Besides shimmer though what benefits do you gain from the LEDs. Since like a power option is all T5s which I have run in the past and thought worked well. When you consider a sunpower for $550 verus a powermodule hybrid for $1800 seems hard to justify.
What LED Fixture for SPS
- Thread starter Gondore
- Start date
Besides shimmer though what benefits do you gain from the LEDs. Since like a power option is all T5s which I have run in the past and thought worked well. When you consider a sunpower for $550 verus a powermodule hybrid for $1800 seems hard to justify.
cleverbs
New member
IMO I was to do a Hybrid right now I would do a retrofit build. I would LED's in the center with 2-3 T5's on each side.
cleverbs
New member
2700$
I wouldnt call that a wash haha. Like I said you could retro fit one. Using Rapid LED and T5ho retro fits. Im sure you could put 8x t5hos and 3x 75w Clusters to gether for around a 1000. You will just need to put it in a canopy. Would work great.
USAFReefer
Premium Member
For me, the biggest benefit of going LED was A WHOLE lot of extra $ in my pocket each month from not having to replace bulbs and savings in electricity. I went big when I made the switch, but when I did, my power bill went from $500+ a month down to $80 a month by switching all my lighting to LED. Not just my 4 reef tanks, all lighting in the house, even the refrigerator light. LOL. LEDs paid for themselves in less than 12 months from that big of savings in electricity and not having to spend ~$600 annually on bulbs.
cleverbs
New member
OMG where do you live???? I have a 220g reef tank with a 1200w MH/t5ho unit and a frag tank with another 175w and my electric bill for my whole house is 90$ a month...I think you need to remember to turn off lights around your house.
I did compared the price of me running LED to MH/t5ho and honestly even with bulb replacment its an extra 20$ a month...so for me its a no brainer. because I could spend 1,000$ on lighting my 220g with a nice MH/t5ho fixture and spend 20$ a month extra or fork over 3900$ on radions and need to upgrade them in 2 years because by then LED's will blow current ones out of the water. I went with the MH.
Wazzel
New member
In some places electricity is expensive, so keep in mind that not every ones cost comparisons are the same. Also, there are lots of different MH t-5 fixtures out there. Some are as expensive, or more expensive than LED fixtures. The cost comparisons are not as straight forward as people imply it to be.
USAFReefer
Premium Member
I live in California, in a 1 bedroom apartment, where they bump you into higher priced tier the instant you turn the first light on in the house it seems. Within the first 3 days of the month I was placed in the highest tier, which was something like 70cents/kwr, as opposed to the base rate of 18cents.
I spent $500 building an LED light for my 180G, $350 for my 75G, $150 for my 60G, and $100 for my biocube, so $1100 total to replace 5x 250w MHs + 14 T5HOs that covered 4 different tanks. Spent another couple hundred replacing all other light in the apartment with LED bulbs. $1300 total investment into LEDs. $420/mo savings in electricity = 4 months to recover all cost of LED lights. The biggest savings for me comes from NOT being bumped into higher priced tiers any longer. If I was left in the lowest tier, my $500/mo power bill would have been more like $150.
BTW, first 3w LED fixture I made in 2007 was a 24 LED light over a standard 60G, to this day uses Cree XR-E and XP-E LEDs and still growing acropora at the sand bed. So I don't buy into the line of 'one has to replace LEDs in a couple years because they are outdated'. You don't. It's true, LEDs get more efficient and better output each year, but the LEDs that were made in 2007 still work to this day and still grow corals just fine.
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rovster
New member
2700$
Like I said you could retro fit one. Using Rapid LED and T5ho retro fits. Im sure you could put 8x t5hos and 3x 75w Clusters to gether for around a 1000. You will just need to put it in a canopy. Would work great.
I meant ATI hybrid vs 4-6 Radions lol
Moser
Active member
The royal blue and violet channel is not repeatable with T5- it's a completely different effect and makes your corals really pop . LED users will know this.
The second is the shimmer.
3rd is Par- on full whack, the LED PAR is immense. MH can't beat it, except the spread is poor. The ATI is one of the only lights to use reflectors on the LED instead of lenses, so you get much better spread.
The issue with led is that it is too directional. The energy needs to be spread more laterally.
Mo
Moser
Active member
2700$
Like I said you could retro fit one. Using Rapid LED and T5ho retro fits. Im sure you could put 8x t5hos and 3x 75w Clusters to gether for around a 1000. You will just need to put it in a canopy. Would work great.
I've seen so many times people see something good, not want to pay, do a DIY. Use it for a little while, then realise still how inferior it is to the copied product and buy original.
It's also not as aesthetically pleasing. Build quality and labour time needs to be accounted for too.
The ATI Led spread really can't be matched. A Diy will be nowhere close to the real deal.
Mo
blutang007
New member
Ati Hybrid.. Enough said.. :rollface:
firemountain
New member
I just recently added some T5's to my setup that had 2 Kessil 360 we's. The Kessils are awesome lights, and my SPS was doing good.... But adding the T5's really gave them a growth spurt in a short amount of time. My tank has never looked so good and the T5's filled in some shadows. The best part is that I still have awesome shimmer!!
Personally I think the T5/led hybrid combo is the best way to go.
Personally I think the T5/led hybrid combo is the best way to go.
daytonareefing
In Memoriam
The problem I'm seeing is a lot led lights are being made with just white and blue leds and they tell you that its all you need so then you add t5's and fill in the spectrum and wow now your corals are growing again. The Radion's seem to be closer to the full range spectrum than most leds and thats why people are having better luck with the radion lights also you can change the lens on them for a better spread. My 2 cents anyway.
After using LEDs, I find nothing really comes close to metal halides. Especially if you are 90% SPS.
The growth of your SPS will be a lot better under the halides.
What LEDs did you try and for how long?
I have hydra 52 since November and was just able to dial them in.
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