reefdude135
New member
That is a ton of par! And how far above the water are the bulbs??
Par 38 LED spotlights
- Thread starter goodtimes
- Start date
the bulbs are 6 inches off the water, total 33 inches from the bottom of the tank
Pics as promised, the first set are the numbers from my BC29g (150w MH and 2 24w T5's)
BOTTOM RIGHT OF MY BC29G PAR OF 99
<a href="http://s913.photobucket.com/albums/ac338/Never044/?action=view¤t=Par1001.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i913.photobucket.com/albums/ac338/Never044/Par1001.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a>
MIDDLE OF MY BC29G PAR OF 214
<a href="http://s913.photobucket.com/albums/ac338/Never044/?action=view¤t=Par1003.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i913.photobucket.com/albums/ac338/Never044/Par1003.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a>
TOP PORTION OF MY BC29G PAR 242
<a href="http://s913.photobucket.com/albums/ac338/Never044/?action=view¤t=Par1005.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i913.photobucket.com/albums/ac338/Never044/Par1005.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a>
PAR OF 244
<a href="http://s913.photobucket.com/albums/ac338/Never044/?action=view¤t=Par1007.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i913.photobucket.com/albums/ac338/Never044/Par1007.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a>
BACK PORTION OF MY BC29G PAR OF 163
<a href="http://s913.photobucket.com/albums/ac338/Never044/?action=view¤t=Par1008.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i913.photobucket.com/albums/ac338/Never044/Par1008.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a>
TOP OF MY 200G DD RIGHT UNDER THE PAR38 BULB 1 INCH UNDER WATER PAR OF 1700
<a href="http://s913.photobucket.com/albums/ac338/Never044/?action=view¤t=Par1012.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i913.photobucket.com/albums/ac338/Never044/Par1012.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a>
A LITTLE ABOVE THE 3 INCH MARK PAR OF 1328
<a href="http://s913.photobucket.com/albums/ac338/Never044/?action=view¤t=Par1014.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i913.photobucket.com/albums/ac338/Never044/Par1014.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a>
had to lighten up some of the pics to get a better shot of the LCD screen and numbers, this is right next to my blue tenius, PAR of 320
<a href="http://s913.photobucket.com/albums/ac338/Never044/?action=view¤t=Par1015-1.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i913.photobucket.com/albums/ac338/Never044/Par1015-1.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a>
Blue tenius again PAR of 331
<a href="http://s913.photobucket.com/albums/ac338/Never044/?action=view¤t=Par1016-1.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i913.photobucket.com/albums/ac338/Never044/Par1016-1.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a>
tenius again PAR of 322
<a href="http://s913.photobucket.com/albums/ac338/Never044/?action=view¤t=Par1017-1.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i913.photobucket.com/albums/ac338/Never044/Par1017-1.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a>
Pics as promised, the first set are the numbers from my BC29g (150w MH and 2 24w T5's)
BOTTOM RIGHT OF MY BC29G PAR OF 99
<a href="http://s913.photobucket.com/albums/ac338/Never044/?action=view¤t=Par1001.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i913.photobucket.com/albums/ac338/Never044/Par1001.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a>
MIDDLE OF MY BC29G PAR OF 214
<a href="http://s913.photobucket.com/albums/ac338/Never044/?action=view¤t=Par1003.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i913.photobucket.com/albums/ac338/Never044/Par1003.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a>
TOP PORTION OF MY BC29G PAR 242
<a href="http://s913.photobucket.com/albums/ac338/Never044/?action=view¤t=Par1005.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i913.photobucket.com/albums/ac338/Never044/Par1005.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a>
PAR OF 244
<a href="http://s913.photobucket.com/albums/ac338/Never044/?action=view¤t=Par1007.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i913.photobucket.com/albums/ac338/Never044/Par1007.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a>
BACK PORTION OF MY BC29G PAR OF 163
<a href="http://s913.photobucket.com/albums/ac338/Never044/?action=view¤t=Par1008.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i913.photobucket.com/albums/ac338/Never044/Par1008.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a>
TOP OF MY 200G DD RIGHT UNDER THE PAR38 BULB 1 INCH UNDER WATER PAR OF 1700
<a href="http://s913.photobucket.com/albums/ac338/Never044/?action=view¤t=Par1012.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i913.photobucket.com/albums/ac338/Never044/Par1012.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a>
A LITTLE ABOVE THE 3 INCH MARK PAR OF 1328
<a href="http://s913.photobucket.com/albums/ac338/Never044/?action=view¤t=Par1014.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i913.photobucket.com/albums/ac338/Never044/Par1014.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a>
had to lighten up some of the pics to get a better shot of the LCD screen and numbers, this is right next to my blue tenius, PAR of 320
<a href="http://s913.photobucket.com/albums/ac338/Never044/?action=view¤t=Par1015-1.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i913.photobucket.com/albums/ac338/Never044/Par1015-1.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a>
Blue tenius again PAR of 331
<a href="http://s913.photobucket.com/albums/ac338/Never044/?action=view¤t=Par1016-1.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i913.photobucket.com/albums/ac338/Never044/Par1016-1.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a>
tenius again PAR of 322
<a href="http://s913.photobucket.com/albums/ac338/Never044/?action=view¤t=Par1017-1.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i913.photobucket.com/albums/ac338/Never044/Par1017-1.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a>
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I get a PAR of (midrange numbers) 100 at the bottom and a PAR of 1500 at the top, PAR roughly drops about 30-75 PAR per inch of depth, so 5 inches down in the tank the PAR is around 1000, 10 inches down it's around 600, so at about 17 inches from the bottom of the tank i'm getting around 500-600 PAR 10 inches off the bottom the PAR is around 300-400, 5 inches off the bottom PAR is between 200-300, though you have to take into account the outer rim of the bulb gives you a PAR around 100-200 5-10 inches off the bottom
the red planet is around 13-15 inches off the bottom of the tank, it's getting 398 PAR off the the side, on the top of the red planet i was getting a PAR around 450
i had to hold the meter and take the pics myself so it wasn't easy, i wrote on tape all the numbers i was getting throughout the tank i'll work on getting that pic tonight
the red planet is around 13-15 inches off the bottom of the tank, it's getting 398 PAR off the the side, on the top of the red planet i was getting a PAR around 450
i had to hold the meter and take the pics myself so it wasn't easy, i wrote on tape all the numbers i was getting throughout the tank i'll work on getting that pic tonight
Thanks, that's much better. LOL You might want to move your sps's up higher in the tank ...but slowly !Psionicdragon
New member
Hey beeker,
what was your tank dimension? how far are your par 38 from each other?
what was your tank dimension? how far are your par 38 from each other?
Tank dimensions are 48*36*27tall
bulbs on the right are around 4-6 inches from each other, this results in a PAR of 80-100 between the bulbs where they meet
honestly after seeing that most of my Sps was in the 180-250 PAR range in my BC 29g, 300+ PAR in the 200g is a ton more than my old setup was, but thats a good thing, i've got good PAR numbers over every piece of LR that i'll be mounting Sps too, and the placement of sps will go accordingly
i planned this from the start though with planning to keep my sps, off the bottom from 8 inches up to the top of the tank, and the PAR numbers i got show that i could even keep some sps in the 3-5 inch range of the tank, though chalices and other lower light lps will be going in those spots
I'm very pleased with the results, it's pretty much 3 times the amount of light my 150w MH was giving me in terms of PAR and even in the lowest lit spots of the tank i was still getting around 30-60 PAR which is enough for hammer's and frogspawn and lower light demanding corals
bulbs on the right are around 4-6 inches from each other, this results in a PAR of 80-100 between the bulbs where they meet
honestly after seeing that most of my Sps was in the 180-250 PAR range in my BC 29g, 300+ PAR in the 200g is a ton more than my old setup was, but thats a good thing, i've got good PAR numbers over every piece of LR that i'll be mounting Sps too, and the placement of sps will go accordingly
i planned this from the start though with planning to keep my sps, off the bottom from 8 inches up to the top of the tank, and the PAR numbers i got show that i could even keep some sps in the 3-5 inch range of the tank, though chalices and other lower light lps will be going in those spots
I'm very pleased with the results, it's pretty much 3 times the amount of light my 150w MH was giving me in terms of PAR and even in the lowest lit spots of the tank i was still getting around 30-60 PAR which is enough for hammer's and frogspawn and lower light demanding corals
JTL
New member
Beeker, thanks for posting the numbers. I am about 3" closer to the bottom so my guess is that I am about 200 Par. I am confused about the Par reading off center. How much do the par readings decrease at about 6" from dead center at the bottom. The light at that dept should be about a 12" diameter with 40 degree optics. Also for those of you who are contemplating a mix of 12k and 20k, it is my understanding from Evil that the Par ratings are the same. Beeker, is that your understanding? Another deceiving thing is the brightness. The camera shows a lot brighter tank than it is, mine is much darker than my pics. It is amazing that the Par can be so high and yet the look is a deep, shadow laden reef.
PAR ratings for both bulbs should be the same, the blue leds may not read the same on the PAR meter though, they'd probably read a little lower than the whites
from what i've seen a typicall PAR on the outer rim is 30-40, this is in the dimmest part of the outer rim, typically it's around 50-80 PAR and even moving or directing the bulb just a half inch can change the PAR by 30 or 50
so if your getting a PAR of 150 where your sps is, you just move the bulb half an inch angled towards it and you can easily get 200 PAR, this will change the out rim from 100 PAR to around 70, it's been interesting to see the numbers and how they work
I'll be taking more pics of my setup tongiht and i'll single out 1 bulb by itself and take some readings and post up the numbers on the inside and outside rim of the bulb's light
from what i've seen a typicall PAR on the outer rim is 30-40, this is in the dimmest part of the outer rim, typically it's around 50-80 PAR and even moving or directing the bulb just a half inch can change the PAR by 30 or 50
so if your getting a PAR of 150 where your sps is, you just move the bulb half an inch angled towards it and you can easily get 200 PAR, this will change the out rim from 100 PAR to around 70, it's been interesting to see the numbers and how they work
I'll be taking more pics of my setup tongiht and i'll single out 1 bulb by itself and take some readings and post up the numbers on the inside and outside rim of the bulb's light
no problem i was wanting to find out the PAR of my main tank for a long time and when i got the PAR38 setup i couldn't wait to see the number difference
I'll be taking a tile and putting inch marks on it with a 0 mark in the center and marking it from the center 0 point to the outside edges of the tile with 1 inch incriments, i'll take PAR readings of that and post them tomorrow if i'm able to get all the readings tonight
I'll be taking a tile and putting inch marks on it with a 0 mark in the center and marking it from the center 0 point to the outside edges of the tile with 1 inch incriments, i'll take PAR readings of that and post them tomorrow if i'm able to get all the readings tonight
nattarbox
New member
So I just got a pair of these, both 20k, one 40 degree and one 60 for the optics.
I don't have my fixture quite figure out yet, so I tried them both in a reptile lighting enclosure held over the tank, just to get an idea of what this was going to look like. Have to say, I was not impressed.
The color seemed really artificial. Specifically, there were these bands of very distinct yellow and blue on the outside of the spot area. They were rippling from the current, and overall gave sort of a rave/club lighting feel. Compared to a single metal halide that I've been using, I'd have to say it was extreme artificial looking.
I haven't tried both of them together, lacking two fixtures. Maybe that will even out using both. I lit one up in combination with my MH light and the yellow/blue lines still seemed quite prominent.
They do seem to be impeccably well built and cool running, so I'm not writing it off yet. But if I can't get a natural lighting appearance out of these, all the energy savings in the world aren't going to make it worthwhile.
I don't have my fixture quite figure out yet, so I tried them both in a reptile lighting enclosure held over the tank, just to get an idea of what this was going to look like. Have to say, I was not impressed.
The color seemed really artificial. Specifically, there were these bands of very distinct yellow and blue on the outside of the spot area. They were rippling from the current, and overall gave sort of a rave/club lighting feel. Compared to a single metal halide that I've been using, I'd have to say it was extreme artificial looking.
I haven't tried both of them together, lacking two fixtures. Maybe that will even out using both. I lit one up in combination with my MH light and the yellow/blue lines still seemed quite prominent.
They do seem to be impeccably well built and cool running, so I'm not writing it off yet. But if I can't get a natural lighting appearance out of these, all the energy savings in the world aren't going to make it worthwhile.
nattarbox
New member
Looking back at the photos on the previous page, I can see the same effect in beeker's photos, but not on JTLs. I wonder what is different about his setup.
Edit: he is using six spots over a 24"x48" tank. I'm using two over a 12"x30". Perhaps the overlap of beams cancels out the perimeter effect I'm seeing.
Edit: he is using six spots over a 24"x48" tank. I'm using two over a 12"x30". Perhaps the overlap of beams cancels out the perimeter effect I'm seeing.
JTL
New member
I am going to add two more for a total of eight. The only difference between mine and Beeker's is he is using all 12K and I am using a 50/50 mix of 12k and 20k. I can tell you this there is zero yellow and no banding on mine. Beeker will have to comment on his because I don't trust the pictures. I know for a fact that mine look much brighter and whiter than in person. Most cameras just cannot deal with the lights and over compensate. These are nothing more than Cree white and blues and should not be producing yellow, I am getting a shade of purple but that is not in the yellow spectrum. I went back and looked at Beeker's pics and I did not see anything in the yellow/brown spectrum that wasn't already on his rock.
JTL
New member
nattar, I am trying to figure out what is causing the problem. If you look at my pic that has the top on my tank you can see a dispersion of colors. Is the lamp you used the one with the optics or are they both giving the effect that you describe? Could it be that you have bad optics?
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