimmer effect with MHs. Your opinions matter especially since I have no experience with LEDs. I do know what to expect with MHs. The bottom line is that I want to know if the extra cost for the LEDs is worth it.

 

[ghellin]

I do not run a chiller I keep my tank at 78.5-79 with my home ac always set to 70.

 

[Joel_155]

I have ai sols and use a chiller on my 100 gallon setup however i dont leave the ac on while im at work.

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[mike r]

i keep my house around 70 and have a 29bc with 24 leds. my tank is always 78.1 to 78.2 with leds you also get the shimmer effect. since going led i wont go back to mh.

 

[artilespm]

Thanks for the replies guys. Really appreciate it. Keep em coming.

 

[tankaddict]

I'm in the same state as you I have LEDs on my 60 gal sps tank, even on 100 degree days my tank only gets to about 79-80 and I have an enclosed stand. I know LA weather is cooler than Sacramento, you should be fine. When I had t5s I had to run a chiller, btw I don't run ac either.

 

[doonan75]

I live in Fl and my AC is set at 79 and my tank stays at 78-79 no chiller, but I do have a ceiling fan in the same room thats allways on during the day.

 

[ganjero]

Chillers are not necessarily needed because of your lights, submersible pumps can put a lot more heat in your tank than any lighting system. It mostly depends on your ambient temperature, if the room gets really hot expect your tank to get as hot or even hotter (due to the pumps) specially for smaller tanks.

About the aesthetics I would strongly suggest to check out tanks lit by both technologies. This is a very subjective area, what is aesthetically pleasing to others might not be to you.

 

[Donkeykong]

LED's will add minimal heat, but pumps and other equipment can also add and ambient temp of the room is also a huge factor. When I switched I was able to remove the chiller but that was my tank in my house, you may see different results, but I can safely assume if you arent running halides and still have to run a chiller it probably wont need to be as big as if you were running Halides. As for the aesthetics, go look at several tanks running several LED's fixtures. LED's look different than Halides, just like t5's are different than halides. But even different LED's fixtures look different than each other. Go try and find one that is pleasing to you.

 

[Jim.mer]

Here in Southern Ontario not many of us run chillers for obvious reasons, We do have very hot weather during the summer, but the AC can combat that. So I don't think weather is a big factor no matter where you live. Switching to LED has many favourable options such as bulb life, lower temps, less power consumption not to mention controlability. Imagine being able to change the colour of your spectrum with a controller. Its the way to go.

 

[BigBarnacles]

My AI SOL BLUE fixtures produce no noticeable heat. In fact, the fans have never even turned on. I'd probably have to run them at 100% to get the fans to turn on.