A case for LEDs

[lfsmarineguy]

I was talking to a friend of mine about the new Ecoxotic Cannon LEDs and they sent me this link.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZLH3TcHGOP4

Keep in mind that this is a fish only display, so they aren't trying to keep any corals alive which is why they can get away with so few units. That said, the comparison to the 400w halides output speaks for itself. The color is also great and the spread is just amazing. Especially when you consider the tank is 180,000 gallons and it only took a few units to light the entire thing.

If you go to the Ecoxotic website they have pics of them over an actual reef tank and they have 4 of the 50w units over a small home size system so I can't imagine these (or even the 100w) replacing halide units over a similar sized reef tank as the one in the video, just yet. I am starting to warm to the idea of LEDs though lol.

 

[Chiefmcfuz]

Very impressive. Now to throw a wrench in the advertisement, the lighting cost savings is great but do they now have increased heating costs? Those halides were dim and dull but they put out a lot of heat, now with the leds that heat output is gone. This can be seen as both a positive and a negative with a tank this size because with the halides gone the heaters need to pick up the slack. Also the chiller gets a little break as well so I can see the cost savings there. In total savings what are they actually saving? That would be interesting to find out. And what are the lifespan of the lights? Is the cost of replacement factored in? Again impressed I am, but questions I still have.

 

[lfsmarineguy]

With 180,000 gallons of water and so few halides, I don't think they created that much of an impact. It would be like using a match to heat a bathtub, any heat the halides added at the surface would be quickly reduced by the sheer volume and surface area. I had a 400w over a 90gal cube with no chiller and it never got high enough where I was remotely worried and that's only 90gal. I can't personally speak for the 50w units but I know regular LED fixtures still get pretty hot and while they aren't as bad as halides, they do generate decent temps.

 

[Chiefmcfuz]

Ok I watched the video again. Mis read the number of Halides that were on the tank before. Thought it was a lot more

 

[lfsmarineguy]

Yeah, you would think it takes more but when you consider their distance from the surface and the spread it starts to make sense. Tanks of this scale are different beasts and when you consider costs of running something like this, which is designed to make money, it has to be as efficient as possible.

 

[Chiefmcfuz]

The change in the look is amazing.

 

[lfsmarineguy]

Granted, the halides look like they were probably old but I can't imagine they had the same kind of effect as the LEDs. Plus, the LED color is spot on to me. Not too blue, not too white, all the colors look great and natural. I'm thinking of trying these on an upcoming install (home reef).

 

[Alex]

I've been to the legoland aquarium, and yes it was a dark place. but it was always entertaining, hope to go back later this year and see the improvements.

 

[jaa1456]

Not bad, The video does looked enhanced though, and also the math is off as well. Orgianly they had 20 Halide units and now 8 LED units. They said 1 LED unit replaces 3 MH units. That comes out to 6.66 LED units.

 

[Aqua Pro Builder]

I am always a LED promoter and I do know the light efficiency of them is EXCELLENT. I am replacing my stage lighting of 250MH with 60W LEDs and 575 MH with 100W LEDs. 3W or 4W LED spot light over 35W halogen. I recently put an 3 year old scrap strip(may be 3 watts total) from my earlier products, it lights up the doorway like a PC 14 Watter. BUT for the sake of fairness, this before/after shot is not fair comparison because the MH used is VERY different in color and old to start with while the LED is very white. Anyway, LED is the trend and the way to go until newer light technology is ready for market.

 

[dj ze]

very impressive the colors look very natural looking and excellent light shimmer effect