Sps growth. Mh vs LEDs

[YoungREEFA]

its simple. do you want to experiment ? or do you want a set and forget it type of thing ?

MH has been proven to work, and its well documented about different bulbs and intensities and distance to water and coral and so on.

LED is newer. you have to try rising or lowering it, change intensity, try different colors and so on, to get the same thing, or better.

so ....

Why would you have to raise an led fixture but not a MH?

 

[1fishkeeper]

Vivid Aquarium had a cool video where they put MH on one half of the 800 gallon tank and LED on the other. They placed the same corals on both sides so you could see how they grew. I just cant seem to find the video of it. Maybe someone on here has a link to it.

 

[buffalo123]

Color grow really good under MH at 10000-15000k .
6500k - also but some say that kelvin encourage algae growth.

 

[Allmost]

Why would you have to raise an led fixture but not a MH?

please read my post again.

sometimes you may have to raise MH too, point is that it is WELL DOCUMENTED and MANY USE IT. so you can PM me, and almost 99% of ppl on SPS forums, and ask how many inch off water should you place your MH ...

we dont have that KNOWLEDGE BASE for LEDs yet.

 

[modder man]

I wouldn't say that LED's are so new there is no solid documentation yet. Yes there is much more information out there on halides, but there is also plenty for LED's. Many people use LED's and would never even consider going back. I like the amount of control over the color that I have with my LED's. With Halides you dont have that, its on or off.

 

[Lubeck]

I'm considering going back to halides or adding t-5 to my LEDs. Many LEDs will wash the corals put within a short time.

 

[ca1ore]

I remember the days when metal halide lighting was new and we were all experimenting. My first fixture in 1988 was a DuplaSun HI that used dual 250 watt 5000K double ended bulbs which quickly gave way to a vast array of styles and color temperatures and, yes, they are now a proven way to grow corals. LEDs are newer, have less of an established track record (like MH in 1988) but have some pretty sizable advantages in longevity and power requirements (both direct and indirect) and appear to be just as good at growing corals. They are further back on the learning curve, no question, but I'd be shocked if 5 years from now we hadn't seen a majority of reef keepers switch.

 

[Epicreefer]

At work I use LEDs for all the heat, penetration(try lighting a 4' deep reef) and light spectrum adjustment benefits. At home I use a 20k mh so I don't have to think about intensity levels, coloration of the corals and so forth. Growth is about the same under both once you get LEDs dialed in but they look better easier under mh.

 

[vitz]

water chemistry, available nutrients and flow type/pattern are more important than lighting type for coral growth/health/color. the original question is kinda like asking which tires will make a car go faster, while ignoring the engine, fuel, driver, etc etc....

 

[stk731]

i have seen growth with both