Canreef Aquatics Bulletin Board - Show Us Your LED Tanks

Canreef Aquatics Bulletin Board (http://www.canreef.com/vbulletin/index.php)

- Reef (http://www.canreef.com/vbulletin/forumdisplay.php?f=8)

- - Show Us Your LED Tanks (http://www.canreef.com/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=71937)

Sorry about the Iphone pics. As soon as I figure out how to get a pic that doesnt look cartooinsh on my camera i'll post better pics.
Running 2 AI Sol Blues and 2 Hydras.
Really like the new Hydras and the wireless controllor is much better than the original one.

http://i255.photobucket.com/albums/h...be/photo-1.jpg

http://i255.photobucket.com/albums/h...ube/photo1.jpg

http://i255.photobucket.com/albums/h...ube/photo3.jpg

Very nice! Now that's what I'm talkin' about. I know there are a lot of LED people that are quite happy with their setups so it's nice to see them. This is in fact what this thread was for :-). And you guys definitely prove that you can have a nice LED Mixed Reef.

Yes LEDs can grow it all. Any tips on how to get a good pic so it does'nt have the cartoon look? With just the basic point and shoot cameras.

http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a1...ps1e14e517.jpg

Maxspect razor 120w at 100%

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk - now Free

The scary thing most people is twofold when it comes to LED lighting first off is the cost a good set of lights will definitely hurt the pocketbook (including DIY lighting)and secondly having powerful enough LEDs to reach the bottom of deeper tanks and having the correct colour spectrum to promote growth and colour.

Once I save up the coinage I will be switching to LEDs on my big tank but that will be awhile in coming.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Madreefer (Post 846763)

Yes LEDs can grow it all. Any tips on how to get a good pic so it does'nt have the cartoon look? With just the basic point and shoot cameras.

That's the trick really, I find taking pics with the point and shoot problematic, even for non LED tanks. Throw in LEDs and the point and shoots really struggle. That is unless you can get a point and shoot that allows you full manual control like Canon's G series (Nikon has an equivalent but I'm not sure what it's called).

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dearth (Post 846884)

Cost of entry is definitely high, but there are good LED units that are quite reasonably priced. For example, you can get an AI Sol unit for roughly $400. In my mind that's pretty reasonable. Of course you can easily go up in cost from there to the Mitras at $1200 (retail) per unit. Not everyone needs a $1200 Mitras though. There are plenty of people (as we've seen in this thread) doing quite well with their $400 AI Sols :-)

The issue of having "powerful enough LEDs to reach the bottom of deeper tanks" is an interesting one and one that still confuses me a bit. Whenever I hear of someone running LEDs I typically hear of them having to throttle down their LED lights as low as 50%. Even at those levels they can still easily burn their corals. As for the correct colour spectrum, I don't know if there is a unit that really has the wrong colour spectrum. I've seen beautiful tanks growing SPS with everything from cheap eBay LEDs, to DIY LEDs, to AI Sols, Radeons, Mitras. I've seen nice tanks from pretty much ALL the LED variations now. This someone leads me to conclude that if a tank is struggling with colour or growth that it's not necessarily the light causing the issue. It is easy to blame the light though because it is something that's easy to change, unlike other factors like water chemistry and husbandry.

I believe the stigma of deep water lighting is a hold over from when LEDs first came out and even though LEDs have been out for several years now you still meet a lot of people who have the doubts that the lights can do as advertised so live with the idea LEDs will not light the bottom of the tank sufficiently even with evidence to the contrary. Then most LFS don't actually carry the good quality lights which enforces in people's minds their rational behind not enough lighting. As a guy who started out in fresh water where lighting was not critical component of the system I count myself as fortunate when I started off in SW I started off with LEDs and don't have the same prejudices as others who used MH and T5s before LEDs came out.