Will LED Lighting Support High End SPS Corals?

[advancebc29]

Such garbage 96p933? Most people who switch to leds switch back to halides, look at the thread labeled "anyone thinking of dumping leds and going back to halides". If someone like me who spends more than $1300 on leds and quits using them due to growth and color issues, there must really be an issue. It's either to hard on your pride to admit your purchase was a bust, or you have no idea what mh are capable of with sps, or you don't have leds at all and are just regurgitating what others are saying. My proof was my experience.

here we go again.....every person who switched to LEDs and didnt even think about the MAJOR spectrum change they were hitting their tank with got what they deserved. Just like with anything else. If you make a major change expect a major change.

Issue with LEDs is plain and simple. SPECTRUM. If you do it right and keep the spectrum close to what you had before you will not have an issue. This can be done easily with DIY tech and has been happening for a while now. The unit I built over 2 years ago now still surpasses even the store bought units in spectrum that are rolling out right now.

You can generate the same crappy results by keeping your current lighting tech and radically changing most of the spectrum.

 

[96p993]

Your post was garbage not your experiences...

Then give the world a bit more info...What LEDs did you spend 1300.00 on? What happened to your coral? All other parameters in check? Acclimation period and technique? If you have such experience please fill us all in...

P.S.- I run an 8 bulb ATI fixture but also have a Pacific Sun Metis Hyperion R2 sitting in front of me. A fixture I would consider to be the most advanced and complete LED on the market

 

[wildman926]

It takes time, just like any other change, for the corals to acclimate properly and provide their true colors once they have done so. You can also adjust the spectrum of led's missing to ensure proper growth and color after time. It just takes patience. I made the mistake of judging too fast about the led's, and with just a little more patience, everything colored back up as with my T5's, if not better due to the "pop" the led's give.

 

[deepseadan]

Your post was garbage not your experiences...

Then give the world a bit more info...What LEDs did you spend 1300.00 on? What happened to your coral? All other parameters in check? Acclimation period and technique? If you have such experience please fill us all in...

P.S.- I run an 8 bulb ATI fixture but also have a Pacific Sun Metis Hyperion R2 sitting in front of me. A fixture I would consider to be the most advanced and complete LED on the market

I spent $1300 on ai sol blues (which everyone at the time was raving about), my Lps looked about the same and but growth stopped or almost completely seemed to halt, my mushrooms stopped multipling, my xenia kept growing, my zoos stopped growing but continued to look the same, my pocillopora took off like a rocketship, all my acros slowed in growth and turned brown or bleached toward lite white, and my montiporas stopped growing and lightened in color. I did what ai and everyone else recommended, start at 30% and slowly ramp up. Tried adjusting intensities to find the problem, and after six months with no luck, I traded all three units for an ATI t5 unit. Weeks later, I was already seeing changes, the type of changes I had been waiting for from the ai's. My tank was established and my parameters were fine, I have no fish so everything stays stable. I continued to test and keep same husbandry habits during this light change. The only change was light.

 

[jason2459]

I've spent less then $800 on some reefbrite strips and growth and color of my few sps, various lps,various clams, etc. have been great over I believe 18 months now since setting up my 180.

 

[D-Nak]

I have Radions and it look my SPS a good three months to color back up. All parameters were the same since I have everything dialed in via dosers and ATO. I admit that I thought about going back to halides, but patience paid off. I highly encourage those who want to switch to LED to prepare themselves for a long, and painful (to look at) acclimation process. I believe that the SPS are able to acclimate to the change in spectrum and color back up once they are used to it.

HOWEVER, keep in mind that one possible drawback to LEDs, especially in a higher tank, is that the underside of the SPS -- or that part that's in the shaded areas -- tend to still look terrible. I don't think there's enough light bouncing off the bottom of the tank and back up to light the underside of the SPS.

 

[chris88]

Ai sol are missing two of the most important spikes for chlorophyll absorption. Just take a second and look at the Ai sol spectral chart and look at chlorophyll absorption. The highest peak for chlorophyll is 420nm and 660nm. Ai sold do not have any light in these two crucial areas. It's basic biology. Yet because people do not understand biology they diss a technology. I am not saying Ai some do not work. All I am saying is that most LED setups are missing crucial areas of the spectrum. Some corals do not mind while others do. If you think LEDs do not work then you do not understand the basic science behind this hobby and should save your time and money and take up knitting.

 

[Patrick Cox]

Ai sol are missing two of the most important spikes for chlorophyll absorption. Just take a second and look at the Ai sol spectral chart and look at chlorophyll absorption. The highest peak for chlorophyll is 420nm and 660nm. Ai sold do not have any light in these two crucial areas. It's basic biology. Yet because people do not understand biology they diss a technology. I am not saying Ai some do not work. All I am saying is that most LED setups are missing crucial areas of the spectrum. Some corals do not mind while others do. If you think LEDs do not work then you do not understand the basic science behind this hobby and should save your time and money and take up knitting.

Good information, thanks. In your view, which off the shelf LED units have the proper spectrum to grow and color corals?

Thanks!

 

[deepseadan]

I have Radions and it look my SPS a good three months to color back up. All parameters were the same since I have everything dialed in via dosers and ATO. I admit that I thought about going back to halides, but patience paid off. I highly encourage those who want to switch to LED to prepare themselves for a long, and painful (to look at) acclimation process. I believe that the SPS are able to acclimate to the change in spectrum and color back up once they are used to it.

HOWEVER, keep in mind that one possible drawback to LEDs, especially in a higher tank, is that the underside of the SPS -- or that part that's in the shaded areas -- tend to still look terrible. I don't think there's enough light bouncing off the bottom of the tank and back up to light the underside of the SPS.

One point you make is the acclamation time. At least where I live, every lfs still use t5 or halides on their frag tanks. One store does have one frag tank with radions, but those corals are all Lps or bad looking SPS. So the acclamation time would start over and over for me everytime I purchase a new acro. Currently I just brought a brown acro from brother in law's into my reef with halides and its changing already. That's the kind of acclamation I prefer. I do like the strong blue of leds though.

 

[rtparty]

Good information, thanks. In your view, which off the shelf LED units have the proper spectrum to grow and color corals?

Thanks!

GHL Mitras
Radion and the Radion Pro
Maxspect Razor
Ecoxotic

With Ecoxotic you just have to customize a little more by adding modules and strips to your liking. The regular Radion lacks anything below ~435nm though and for that you have to retro something.


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[rtparty]

One point you make is the acclamation time. At least where I live, every lfs still use t5 or halides on their frag tanks. One store does have one frag tank with radions, but those corals are all Lps or bad looking SPS. So the acclamation time would start over and over for me everytime I purchase a new acro. Currently I just brought a brown acro from brother in law's into my reef with halides and its changing already. That's the kind of acclamation I prefer. I do like the strong blue of leds though.

This is a very overlooked topic IMO as well. I hate the idea of every coral I get will have an acclamation process.

With a proper LED setup the process is much shorter IME. I bought a browned out favia and within 2 weeks the color is looking great! Wish I had a decent camera and less hair algae to show things off.

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[sunilp]

I spent $1300 on ai sol blues (which everyone at the time was raving about), my Lps looked about the same and but growth stopped or almost completely seemed to halt, my mushrooms stopped multipling, my xenia kept growing, my zoos stopped growing but continued to look the same, my pocillopora took off like a rocketship, all my acros slowed in growth and turned brown or bleached toward lite white, and my montiporas stopped growing and lightened in color. I did what ai and everyone else recommended, start at 30% and slowly ramp up. Tried adjusting intensities to find the problem, and after six months with no luck, I traded all three units for an ATI t5 unit. Weeks later, I was already seeing changes, the type of changes I had been waiting for from the ai's. My tank was established and my parameters were fine, I have no fish so everything stays stable. I continued to test and keep same husbandry habits during this light change. The only change was light.

I did the same exact thing and had the same exact issues. I dumped all AI sol's . I have a set of Giesemann Tezla's and will be picking up some GHL's tomorrow. Not sure which route I will take yet but the SOL's were definitely not a good fit for me.