LEDS and Vortech

[Parker7]

Hi I have client that has been looking to upgread to LED and put Vortechs in his tank I was wondering what is the best unit now adays to put over a tank that is 72X24X30 I was inbetween 3 radions, 2 hydras, or 3 Mazzara P series units over the tank but id like to see what others think about this
and my second question is that on this tank should I put 2 Vortech MP10's, 1 MP40, or 2 MP40's? Im not sure what the best combo would be for this tank
Right now he has no SPS but lps and sofies and he was thinking of getting some SPS colonizes.
Thank you every one who can help me out with all of this I just havent had the money to try them out my self

 

[IowaJeeping]

With most LEDs they cover a 24x24 area so your looking at a least 3 of each on what you choose. For flow I have a 72x24x24 and I'm running 2 mp40s and 2 mp10s.

 

[asid61]

I would go with the Radions, but only if they are the Pros with violets. Otherwise, 2 Mazarra P would be okay, as they have 64 leds each.
The Hydra is also pretty good. But you would want 4-6, as they only have 20 leds each. You want at least 80, preferably 100.

All the above use Cree or Luxeon leds, so they're all pretty efficient.

 

[Parker7]

Iowajeeping: that is awesome! My client hates power heads and was iffy about the vortech thats why I was saying to only do 2 How do you have yours set up in the tank and do you run them at 100%?
asid61: Why do you recomend the violets I know that my personal Mazzaras have 410nm and 400nm but I honestly can not tell when my fixture is all the way on durring the day, also did you mean watts, when you said LEDS? cus My mazzara has 16 leds. 12, 3 watt leds and 4, 5watt leds? also I thought I heard the Hydra does a spred of 36X36?

Thank you guys!

 

[Av8bluewater]

I think hydra is 24X24 . I read the Hydra 52 covers 36X36. I would wait til the Hydra 52 comes out and evaluate then. Probably still need 3 Hydra 52s though if you want better coverage.

 

[viggen]

Some state they prefer running mp60's at half or 3/4 speed vs needing to run mp40's at max speed

I have a pair of mp60's on a 10ft tank and they push water 5-6 ft across the tank. I would think a pair of those would have excellent flow and give him the option of doing whatever he wants with the tank in the future.

That is if he wants the pumps on the end of the tank. Possibly if he doesn't want to see the pumps so much 3 mp60's could be put across the back?

 

[Dmorty217]

+1 to the MP60s over the 40s plus there is no maintainance bearing to be replaced

 

[Aqualund]

Parker, there has been a lot of discussion lately on the importance of UV with respect to sps coloration and health. Pocilliporas for example...need a broader spectrum than the white/blue ratio. By implication, most of the units that are employing different spectrum leds have less of the whites for a more beneficial spectrum to a greater variety of corals.

With that, to be on the safe side, you would want to offer your client something that is useable well into the future without having to tell him that his corals arent surviving because of no UV or too much white.

Since its for a client and it sounds like money is not an issue, I would just go with the hydras, 4 of them at least...but 8 would be perfect. The spread might be 36x36 but the par is pretty low out on the edges...meaning the tank will definitely have some dark spots if you only get two. they are literally like 5"x11" in size or something. That is very very small compared the footprint your covering!

Or the radion pros with the UV's. But I still am leaning towards the Hydras.

 

[FlyPenFly]

If 30" is the depth, the Hydras will have very poor PAR even at 20". You'll need to swap the lenses. Read the AA review on them, their special blend lenses mean far less PAR for deeper tanks.

 

[d2mini]

If you want the most features, support and quality, you want to look at Radion Pros and GHL Mitras.

 

[Aqualund]

If 30" is the depth, the Hydras will have very poor PAR even at 20". You'll need to swap the lenses. Read the AA review on them, their special blend lenses mean far less PAR for deeper tanks.

True but it has been shown that depending on coral, "low" par readings arent necessarily a death wish either. I guess it depends on the types of corals being housed.

http://www.advancedaquarist.com/2013/2/aafeature

here's the link comparing the par and spectrum for all the models mentioned in this thread:

http://www.advancedaquarist.com/2013/8/review

 

[rogerwilco357]

I would go with the mp40’s and the Radion pro setup since they would play off each other and with new software coming out monthly along side other items from Ecotech would be nice to keep the upgrades all in one setup instead of bouncing from site to site to upgrade.

 

[D-Nak]

If you want the most features, support and quality, you want to look at Radion Pros and GHL Mitras.

+1. If you want to stay within the Ecotech ecosystem go with the Radion pros. Since it sounds like you may be doing more consulting down the road, staying within one ecosystem makes sense from a programming point of view (though it's not a deal breaker).

Also, even though the GHL mitras are more expensive per unit, since they do cover a 36" x 36" area, you may be able to get away with less fixtures, which may drop the price down lower than the Radions.

In terms of the Vortechs, I think you'd be wasting money on MP10s, so can cross those off the list, and they may not be able to stick to the glass depending on the tank thickness anyway. I'd push to get two MP60s since they will provide more power and may actually be quieter since they won't be turned up as high. The other option is three MP40s on the back wall. fine.