l ed lights
- Thread starter rossi
- Start date
GSMguy
New member
it looks fantastic why would you want to change it? there is no way the LED will spread the light as well as a mh/t5 setup can, you might have some real issues with corals in the dark. and others in light that is just too intense.
these early LED units will NEVER last long enough to pay for themselves, the warranty is only 2 years and they seem to break often. that will mean PFO will make Bank selling replacement LEDs in the future. as far as aqualumination goes ive heard the build quality is much better but i still hear that LEDs are going out, i beleive that the LEDS are just not that well made when they arrive at PFO and AI.
buying an LED fixture at this point is trading in a car that is completely paid for that gets 36mpg, for a a hybrid that gets 45mpg but costs 499 dollars a month in upkeep, and even in 20 years the car will never save anyone money because the batteries will go dead and replacing them will cost 3 arms and 6 legs.....
I have had the AI units for 6+ months now and am very happy with them. Like the other poster there is zero heat transmitted to the water. These run much, much cooler than the PC's I had before. I couldn't even touch the fixture. On the AI unit you can touch the bottom of the splash guard and it isn't even warm. There is a little barely warm air coming out the top. My livestock is doing great and I really like the ability to set the controls of lighting etc. I had 1 issue with a connection that came loose during shipping and Chris at AI was great to deal with. The only down side in my opinion is the initial cost but like anything else the cost will drop in time just like VCR's and satellite dishes.
well alll together my tank with every thing on was burning 1000 watts over 11 hours out of that 750 watts was lights alone so even if i run my 48 inch AI at 100% illumination i would still be saving 350 watts over 12 hours. When i revived my tank last year November my light bill went to $600.00 over 3 months which is really not that bad but with me being only income as wife staying home with son i had a choice to make.......i know the led's are not perfect but in the summer time i really cannot be running an Ac to cool my house as a result of heat generated by lighting. I will watch and see what happens and my light is at the same hight as were my other setup and i am happy with the coverage and intensity that i have at 75% white and 50% blue. With these settings i am only at 250 watts just for lights so i am already saving 500 watts.
reefconcepts
New member
Lucifa68, The pictures you posted is not the AI, correct? Do you have a picture of your tank with the AI sysyem, and the settings are?
Lewy
New member
I have had my 2 x AI modules for a few weeks now and am fairly happy with them.
My tank is 620mm x 620mm x 550mm tall. Existing lighting was a Guiessman Infiniti 2 foot unit. 1 x 250MH plus 4 x 24w T5’s.
Coverage is focused as mentioned previously. For a 2 foot wide tank the modules really need to be 1 more bay longer. For this reason I have mounted them 90 degrees to the recommended to get the coverage that I require.
There is still a lot a heat generated by the modules (White on 95% and blues on 100%). It's just that none of it is directed downwards onto the water. The heatsinks get very hot even with the inbuilt cooling fans. I have installed a 3 fan profilux tank cooling bank directly over the two modules to aid in the cooling. A bit of redundancy if the inbuilt fans ever do fail and the additional cooling should prolong to life of the Leds as well.
Lighting colour is of course entirely dependant on the individual. I really like the more natural look of the tank now.
Best is when it is in the sunset phase and fairly dim. It looks sublime with the shimmering.
My tank is 620mm x 620mm x 550mm tall. Existing lighting was a Guiessman Infiniti 2 foot unit. 1 x 250MH plus 4 x 24w T5’s.
Coverage is focused as mentioned previously. For a 2 foot wide tank the modules really need to be 1 more bay longer. For this reason I have mounted them 90 degrees to the recommended to get the coverage that I require.
There is still a lot a heat generated by the modules (White on 95% and blues on 100%). It's just that none of it is directed downwards onto the water. The heatsinks get very hot even with the inbuilt cooling fans. I have installed a 3 fan profilux tank cooling bank directly over the two modules to aid in the cooling. A bit of redundancy if the inbuilt fans ever do fail and the additional cooling should prolong to life of the Leds as well.
Lighting colour is of course entirely dependant on the individual. I really like the more natural look of the tank now.
Best is when it is in the sunset phase and fairly dim. It looks sublime with the shimmering.
JStorey... what the hell is wrong with you? Haven't you read all the earlier posts from people telling you how awful and hot LED's are and that they all break? Just because you happen to actually OWN one and it works great doesn't give you the right to dash all the naysayers' posts. Haven't you taken physics? Don't you know that a 200w light gives off as much heat as a 200w flat iron? Sheesh.
/sarcasm
Too funny. Yeah, it seems every time an LED thread pops up there are a number of folks who don't own them that jump in and bash the lights and unfortunately the people who are "stupid enough" to buy them. Every one has a right to express their opinion about a product but really should keep their opinion about the people who buy those products to themselves. I have read where there are a number of issues with the solaris product from people who have had them due to poor quality build but I haven't heard from anyone with those kind of issues with the AI product. I would be very upset myself if I spent that kind of money on a product and had nothing but problems with it. In my opinion the AI product is solidly built and maybe there are fewer issues because they build them and test them here. I'm not an "expert" by any means and I can only comment on my personal experience with the product. I'm very happy with my decision. Like I said earlier the only down side I see with the product is the initial cost, heck I remember my first VCR I bought cost $1000 and must have weighed 50 lbs now they cost less than $100 weigh virtually nothing and can do more. The same will hold true for LED's.
Thanks for the compliment GSMguy.
Thanks for the compliment GSMguy.
Hi Frank, no those pics were not of the AI unit will try to take some in the morning and post.
Jstorey and Lewy thanks for the input with what settings you all are running.
Jstorey you need not waste your time replying to bashers. let them have their say. we know what we have and why we have it its as simple as that.
Jstorey and Lewy thanks for the input with what settings you all are running.
Jstorey you need not waste your time replying to bashers. let them have their say. we know what we have and why we have it its as simple as that.
BeanAnimal
Premium Member
Re: Heat
Re: Heat
Watts are Watts.
200W of LED puts the same amount of heat into the room as a 200W toaster or a 200W metal halide or a 200W pump or a 200W fan. Pump 200W into the room and you get 200W of heat. Sure a small amount may escape in the form of vibration, or light out a window... but Watts are Watts. Actually LEDS directly produce MORE heat than a MH or a T5! It is carried away via conduction and convection. T5 and MH produce more IR and UV that is radiated into the tank... Most of the HEAT produced by the LED is conducted away by the heatsinks on the back of the LED die and convected away via the fans.
Re: Heat
Watts are Watts.
200W of LED puts the same amount of heat into the room as a 200W toaster or a 200W metal halide or a 200W pump or a 200W fan. Pump 200W into the room and you get 200W of heat. Sure a small amount may escape in the form of vibration, or light out a window... but Watts are Watts. Actually LEDS directly produce MORE heat than a MH or a T5! It is carried away via conduction and convection. T5 and MH produce more IR and UV that is radiated into the tank... Most of the HEAT produced by the LED is conducted away by the heatsinks on the back of the LED die and convected away via the fans.
BeanAnimal
Premium Member
Re: Re: Heat
Re: Re: Heat
Watts are Watts. A 200W device confined to a room will put 200W worth of heat into that room. Basic physics and the law of conservation of energy.
Re: Re: Heat
Read the above post
Watts are Watts. A 200W device confined to a room will put 200W worth of heat into that room. Basic physics and the law of conservation of energy.If you look up the very definition of the Watt, you will find that to be untrue.
BeanAnimal
Premium Member
Correct!
You may not agree, you would be heading down the wrong path.
Only if we are looking at the lumenous efficiency. IT ALL TURNS TO HEAT IN THE END! So yes, some lamps produce MORE light per unit of energy consumed but that produced light also becomes HEAT. Some of it can be stored int the biomass of the livestock, but that portion is so small that it is not worth talking about. When the livestock dies, moves (uses energy), etc. that heat is released anyway! The law of conservation of energy at work.
BeanAnimal
Premium Member
If you care to remove that foot from your mouth for a moment...
200W of LEDS DO produce EXACTLY as much heat as a 200W flat iron. That is one of the first things taught in physics. The first law of thermodynamics! It is WHY we can label different devices with the UNIT we call a Watt and make meaningful comparisons about them by looking at the ENERGY they use. ENERGY=HEAT. Energy can to be created or destroyed, it can only be transferred or stored. Neither your LED or FLAT IRON store ENERGY. They only transform it. 200W in = 200W out. Nothing in your room STORES energy with any significance. The LEDs and FLAT IRON both conduct the same amount of heat into the room. The flat iron does so mostly by convection and conduction. The LED by radiation and convection.
Furthermore, there have been a very large number of people who have had problems with the SOLARIS units. There was a long standing quality control issue that involved everything from shipping damage from china, bad boards, bad drivers, bad packaging, etc. A simple search of these and other forums will prove that. Many of the original and second generation Solaris units had to be replaced by Solaris. A simple search will also confirm this. From my understanding the AI units have been much better.
Lastly, one DOES NOT have to own something to be able to make educated comments about its function, design, pros/cons or the science that makes it tick, to even suggest so is more than a little short sighted.
BeanAnimal
Premium Member
Nobody is being "bashed". Instead misinformation and/or misconception is being corrected. I don't recall seeing anybody be called stupid in this thread... but I did not read every word either. FWIW being ignorant of the facts is not the same as being stupid. On the other hand ignoring the facts.. .
Are the LEDs ready for prime time? My opinion is NO, but many of you who own the fixtures and are happy with them would certainly have a different opinion. My comments in this thread are directed more towards the common misconception about LEDS, Watts and HEAT.
Very nice tank BTW.
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flyingphish
Member
just buy a chiller and be done with it.
Are there any updates to the AI or Solaris lights forthcoming? I know Solaris went to the G to I some time ago and it seems like the AI light have been out for a while. I'm figuring a Moores law on this...twice the par for half the cost every 18 months. ....Ok....maybe not that much.
