LED Recommendation Thread

I'm thinking of changing my t5s to 3 kessil a150w. Would they be any good for a SPS tank with 42"x24"x24" dimensions? Or are 2 AI Sols still better?
 
This is the thread I've been looking for! I'll definitely be tagging along... I'm in the market for a new fixture, due to the fact that the daylight circuit of my T5's is very tempermental, and more often than not, I walk in the door from work to just my actinics on. Needless to say, I need to do something, and FAST.

I'm definitely leaning towards a set of AI Sol Blues... I'm at a cross roads here, between staying with T5's (but running a 6 lamp instead of 4), going with a MH/T5 combo, or making the dive into the world of LED's. The only thing thats holding me back is this... I have a 56g "column", and it is 30" deep. I know I would need two Sol's to cover each side, but my question is, will it penetrate the water to the sand effectively? I have roughly a two inch sand bed, so it would need to go down 28 inches...

Thanks!
 
wrxreefer823 said:
This is the thread I've been looking for! I'll definitely be tagging along... I'm in the market for a new fixture, due to the fact that the daylight circuit of my T5's is very tempermental, and more often than not, I walk in the door from work to just my actinics on. Needless to say, I need to do something, and FAST.

I'm definitely leaning towards a set of AI Sol Blues... I'm at a cross roads here, between staying with T5's (but running a 6 lamp instead of 4), going with a MH/T5 combo, or making the dive into the world of LED's. The only thing thats holding me back is this... I have a 56g "column", and it is 30" deep. I know I would need two Sol's to cover each side, but my question is, will it penetrate the water to the sand effectively? I have roughly a two inch sand bed, so it would need to go down 28 inches...

Thanks!
Click to expand...

I think you will be fine. I have a friend that is using 6 of them on 84x24x30 and they are mounted 22" above the water line. He has clams on the sand bed and they look amazing. He also added some T5's for purple bulbs to supplement the color. The Sol Blues alone won't give you full spectrum.
 
Ahh... thank you very much, I did not know that. Is there a Sol that will give you the full spectrum? Saltysupply has a package on two Super Blue units, controller, cables, hanging kit, etc... I was under the impression that they would supply a full spectrum, judging by their fancy little graph.
 
The lights will give your corals what they need to grow and they will grow like weeds but the visual appearance that we see, the sol won't give the pop to the colors that t5's will give you. Many of the newer led units are incorporating RGB leds to try and create the same spectrum as t5's. As far as coverage.....it might be a stretch on a 30" wide tank. I would email AI and see what they think about the coverage. Typically each unit covers a 24x24 area.
 
Let me rephrase. 30" long, and 18' wide. If I'm going to have to run a combo of T5's and the Sol units to get the spectrum, I might be a little disinclined to make the jump...
 
2 would be just fine but don't let the t5 piece discourage you from making the jump. All you would need is 2 reflectors, 2 pairs of end caps and a ballast. you would be able to diy the mounting to the hanging bracket for the AI's.
 
Hmm... Didn't really think of that. I'm pretty sure That Fish Place has materials for just that, and they're within driving distance of me. (Also didn't want to spend a small fortune, but I want to get it RIGHT this time as well)
 
http://www.thatpetplace.com/pet/prod/245887/product.web

36 inch kit for $120... not too bad. So I'll be spending around $1100 for the Sol package plus the t5 kit (I'd use the existing blue bulbs I already have, as they're only a month old or so). Didn't want to spend QUITE that much, but I'm sure I'd kick myself in the arse for not taking the plunge when I had the chance to as well.

I COULD go for the 24 inch kit, but the tank is 30" wide, and for the sake of tank upgrading, I don't mind the 3" overhang (I'm already dealing it now anyways!).
 
Thanks a lot for the advice. I'm going to bed as my brain is fried from researching reefing related junk all evening. :P

Thanks again!
 
So I've scrapped the idea of the AI Sols. I was doing more research and the Ecotech Radio can do with one unit, what the Sol can do with two. No brainer. Oh, and I made a booboo. My tank is only 22 inches deep... Silly me.
 
The radions are nice and I believe the coverage on them is 30x30. What kind of canopy do you have? If its not enclosed and you end up having to hang it higher for better spread you find a lot of light spill into the rest of the room. I'm not sure what your budget is but you might want to check out the sfiligoi geneis led fixture. You can find it at aquaticselite.com. They are pricey but very good. They are making a custom unit for my new tank. Tim is great and very knowledgeable.
 
Thanks for the input... No I don't have a canopy, an I am aware of the light spill though...
I'm looking at the genesis, and it's certainly something to think about. Do they have the features of a radion? How about coverage?
 
You can add the rgb but the don't offer storm simulation which is a waste imo. They make a t5/led fixture if you want to fo that route too. As far as coverage goes....you can customize the optics to play around with that. If you cut and paste the thread in my signature there's a link to a youtube video of one of their fixtures in demo mode.

My tank is going to be 72x36x28 and I went with a 10 module 60" unit. Call or email Tim with questions. The service he provided was part of the reason I went with that fixture.
 
So I've got my lighting narrowed down to two choices. I want to go with either the AI Sol Super Blue, or the Ecotech Radion (I'm definitely on the fence here... lol) If I go with the Sol, I'll need two, but if I decide on the Radion, I could get away with one. Once I factor in the costs for the mounting kit, controller (for the Sol), and other junk I'd need, the cost will be about the same. I'm leaning towards the Radion for the simple fact that it, in my opinion, has more features, and I wouldn't need to supplement with T5's for a complete spectrum. Any thoughts/personal experience with these models?
 
Has anyone seen the XT-E blues? They have them on LED group buy. I might use those instead of the XP-E's. They seem a little better. I have also decided on a 180 rather than a 210, so it will be a 24" tall tank.

Also, I wanted to do a parallel set up. Are there any good tips or drawings on how to balance the strings? I want to make sure all my ducks are in a row before I decide to do it.

One more question. When i move, i plan on setting up my 40br in the new house with LED's that I can later use on my frag tank thats a 24X24X10H. What size heatsink would be ideal for this, and how man LED's would make SPS thrive?

Thanks guys!
 
Checkout (Another) LED Build or something like that. I think it has some good parallel diagrams.

I would use 1 inch strips like Rapid sells and then you can move them for the new tank.
 
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