Switch from T5's to LED's

[Brei86]

Considering making the switch.

How would I go about it without negatively affecting my corals and how much more beneficial are LED's. PROs and CONs.

 

[frost0fractal]

I run LEDs, two Hydra 52's.
From what I've gathered when I looked into it a few years ago...

Some pros:
LED bulbs last a lot longer, so maintenance costs are lower.
They also produce less heat.
They also are lower wattage so your electric bill is lower.

Some cons:
The up front cost is a little more, good LED's can be pricey.
There is a range of quality in LEDs, so you can get poor results with poor LEDs.

 

[Dragonvale]

I think you have to account what your lighting up. length and depth.

 

[swk]

Don't do it! T5 por vida!

Kind of joking. Can you add some led to your existing t5 setup? Combos of led/t5 work very well.

 

[Ssteve]

What t5's are you running?

 

[2dawghouse]

Honestly, I really like the spread and color choices of T5's. But I think that LED's have better blue coloring 420-465nm range. So I just use both. I use LED's from 420-465nm and T5's in the 10K-14K range. My tanks color is spot on for me.

IMO leds dont cover the white spectrum like T5s can.

But to give an honest opinion it really depends on your tank size, setup, corals, etc.

 

[Brei86]

I'm running a 4 bulb aquatic life with ATI bulbs