MH vs LED POWER CONSUMPTION

[Misenplace101]

How can LEDs be more energy efficient than MH?

12 LEDs run at 1.4 amps
250 MH run at 2.4 amps.

An MH is an arm and LEDs are an arm and a leg. How is this energy efficient?

I know the saving on bulbs but all this hype on being energy efficient is not making any sense to me.

Any input would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks in advance.


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[James77]

Electric is not sold by amps, it is by watts. Those 12 LEDs use about 3 watts each, the halide 250 watts.

The electric savings can be substantial for someone living in an area with sky high electric rates. On top of that, LEDs impart less heat into the tank due to being more efficient, so chillers are needed less....adding to electric savings. LEDs kick out alot of light per watt, they are more efficient at making light than halides. More of the energy is converted to light than halide, which turns alot to straight heat.

For others, like me, the LED electric savings are minimal....about $5/month over my current setup, which uses actinic LEDs and 2x175 Iwasakis. Add to that that I already have an efficient tank, which tends to run cool. Any heat would be welcome, and switching to LEDs would have my heater on more often, making the electric savings all but a wash.For me replacing my VHOs gives me great savings on some electric and bulb replacement, because that LED fixture onnly ran $200

No light setup can be across the board beneficial for everyone. Some need the efficiency, others will not realize savings at all over the life of the LED fixture.

 

[jwoyshnar]

Like stated above i dont think its that substantial. I figured it out how long it would take to break even if i did purchase new leds to replace my halides. It would be almost 13 years. Problem is leds will only last 5-10. My 2 300 watt heaters would be on more. Im sticking with my halides.

 

[Fishbulb2]

Another thing to consider however is that LEDs don't generally need to be replaced for at least 5 years or so. At $50 every 6 months conservatively for new MH bulbs, LEDs should save you about $100/yr in bulbs right?

FB

 

[125G Reefer]

Another thing to consider however is that LEDs don't generally need to be replaced for at least 5 years or so. At $50 every 6 months conservatively for new MH bulbs, LEDs should save you about $100/yr in bulbs right?

FB

$45 every 6 months for 2 MH Bulbs. Now we are talkin business here.

 

[James77]

10-12 months is the norm for halide replacements.

Even at the 10 months, I'd save $660 over 5 years. I'm not saying I will never switch to LEDs, I do think they are definitely what most will be using in several years. I just think they need a bit more time to be fully tweaked and for the price to come down substantially then they will be a no brained for everyone.

 

[Misenplace101]

Great explanation jame... Makes more sense now. Thank you


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[reefermad619]

I have a friend who switched from 750watts of MH to 360 watts of LEDs. Coral growth and color are the same and his energy consumption was cut by over half. It was worth for him.

 

[ron86hd]

I would love to go led. I did a post today about wanting to go led But with a tank that is 4x8x16 me using 3 250 watt MH is better for me then spending more than a few grand on Led's

 

[aufo8mycat]

Like stated above i dont think its that substantial. I figured it out how long it would take to break even if i did purchase new leds to replace my halides. It would be almost 13 years. Problem is leds will only last 5-10. My 2 300 watt heaters would be on more. Im sticking with my halides.

this seem like a very long time. I just upgraded my arcadia sereis 3 3x250w & 2x80w t5's based on my calculations my light will pay for itself in a year and a half , and i beleive i went with the top of the range light.. infact i know for a fact that with enough light for a sps tank holding 800liters of water my light is costing me $21 a month, my skimmer is costing 28, my old arcadia was costing close to 200 per month

 

[pmrossetti]

I have a friend who switched from 750watts of MH to 360 watts of LEDs. Coral growth and color are the same and his energy consumption was cut by over half. It was worth for him.

Hi r, please excuse my ignorance of leds, but how can 360w of leds be as good as 750w of mh? thank you

 

[nanojg]

Another thing to consider however is that LEDs don't generally need to be replaced for at least 5 years or so. At $50 every 6 months conservatively for new MH bulbs, LEDs should save you about $100/yr in bulbs right?

FB

Every six months...no. Conservatively?!? Are you serious, you need to do some research!

 

[nanojg]

Hi r, please excuse my ignorance of leds, but how can 360w of leds be as good as 750w of mh? thank you

That's easy, they put more par/watt into the tank!

 

[nanojg]

this seem like a very long time. I just upgraded my arcadia sereis 3 3x250w & 2x80w t5's based on my calculations my light will pay for itself in a year and a half , and i beleive i went with the top of the range light.. infact i know for a fact that with enough light for a sps tank holding 800liters of water my light is costing me $21 a month, my skimmer is costing 28, my old arcadia was costing close to 200 per month

Might want to upgrade your skimmer pump, that's crazy! Mine is around 14 watts

 

[pmrossetti]

That's easy, they put more par/watt into the tank!

wow, that's fantastic!!! Let me just make sure. So say 500watts led replace 1000watts mh?
Almost 2 good 2 be true.:eek1:

how many t5 watts would be needed to replace, say 1000watts mh? Any idea?
thanks!!!:twitch:

 

[NYCBOB]

the price of led fixture has to come down more for me to consider it. i just purchased the ati sunpower 6x54w ($450) 1 year ago. i am now due for bulb replacement which should come out to about $130-140 total. led normally uses 30-40% less energy on average than t5 or mh.

 

[huskysglare1]

The one thing to consider also is the life span of "useful LED". People say they'll last anywhere from 5-10 years. It's probably true. However, how many years can it produce effective light for growing corals? Metal Halide has a "useful" life span of about 9 months, but the bulb will still light up for 2-7 years. Who's to say how long can LED produce useful light? 1 year or 10 years? No one knows.

LED technology is still new. Not many people owned a set long enough to see how it does in the long term. No one has measured par value as LED aged and so predict the approximate "useful" life span of a LED set. Also, LEDs are not cheap to replace.

 

[MikeInToronto]

Evolution of lighting changes rapidly so the ballasts, bulbs, and fixtures you buy today could be outdated in 2 years. The same will likely be true for LED which is still in its infancy (wrt aquarium lighting). People will move from this tank to that, and sell the lights or keep the lights, or upgrade to new tech, or whatever. We make judgments based on the long term of a tank but there are surprisingly few people who keep a tank running for 5 years, let alone 10, and even few who keep their equipment that long. LED is going to change, sooner rather than later. Few people still use the MH they had 10 years ago. VERY few still use VHO.

Basically all I'm saying is your new energy efficient lighting may pay for itself in 10 years but you probably won't have it for more than 5 before you move on to something else/better.

Now if you want to be a pioneer and try out all the new tech at its higher price, go for it! It's all about experimenting. But as a cost saving measure, I'd just stick to what I know.

 

[pmrossetti]

So true, but I have to admit, that Vertex Illumina light makes me drool. Don't really care for anyothers I've seen..............but that Vertex , my oh my

 

[James77]

this seem like a very long time. I just upgraded my arcadia sereis 3 3x250w & 2x80w t5's based on my calculations my light will pay for itself in a year and a half , and i beleive i went with the top of the range light.. infact i know for a fact that with enough light for a sps tank holding 800liters of water my light is costing me $21 a month, my skimmer is costing 28, my old arcadia was costing close to 200 per month

What are you paying for an electric rate and are you in a hot area?

For comparison, my halides and led actinics cost less than $12/month to run and my skimmer costs less than$2 a month. An AI fixture would save me $60 a year in electric and $120 in bulbs, for a total of $1260 over 7 years. Even buying all my equipment new at $800, an AquaIlluminations setup still comes in more expensive at at least $2100.

LEDs can save a good amount of people alot of money, but blanket statements that they will save everyone money and pay for themselves in a few years cannot be made. In a few years, when that AI comes down by half? Then it will apply to alot more people.