Par 38 LED bulbs

poolkeeper1

poolkeeper1

New member
I got ahold of the new par 38 led bulb today with the 40 degree optics, I chose a 20K version just to see how much they would replace Actinics.
Your gonna like these, Even at 119.00 each they are awesome.
Bill
PS the Critter has them in stock FYI:wave:
 
What kind of light is this? Like a bulb that screws into a regular light socket fixture. Like what Nanotuners sales? Steve
 
Yeah, but i don't think it is nanotuners brand. I think it is an ecoxotic par38. Which is why i am curious about the LEDs they used.
 
If you are going to get the par you want out of them, then no, one would not be enough. The par decreases significantly on LEDs the further out you spread the light (i.e. 40 to 60 to 80 degree optics). To retain the par you have to get gradually closer to the water with the light source as you increase the spread to get good numbers. on top of that they way the LEDs are set up you are going to get a circluar light pattern, which means little to no light on the edges of your tank.
 
Quantity

Quantity

gannmann9876 said:
is 2 of them enough for your tank?
Click to expand...

I think 2 will be enough as supplement lighting, More If this will be your only lighting. I'm going to try lighting my tank with several of these and Park the Metal Halide, As much as the Power Co will regret this Option HaHaHa.
Bill:blown::hammer::blown:
 
Spread

Spread

AdrianBryce said:
If you are going to get the par you want out of them, then no, one would not be enough. The par decreases significantly on LEDs the further out you spread the light (i.e. 40 to 60 to 80 degree optics). To retain the par you have to get gradually closer to the water with the light source as you increase the spread to get good numbers. on top of that they way the LEDs are set up you are going to get a circluar light pattern, which means little to no light on the edges of your tank.
Click to expand...

That's Incorrect, As the 2 on the 650 are up around 18" above the tank and the tank is 5 feet high, The spread is fully covering the lower part of the tank.
The Higher you mount them the wider the beam gets at the bottom, From what I've seen so far. And the light is soft not a beam like you would think from LED's. These are way cool and you will just have to try one for yourself. The all blue is very blue with just the led's on, So a mixed bulb 3x2 2x3 W/B
would be personal preference for color.
There is lots to be learned yet about these but I think they are great. JMO
Bill:D:bounce2::wave:
 
I spoke to the guys at Ecoxotic and they told me that neither these nor their new Canon 50w LEDs would be sufficient, by themselves to light my 220. For the PAR 38s, I would need like 8 or more and the Canons I could replace one of my MHs, but would need to use them as a supplement and not the main lighting.

I do have one of their Panorama fixtures lighting my 30 long frag tank. I had this on my 220 and it did appear to be sufficient for 1/3 of my tank. But at $750 each that's a lot for 2 more.

I don't see these sufficiently lighting a 650 gal reef, as Ecoxotic says they can't light my 220.
 
there is no way two would be enough on a tank that size. These are a rip off of the nanocustoms par38's so the par readings are probably the same. I will find the par ratings from the nanocustoms ones tomorrow and post them. But with 80 degree optics you are less then a hundred and fifty par in the middle of the spread at 12 or less inches above the water line. The spread may be covering and two for supplimental light would be fine for that but you aren't growing light demanding corals with that setup. Just a fun fact the creator of these bulbs uses 5 over a 40 breeder and recommends no less if you want to keep sps solely with these bulbs. One is barely enough for a biocube 29 or 28 or whatever it is if you want long term success with them keeping anything other than low light LPS. There is a 150 or 180 build thread I saw a while back and they are using somewhere at 25 par 38s to light it with 40 degree optics 8 inches or so off the water.
 
Hmm

Hmm

coralfish said:
I spoke to the guys at Ecoxotic and they told me that neither these nor their new Canon 50w LEDs would be sufficient, by themselves to light my 220. For the PAR 38s, I would need like 8 or more and the Canons I could replace one of my MHs, but would need to use them as a supplement and not the main lighting.

Eight Par 38's to light a tank, IMO is pretty cheap when you consider Power savings, Cost of Bulbs (That will last lots longer than M/H or T5's) No heat to speak of and they may last at least 7 years. Not even mentioning the fact you don't need to buy high dollar Ballasts/ Bulbs, Reflectors, Etc.
In the long run They say Savings all over them.
Just want to be sure that Corals will Thrive using them.:wave:
Bill:hammer:









I do have one of their Panorama fixtures lighting my 30 long frag tank. I had this on my 220 and it did appear to be sufficient for 1/3 of my tank. But at $750 each that's a lot for 2 more.

I don't see these sufficiently lighting a 650 gal reef, as Ecoxotic says they can't light my 220.
Click to expand...
 
Thrive...maybe at the top of the tank only....even with 8 or more there will be insufficient light penetration at the middle and bottom of the tank and there will lots of shadowy places in the corners. Call the guys at Ecoxotic...they won't sell you something that will not work on your tank. These are for supplemental and accent light on big tanks only.
 
So your saying on a 16" high tank (Like I have) Lets say I I use 6 Par 38's to cover 36x24 area that I can not get enough light to keep SPS? I would like to try and will start with 3 to replace 1 M/H 250W and leave my current T5's and Reefbrite LED. Then after i see how they do will go from there.
My frag tank has only 24" T5's (4) and It grows SPS just fine, Which i was leary of when I set that tank up. It turns out It does the same as much more light on my main tank??
Bill
 
That price is a little steep for me. what is the life expectancy on the bulb? i might be interested to see if 3 of them will produce the same par as a 250 MH.
 
Life

Life

Pickupman66 said:
That price is a little steep for me. what is the life expectancy on the bulb? i might be interested to see if 3 of them will produce the same par as a 250 MH.
Click to expand...

I have heard any where between 4-10 Years, But the Power savings will pay for them alone, Not to mention all the Not Needed Equipment, Plus No Chiller Needed, I can go on and on.
Bill:hmm6:

M/h Bulb = 69.00 last 6-12 months
Par 38 = 119.00 last 7 years
You do the math
 
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36x24? I thought you were said you wanted to put them over a 650 gallon? did you mean 65? with 6 over a 65 you could do that and that and it would work. I would buy them and experiment with them. You can also change out the optics yourself on some par38s. I would get some extra optics and experiment mixing them to get the coverage you want. I would also keep you more light demanding SPS somewhat directly under a bulb and your not so demanding sps in the overlap between bulbs. I would also look into certain LED panels too. I will pm you some info on some LED panels that are being used by some friends of mine on large tanks that may be a better value today or tomorrow, Bill.

And the LEDs if they stay cool are rated for something like 50,000 hours.
 
I'm aware of another company that will be introducing a PAR30 which will have the same setup as the PAR38. I think they are about half price, may not be CREE LED's but for half price I may give them a try.
 
Very true bill. just wish I had the dinero now! LED's are the way to go, cannot wait for them to go down like CD players and TV's have.

that may cause the MH to go down.
 
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