LED

[mike31154]

I built a fixture using 10 watt multi-chip LEDs and have been running them over a year & a half. It will be 2 years in April. No LED failures but it looks like the cheap little fans on the heatsinks I'm using are a weak point. Since I'm underdriving the LEDs & have spare heatsinks, it's not really an issue, they don't run that hot and the heatsinks seem to do the job even with a stalled fan.

I have a mixed tank with only a few SPS, monti caps mostly & they are growing like gangbusters. LPS & soft coral are all doing fine & my BTAs are loving the LEDs as well, puffing up huge & not sure lights are an indication, but one of them split into 4 clones a few weeks ago.

Since building my unit, choices in multi-chip LEDs have improved with chips offered that combine different colours on the same die. They are also available in larger sizes, well over 100 watts on a single chip. My next project will be a fixture with fewer but larger multi-chips with optics hung higher off the surface. Less wiring, but heatsinking & fan performance will need to be bulletproof.

If your current set up is working fine, there's really no compelling reason to switch to LEDs in a big hurry. Take your time, look around at all the options, there's a lot of stuff out there & improving constantly. Prices probably stabilized somewhat these days, so manufacturers are offering more features to promote their product. Some of the features add value, some don't.