LED Lighting. Is it truly comparable.

[dibblm]

Does anyone currently use the new LED Lighting from PFO? I am a newbie and dont know VHO from MetalHalide. This is my first tank im opening and I want to do it right and not have to redo and spend twice the amount of money.

I was looking to purchase a Coralife Aqualight PRO as I saw a smaller model set up in a local fish store and liked the compact design. However after reviews I had read NO ONE seems to like Coralife products.

After purchasing almost 2,000 worth of sump and skimmer equipment from a very well known company I also found that they seem to have a tendancy to rust as well as ballast issues.

To avoid replacing lights every 6 months, fixtures every 2 years. The high price of 3344.00 almost sounds worth it. IF......It is realistic.

Is there anyone using the LED lights from PFO that are having results ? Or can anyone contradict the above mentioned about the Aqualight Pro ?

 

[pqlr]

dibblm - I have done a ton of research and had several long conversations with PFO as well as many long time hobbyists - they all agree with what PFO has shown thus far they have created the ultimate lighting system. in case you missed it in all the text and rhetoric - the PFO fixture will be able to automatically offer night to day transitions with fading, cloud movement and all of this without timers or any heat generation, not to mention the ability to adjust all the way up to 20k. Admittedly these were the points that sold me, but what hooked me was when the folks at PFO told me if it did not work, or I was not happy they would work with me to get another one of their Top Quality MH/VHO systems as a replacement. I ordered the 60” 20k in July and cannot wait to get it on my new 185 deep tank.

 

[dibblm]

Thank you entirely for the great info. My wife and I were trying to work out the cost savings, I need a 72" for my tank, as it's size is 72 X 18 X 24. And older All-Glass tank.

If I am correct, they speculize that with there led bulbs, You'll get 50,000 Hours of life from the bulbs. If this is true, running the bulbs for 12 hours a day would constitute into about a 10 year bulb. With metal halides, VHO's and other products on the market. I understand your doing bulb changes ever 6 months to a year. Is this true ?

What is the wear down cycle on the LED's before they need replaced and are they replaceable or do you need to buy a whole new hood ? They may be cooler to run saving me money in not having to buy and run a chiller, and they may last longer. However, If I have to puy a new hood every 3 to 6 years it won't be saving me money.

Can you or anyone else speculate on this point ? I would love for the manufacture to jump in on this conversation if you have a contact and would point them here for me. This way everyone would be able to see this post as this will provide to be the next generation of lighting.

 

[pqlr]

I looked at the cost savings from a macro perspective; e.g. what it would cost for:
1. Chiller capable and reliable for a 225 Gallon System ($500-700$)
2. Two MH Lights (Ballasts, Bulbs Etc . . .) of good quality ($500 - $1000)
3. Four 60" VHO Fixtures and Bulbs ($300-$500)

That is upfront costs of on the high side $2,200 before power consumption and bulb changes and getting it configured correctly.

Then I took into consideration aesthetics - do I want to have a very high hood with noisy fans in it, or pendants hanging from the ceiling? I did not.

Maintenance: Programming Timers (three to four at $12/per for digital) and or a controller (additional expense of about $600 for a very good one which could dim up/down/out the MH's daily - and this would not effect the VHO's as they are not dimmable) then the bulb changes required in order to maintain color every 6-9 months.

From a lighting perspective there is a lot more than Kelvin's and wattage in my opinion. In a reef system we are trying desperately to recreate nature as close as in possible, all currently available lighting systems do not easily or economically allow for gradual sun rises and sun sets or cloud movement which all occur in nature daily and this allow for wondrous beauty of the natural reefs, if I want that in my tank, I need to come as close as possible. The Solaris system is set the time and date and forget it, it does the rest (cannot beat that) there is also a manual setting so you can control everything.

In the end, the costs did not seem outrageous, in fact they seemed quite reasonable or on "par" (pardon the pun). Best of luck, I would suggest calling PFO they helped me greatly in making my final decision.

 

[triggerdiver]

I also called PFO and got a ton of information. It all sounded good, but wanted to get an "outsiders" perspective. I read other's reviews and was still pretty convinced. I am now awaiting on a 72" Solaris LED system, 13k, for my 220 gallon. I'll post a short review of it!

 

[pjf]

The Solaris LED fixture article in Advanced Aquarist has generated considerable skepticism. The article favorably compares the LED fixture with the 250-watt XM 20,000K lamp bulb. Unfortunately, this bulb is not highly regarded and critics are speculating that it was chosen to ensure a favorable comparison. Spectral plots of this bulb, attributed to Sanjay Joshi, appear at URL:

http://forum.petstore.com/Topic38350-14-2.aspx#bm43389.

Apparently, Sanjay Joshi mentioned the Solaris LED fixture at MACNA this past weekend. An attendee, who heard his talk, posted the following:

“Sanjay did give a brief review of the LED lights. His measurements showed it to be on par with a PC light. So pretty much softies and some LPS only. He did say that he thinks in 4 or 5 years they will be intense enough to rival MH though.”
http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showt ... did=936745

I am sure that more reviews will be forthcoming for the Solaris LED fixture. For those still sitting on the fence, my suggestion is to wait before taking the leap.

 

[triggerdiver]

Well, I read other reviews actually the same one you posted. It's people like you that get info like that to help others! Anyway, I started thinking about the new Solaris and didn't really feel like a fool for jumping in and getting caught up in the hype of the system. This past week I called the online store I purchased the lights from and asked them to cancel my order. So I instead got a MH fixture consisting of 3x250W HQIs (15K) and 4 (50/50) Power Compacts. So I thought I'd go with something with a proven track record. I actually talked to the online store that I had bought the Solaris from and they even suggested MHs. The man I spoke to said he had seen a Solaris system running and that the lights were a little low for his tastes. And there is a forum on talkingreef.com (I think it's talkingreef.com) and there are pics of someone's tank with the Solaris lights. Anyway, I would love to hopefully one day purchase the Solaris lighting once it has proven itself.

 

[dannydrak]

I saw the PFO LED fixture first hand at the SuperZoo trade show in Las Vegas last month. The company rep, a woman that ran a fish store and maintenance business was very enthusiastic about this lighting system(as she should be). Her condition to come work for PFO was that the owner give her a 48" one to try out for herself. She said all of her softies maintainted growth and health, but her SPS seemed to have slowed down, but were still growing. The company claims that the 24" version has the output comparable to a 150w HQI halide system. She claimed also, that when she measured the PFO halide against the Solaris, the Solaris came out with a higher PAR rating.

Some of the specifics and features not really mentioned:

Bulb life: White LED life is 50,000 ESTIMATED hours
Blue LED is 100,000 estimated hours. (I may have these backwards as I do not have the literature in from of me)

The system has a 365 day cycle which provides different lighting and cloud cover every day along with seasonal cycles.

There is a thermostat built into the sytem which monitors and controls 4 fans built into the fixture. The model running was at 82 deg F with one fan running.

The corals (though stressed from being thrown into a new tank for the show) were showing outstanding color underneath this light. The light was more filling like a compact that source point like a halide. Some glitter lines could be seen, but halides look better in that respect.

The company is planning on releasing a size small enough for a nano in the next 6 months with the same controller built onto the larger models. They also offer versions of this light without the controller for a much lower cost.

If anyone really wants to try one of these lights out, and wants it at the best deal I can offer through my fishroom, I can work something out. We really need some competitors in the market before this price is going to come down. The way this industry moves, we probably won't have a serious quality comparison for 2 years or so. I'll see if I can beat the internet on the price of this system if there are some people that want to try it out and give us some real reviews of it.

One last thing that matters to me. This is an American company with everything built here in the United States. The Coralife factory is across the street from the Jebo/Odessey Factory in China.

 

[Amphibious]

One last thing that matters to me. This is an American company with everything built here in the United States.

Sorry dannydrak, you are mistaken. The Solaris are built in China. I have personally talked with Pat the owner of PFO about the Solaris many times. In fact, I placed the very first order for a Solaris with Pat at IMAC in Chicago.

I love this light and so do my corals and clams. Here's a pic of an ORA Tri-color, Acropora valida taken under 175W 10K with Actinic in an Aquactinic 72" fixture.

When I bought it the middle of July.

Picture taken 9/10 before switching to Solaris on 9/26. At this point, I'd had the coral under MH for two months. It's showing some growth.

This is the coral today 10/28, under Solaris for one month. You can plainly see better growth under the Solaris. I have many other SPSs showing good growth, too. Different SPS corals grow at different rates. I'm very satisfied with the growth my corals are showing with this LED technology. Of course the correct light is only one factor. My water parameters are perfect with Cal ranging 450 to 500, Alk 4 to 5, and Magnesium between 1300 and 1400, Ph 8.4 (meter reading), Am 0, Nitrite 0, Nitrate 0, I'm using IO salt buffered with Cal to bring it up to 450ppm when doing water changes, using RO/DI water and making weekly 10 gallon water changes in a 135 gal mixed reef.

 

[rascole]

I am looking for 2 48" PFO LEDs. I am setting up a 500 gal. fish only tank. I can send pics of my bare tank. Can you help me out on the lights? Thanks.dannydrak

 

[Amphibious]

rascole

Sent you a PM.

Dick

 

[drewread]

I am looking into new fixtures for my tank.. energy savings being the big concern with the old ones.

Does anyone that is using this system have an update for us all as to their coral growth levels, etc?

Thanks.

 

[pqlr]

All is going very well, very good growth, most almost doubling in size, and no issues at this point worth mentioning. a very good investment!