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GOING LED

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Anonymous

Guest
I bought these:

http://www.boostled.com/

6 of them 2 white/3 blue with 60* optics


And these:

http://www.direct-lighting.com/252?

3x 2' tracks with 3 sockets each for a total of 9

I have these:

http://www.ledliquidatorsinc.com/PAR...light_bulb.php

12x3 watt cool white cree for 36 watts and 60* optics


I will use 2x Boost LEDs and one cool white per 3 feet of tank(6'/125 gallons). I plan on mounting them about 6-8" above the water line.

I will then sell my MH light fixture. Once set up I will get PAR readings as well.

Here is the tank now under 3x175 watt MH with 3xactinic stunner strips:


010110029.jpg
 
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Anonymous

Guest
Post up some pics when you get them. I'd be interested to hear how they compare to the MH's.

Louey
 
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Anonymous

Guest
Indubitably.

You're going to have a lot of fun with those aim-able lights. One perk I've noticed on my (two small) LED tanks is that I don't need to clean the glass nearly as often as on my MH/T5 tank, and then it's mostly to wipe off the clear slime.

Be careful not to burn anything with the spotlights so close (6-8") to the surface. I myself have some Zoanthids and some Euphyllia still recovering from a little too much LED love they received about four months ago (around the time I received a whole bunch of LEDs in the mail.) The colors were just too tempting for me not to want to focus (pound) light on individual corals. It's hard to say no when you're given the option of lighting up your corals like Broadway dancers. 8)

Also looking forward to your comparison.
 
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Anonymous

Guest
JohnHenry":18864ep9 said:
Indubitably.

You're going to have a lot of fun with those aim-able lights. One perk I've noticed on my (two small) LED tanks is that I don't need to clean the glass nearly as often as on my MH/T5 tank, and then it's mostly to wipe off the clear slime.

Be careful not to burn anything with the spotlights so close (6-8") to the surface. I myself have some Zoanthids and some Euphyllia still recovering from a little too much LED love they received about four months ago (around the time I received a whole bunch of LEDs in the mail.) The colors were just too tempting for me not to want to focus (pound) light on individual corals. It's hard to say no when you're given the option of lighting up your corals like Broadway dancers. 8)

Also looking forward to your comparison.
Click to expand...

A guy on Manhattan Reefs is going to lend me his Apogee PAR meter when I get the bulbs. I do plan on a period of 2 hours a day and add two hours a week until it is 12 hours a day. Hopefully, I will stop losing corals. In March I had a power outage and the corals were subjected to 62 degree temps and some of the corals have been STN'ing ever since. I do notthink that the lights will alter my success, but I do hope my electric bill will plumett.
 
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Anonymous

Guest
The BoostLEDs ship on Oct 1, so I will up date with some pics and hopefully soon after, PAR readings!
 
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Anonymous

Guest
Unfortunately, not shipping yet, may be another week. :(
 
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Anonymous

Guest
A quick review of the Boost LEDs.

I received the PAR 30 LEDs today. I do not have the Hood ready for them yet, but I do have the track lighting. I tested them with 3 over each 2' area over the 125 gallon.


First I did three of the 12K PAR 30's over each and the color looks very similar to my 20K XM halides. Obviously, not as scattered, but seemingly as bright to the eye. The color was great IMO . I am very pleased with the color rendition.

Then I used 1x12K PAR 30 + 1x6500K PAR 38 + 1x12K PAR 30 per 2' and the color was OK. The white was a little overpowering IMO. The 3x12K's looked much better, but it was obvious that the 6500k bulb(36 watts=12x3watt cool white CREE) are going to be PAR blasting bulbs. The PAR from these may be necessary to carry the light requirements of my SPS corals. The spotlighting is also noticable this way, as it wasn't with the other combo.

I am very impressed with BOOST LED. I am so glad I did not go 20K, they would be far too blue and the color would not blend as well(as you can see in their pictures).

I want to add photos, but Image Shack was infected with a virus and I cannot post the limited photos I have there. If someone would like me to email them to them I will. I will borrow a PAR meter soon and will post my readings once they are available.


Wish me luck!
 
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Anonymous

Guest
The 3x12K looks the best to the eye and I may go that route and use the 6500K's on a refugium on my next tank. You can clearly see the spotlighting with the 6500K bulb in the center, however, it is not as noticable in person. They were so bright my zooanthids started closing up.
 
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Anonymous

Guest
Cool.

Can't wait to hear the par readings...

I wonder what combination I should try on my 24G nano?

I have 150W MH with some LEDs for nightlighting.

I like my current setup, but would love to save energy. I have to run a chiller with the MH's. I might not have to with LED's.
 
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Anonymous

Guest
The LEDs barely get warm. So I would say that your chiller may run very little or not at all.


Two of the 12K's(60 degrre optics) over the the nano would do. As the MH is bright all over, it appears to my eye that the LEDS are brighter in more of a confined way. The swimming area above the rock and corals is dimmer, but the areas that they hit even look brighter at the bottom of the tank.

I took those photos by myself and was also holding the track lights, so the quality, angel and color are not that great. It looks much better in person.
 
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Anonymous

Guest
Boost LED has 12K(2 white and 3 blue) or 20K(1 white and 4 blue). They have updated their site, so it seems they dropped the Kelvin ratings. I have the 2 white and 3 blue(formerly 12K).

I also have these coming to replace the 6500K bulbs:

http://www.rapidled.com/servlet/the-101 ... ulb/Detail

The link you have is the bulb I have(12x3watt Cree cool white). They are very white and very bright, but they overpower the 12K LEDs. I will use the Rapid LEDs in between 2 of the Boost LEDs.

I may sell off two of them and keep one for a regugium on my next tank.
 
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Anonymous

Guest
I decided that the 6500K are too white and purchased 3 of the 14 watters from Rapid LED( http://www.rapidled.com/servlet/the-101 ... ulb/Detail ). I received them and they are very bright, much brighter than the BoostLEDs. Unfortunately, as I was unscrewing them after I tested them, one of the bulbs left their metal screw part in the socket. I got it removed, but the bulb was damaged. They are replacing the bulb without issue or cost. Good CS and prompt replies from Rapid LED IMO. Even though the bulb was a dud, they still appear to be made well and the others work great. The hood will be built soon, and when it is done I will borrow that PAR meter and post PAR measurements.
 
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Anonymous

Guest
The hood is done and now I must stain it and screw in the track lighting. A few more days and it will be operational. :D
 
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Anonymous

Guest
Are you noticing any more algae growth than when you had other lights?

I put a very simple DIY LED setup over my anemone tank (5 Whites 7 royal blues, all the latest and greatest Cree dohickies :D) and I noticed a ton of slime algae growing. Was a nice wake up call since it told me that my ordinarily blue light tank is a bit dirtier than I thought, since now I have the "Cool White" ones putting favorable wavelengths into the tank.
 
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