LED upgrade kits.
 

I just picked up a RSM 130 tank & stand. I want to upgrade to LED lighting and was wondering if anyone has used the prewired Steve's Led kit. It looks to be well made, there are other options out there as well.
Thought anyone......

I ended up going with a rapid led kit. Was dead simple to do. Great instructions. Might be selling my setup in the near future, up sized to a 60 gallon cube. :)
PM me if you want to check it out.

Dave

for DIY I was happy with LED group buy myself for cost and direction on what to get. They have a forum section under nano reef they respond to daily.

I went the LED route as well, about a year ago right when the "Full spectrum" lighting was taking off. My corals grow very well and I have some good colouration (although I had only set up the tank with the LEDs in January, so it's still new).

That said, one of things I haven't considered was resale. It's going to be almost impossible to get any kind of return on the kit I purchased. Sure, I saved $150-250 (used v. new) compared to a similarly powerful AI unit (with full spectrum). That said, if I need to upgrade my lights ever, I think it would have been better long-term to get a pre-made unit.

Anyway, just my $0.02. I know I saved a bunch off the hop, but I wonder how the savings will compare long-term.

Depending on the pre-made unit you purchase, there probably won't be much of a return on resale either, the way LED technology is developing & continues to develop. I never looked at the resale factor when I built my rig. It's coming up on 3 years since I put the fixture in service & it's still working great. There have been a few hiccups & I will make another slight change in the near future, but all in all it's been worthwhile for me.

I have a Rapidled kit on my RSM, completely happy with it. I would pick it over the steve's kit to be honest.