Swanwillow
goby girl
I have a panorama over my 25 gallon. I have to say under the 'normal' lights they are the most true to color. What you'd see in sunlight. The second I go to moonlights though, its AMAZING the color pop on them.
LEDs for zoas - what do you know?
- Thread starter A. Grandis
- Start date
A. Grandis
Active member
Ok, updates...
I've been searching a little more around the RC forums and...
More and more people regretting their LEDs and coming back to their T5s.
I guess it's only a matter of time for them to realize that their T5 fixtures cover more area, with a very good PAR, with the right bulb, and are a better choice for their reef system overall.
It is still very early to see how much LEDs can be good, I guess, and I believe that would be possible to see many more people coming back and taking their ATI PM fixtures out of their closets.
Please take a look and check it out...
Great info about "old style" VHO t12s X HO t5s, plus a LED X T5 info.
http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?p=19552974&posted=1#post19552974
Back to T5s from LEDs!
http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2088194
This is an update and to try help others to take their decisions about buying their fixtures...
Time tells! And we probably still need more time for the LEDs to perform better than T5s...
Cheers.
Grandis.
I've been searching a little more around the RC forums and...
More and more people regretting their LEDs and coming back to their T5s.
I guess it's only a matter of time for them to realize that their T5 fixtures cover more area, with a very good PAR, with the right bulb, and are a better choice for their reef system overall.
It is still very early to see how much LEDs can be good, I guess, and I believe that would be possible to see many more people coming back and taking their ATI PM fixtures out of their closets.
Please take a look and check it out...
Great info about "old style" VHO t12s X HO t5s, plus a LED X T5 info.
http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?p=19552974&posted=1#post19552974
Back to T5s from LEDs!
http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2088194
This is an update and to try help others to take their decisions about buying their fixtures...
Time tells! And we probably still need more time for the LEDs to perform better than T5s...
Cheers.
Grandis.
Swanwillow
goby girl
I still have LEDs. I still love them. The zoanthis are multiplying like mad (except the ones I want to, of course, just like a normal tank)
rndmcnflct
New member
Funny then that not a single person in this thread has said that. Do you own stock in a T5 company or what?
A. Grandis
Active member
LOL!!
Yeap, I know. It's funny. I'm just trying to figure out what is really worthy!
Do you have anything else to add to the thread?
Thanks.
Grandis.
A. Grandis
Active member
Not fire the LEDs and make you feel bad. Far from that.
If they are growing and you like them, that's fine.
I actually would love to hear even better things from people that have used both (LEDs and T5s), for a comparison.
No sence to change my ATI PM for LEDs if they aren't better, right?
Thanks very much.
Grandis.
marsnakeman
New member
From looking at one of my friends tanks. He has had T5's for years and just added an led system (not sure the type) but in less then a month his zoa's have grown more then the have in over a year. This is what won me over and reason I am starting my new tank with leds from that start since it will be a zoa only tank.
A. Grandis
Active member
Yeah,
As many others reported, at the beginning of this thread, there are many zoa keepers with good reports for their LEDs with zoas.
If they grow faster and look healthier, what can one say?!?
I guess depends from tank to tank?
Or depends on the spectrum choices or the type of fixtures?
Well, still time will tell.
The facts will come sooner or later.
Hope this thread can collaborate for all of the zoa keepers, at least.
The more people post about their experiences the better will be for all!
It's a lot of money to just try out. One needs to know what to look for.
I appreciate very much the info was posted before!!!
Hope there is more to come from zoa keepers. :thumbsup:
Grandis.
As many others reported, at the beginning of this thread, there are many zoa keepers with good reports for their LEDs with zoas.
If they grow faster and look healthier, what can one say?!?
I guess depends from tank to tank?
Or depends on the spectrum choices or the type of fixtures?
Well, still time will tell.
The facts will come sooner or later.
Hope this thread can collaborate for all of the zoa keepers, at least.
The more people post about their experiences the better will be for all!
It's a lot of money to just try out. One needs to know what to look for.
I appreciate very much the info was posted before!!!
Hope there is more to come from zoa keepers. :thumbsup:
Grandis.
mgargiullo
New member
Par matters. If you go cheap on LEDs you'll be unhappy. The three watt Crees don't penetrate very deep without lenses.
I grabbed a pair of P30 pendants from blue moon aquatics... Damn... What a difference. It's a 30watt LED in the center surrounded by a bunch of royal blue chips with lenses... Amazing! I'll never go back to Ts or MH.
I grabbed a pair of P30 pendants from blue moon aquatics... Damn... What a difference. It's a 30watt LED in the center surrounded by a bunch of royal blue chips with lenses... Amazing! I'll never go back to Ts or MH.
GIT RITE
New member
I have been keeping several different Zoas along with some Sps and a single maxima under a 21 pcs Cree DIY Led setup over a BC 14 for a while and I can't complain. I won't jump out there and say my growth exploded but the color is excellent and everything is growing. The main drive for me to change over to LEDs was heat and energy savings, the only thing I don't particularly like about them is the disco effect because the LED system is based off of different color LEDs, whereas a halide is one point light source, so i.e. no disco effect....but in the other hand you can't dim a halide as you can LEDs...... Just my 2 cents.....
A. Grandis
Active member
Some nice added info...
Please keep'em coming.
That is my intention with this thread!
Grandis
Please keep'em coming.
That is my intention with this thread!
Grandis
~RuSh~
New member
I had just set up a 10g nano and only had T5's. I bought a Marineland Reef Capable LED fixture. Obviously upgrading from just T5's to LED's I got an increase in growth. What I did not like was the color output. The MRC LED's only have 3 blue LED's... so the color output is very bright and warm... It kind of washes out the color in a lot of zoas IMO. The worst part is that you can't change the ratio.
If I were going to do it again, I would probably do DIY LED's and add a lot more blue. I think the growth is there, but I don't know about the color just yet.
On another note, in some of my research for a more satisfying color output I've had a lot of suggestions for Stunner strips. I may look into those for a Christmas gift for myself.
If I were going to do it again, I would probably do DIY LED's and add a lot more blue. I think the growth is there, but I don't know about the color just yet.
On another note, in some of my research for a more satisfying color output I've had a lot of suggestions for Stunner strips. I may look into those for a Christmas gift for myself.
A. Grandis
Active member
Thanks ~RuSh~!
Yep, I think most of us already know that the wormer the spectrum, the better is the zoas' growth. There are many people here talking about the growth using their new LEDs and that could be because they are coming from the "traditional" bluer tanks with T5s. Lots of Blue Plus bulbs and less 6500Ks playing... maybe not?
It would be wonderful to hear more from people that noticed better growth with their LEDs with the approximate spectrum/wattage when coming from other light source. Just because the comparison needs to be fair, or at least close to each other. That will help a lot to know if the LEDs are really what makes them grow more or the change of spectrum and light focus over the tank.
Perhaps the better growth comes from the directed light and warmer spectrum.
That also will help us to make smart decisions when buying new LEDs.
We need to remember that many today, again, have their blue T5 tanks. It is obvious that when they change to warmer spectrum the growth will increase. If they change to warmer T5 bulbs the growth will increase too!!! GE6500K and KZ New Generation are known for that.
I do believe that the directed light from the LEDs on the market will increase some growth too (focus from lenses), depending on position of the zoas, the PAR and the power on the zoas, receive from the light. The different brand LED fixtures alone play a lot with the PAR values/distribution because of their design/number of bulbs/quality/spectrum balance/lenses/different abilities.
Please take a look at this interesting thread about Ecotech Radion vs AquaIllumination SOL vs Vertex Illumina, for more !!
http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2088048&page=4
A more uniform light, like T5 tubes, will disperse the light quality with a more uniform spread, as we know so well.
That is also true when compared with LEDs and with MH.
My experiences with the great growth under MH in the past was because of the concentrated wattage + day light MH bulbs (2 X 250W 6500K) and supplemental actinics looong ago. The energy from the bulb was great and the spectrum helped a lot!!! I would imagine that LEDs would act very similar, with much less heat. And many would have to agree with that, I guess.
A comparison like: coming from: 6500K+ actinic03 (50%50% ratio) T5s, going to LEDs 50%-50% also would be good to hear about.
I do love to see some shimmering! Like the dimmers too and even the lightning!!
Let us learn more about them...
Grandis.
Yep, I think most of us already know that the wormer the spectrum, the better is the zoas' growth. There are many people here talking about the growth using their new LEDs and that could be because they are coming from the "traditional" bluer tanks with T5s. Lots of Blue Plus bulbs and less 6500Ks playing... maybe not?
It would be wonderful to hear more from people that noticed better growth with their LEDs with the approximate spectrum/wattage when coming from other light source. Just because the comparison needs to be fair, or at least close to each other. That will help a lot to know if the LEDs are really what makes them grow more or the change of spectrum and light focus over the tank.
Perhaps the better growth comes from the directed light and warmer spectrum.
That also will help us to make smart decisions when buying new LEDs.
We need to remember that many today, again, have their blue T5 tanks. It is obvious that when they change to warmer spectrum the growth will increase. If they change to warmer T5 bulbs the growth will increase too!!! GE6500K and KZ New Generation are known for that.
I do believe that the directed light from the LEDs on the market will increase some growth too (focus from lenses), depending on position of the zoas, the PAR and the power on the zoas, receive from the light. The different brand LED fixtures alone play a lot with the PAR values/distribution because of their design/number of bulbs/quality/spectrum balance/lenses/different abilities.
Please take a look at this interesting thread about Ecotech Radion vs AquaIllumination SOL vs Vertex Illumina, for more !!
http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2088048&page=4
A more uniform light, like T5 tubes, will disperse the light quality with a more uniform spread, as we know so well.
That is also true when compared with LEDs and with MH.
My experiences with the great growth under MH in the past was because of the concentrated wattage + day light MH bulbs (2 X 250W 6500K) and supplemental actinics looong ago. The energy from the bulb was great and the spectrum helped a lot!!! I would imagine that LEDs would act very similar, with much less heat. And many would have to agree with that, I guess.
A comparison like: coming from: 6500K+ actinic03 (50%50% ratio) T5s, going to LEDs 50%-50% also would be good to hear about.
I do love to see some shimmering! Like the dimmers too and even the lightning!!
Let us learn more about them...
Grandis.
PinkDamsel
New member
I switched from 50/50 CF to a BoostLED PAR30 4royal blue/1cool white a year ago. Because my tank is so shallow (9" - it's a 3 gallon pico), I did a prolonged acclimation. Results are mixed:
- LOVE the shimmer & look of the tank.
- Growth. Until recently I've had little or no growth on zoas, in fact slowly receding polyps on the smaller ones. However, I'm pretty certain this was from lack of feeding rather than light because I've been feeding more in the past 3 months and the palys are now growing and the remaining zoa colonies seem to have stabilized (they're either still not growing or doing so very slowly). Other types of corals have also responded w. strong growth to the feeding.
Color:
- Instant fluorescent green on many corals, such as Eagle Eye skirts, very cool.
- I had hoped that some PinkGold palys that had always been a dull gray-pink with no sparkle would "color up" under the LEDs, but that did not happen. However, since their recent growth explosion (1 polyp became 6 in 2 months) I am seeing faint sparkles for the first time, although still not as colorful as I see in pictures. I also recently lowered the light several inches, so can't say if it's the food, increased light, or a combination.
- I purchased several paly frags last spring that came from T5 tanks, and their colors initially persisted several weeks, but then slowly dulled and browned in my tank (although growth is good since the feeding & they otherwise look healthy). Some were a pretty lime green, others a light pink. They definitely are not bleached, they've gotten darker. Nuc Greens (from a MH tank) are occasionally that pretty bright green, but usually dull brown-green; the polyps are also smaller than normal for NGs, so I don't think they need MORE light.
- All orange palys & zoas maintain good saturated orange color.
I've been wondering if it's a spectra issue w. the royal blue/cool white combo not having some wavelengths necessary for the corals to synthesize certain pigments. Next week am getting a new PAR30 w. 2 rb + 1 blue + 1 neutral white + 1 cw and am looking forward to see if that makes a difference as it will be less blue plus include some warmer spectra.
As you can probably tell, I'm a newbie and kinda thrashing around a bit.
- LOVE the shimmer & look of the tank.
- Growth. Until recently I've had little or no growth on zoas, in fact slowly receding polyps on the smaller ones. However, I'm pretty certain this was from lack of feeding rather than light because I've been feeding more in the past 3 months and the palys are now growing and the remaining zoa colonies seem to have stabilized (they're either still not growing or doing so very slowly). Other types of corals have also responded w. strong growth to the feeding.
Color:
- Instant fluorescent green on many corals, such as Eagle Eye skirts, very cool.
- I had hoped that some PinkGold palys that had always been a dull gray-pink with no sparkle would "color up" under the LEDs, but that did not happen. However, since their recent growth explosion (1 polyp became 6 in 2 months) I am seeing faint sparkles for the first time, although still not as colorful as I see in pictures. I also recently lowered the light several inches, so can't say if it's the food, increased light, or a combination.
- I purchased several paly frags last spring that came from T5 tanks, and their colors initially persisted several weeks, but then slowly dulled and browned in my tank (although growth is good since the feeding & they otherwise look healthy). Some were a pretty lime green, others a light pink. They definitely are not bleached, they've gotten darker. Nuc Greens (from a MH tank) are occasionally that pretty bright green, but usually dull brown-green; the polyps are also smaller than normal for NGs, so I don't think they need MORE light.
- All orange palys & zoas maintain good saturated orange color.
I've been wondering if it's a spectra issue w. the royal blue/cool white combo not having some wavelengths necessary for the corals to synthesize certain pigments. Next week am getting a new PAR30 w. 2 rb + 1 blue + 1 neutral white + 1 cw and am looking forward to see if that makes a difference as it will be less blue plus include some warmer spectra.
As you can probably tell, I'm a newbie and kinda thrashing around a bit.
Cptn Spaulding
New member
+1 on most people who hate on LEDs is because of poor coral placement and light adjustment. I love my 20k PAR38s. Polyps have never looked better
Turbomesodon
New member
I started my aquarium at home 7 months ago. I´ve been using LEDS since first day and, specially with actinic ones, zoanthus look marvellous. I use them at work too and i´m completely astonished by them.
So many fantastic colours, as Cream said once.
So many fantastic colours, as Cream said once.
A. Grandis
Active member
It would be wonderful if everyone here would also post their details about their systems, like: photoperiod, type of fixtures, how much percent for their LEDs, changing from,...
Just like the others did at the beginning of this thread.
If you want to post one or two pictures of your system too...
Thanks all!
Grandis.
Just like the others did at the beginning of this thread.
If you want to post one or two pictures of your system too...
Thanks all!
Grandis.
maxvan1
New member
Fluval Edge 'Experiment tank' (im doin all kinds of crazy experiments) This particular guy has been under LEDWholesalers par38 (12w blue/white) bulb, Two 4-watt (4x1W) 7,000k MR16 bulbs, and two Walmart LED 2.6w (overpowered to 2.8w) desk lamps. I also use 52LED 10degree spotlights to keep certain corals on a 24hr photoperoid....
The results speak for themselves ---
I swear by the walmart desk lamps.:lolspin:
The results speak for themselves ---
I swear by the walmart desk lamps.:lolspin:
Last edited:
A. Grandis
Active member
24hour photoperiod for corals is not what it should be.
Why do you do that?
Grandis.
Why do you do that?
Grandis.
