LED Light Reccomendation HELP!

[schwaggs]

I have several 15 and 20 gallon holding tanks that I light with 24" HO T5 fixtures, 2 or 3 tubes per tank. Well time has come to replace the bulbs and I think I would like to put the money towards some LED fixtures instead.

Current need is for 3 - 24" fixtures.

Currently have 48-72W of T5 lighting over each so I think 20-50W of LED should be plenty.

I like to leave the fixture sitting on top of the glass tops, not suspended. I realize the glass tops cut down on light penetration but am keeping them.

I am capable of building DIY fixtures but don't really like the DIY look so I am open to this if someone has info on making a cost effective, nice looking fixture.

I think this may be a stretch in such a small fixture but I would like separate power cords for blue and white.

Anyone have ideas?

I found these: Any feedback on these?

http://www.ebay.com/itm/300848258986?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1438.l2649">http://www.ebay.com/itm/300848258986?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1438.l2649</a>

[IMG]http://www.ebay.com/itm/110886677960?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1438.l2649">http://www.ebay.com/itm/110886677960?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1438.l2649</a>

[IMG]http://www.ebay.com/itm/EVO-24-LED-Aquarium-Light-Coral-Reef-Saltwater-Nano-16x-3W-3-Watts-Lunar-60-cm-/290748415127?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item43b1f4bc97">http://www.ebay.com/itm/EVO-24-LED-Aquarium-Light-Coral-Reef-Saltwater-Nano-16x-3W-3-Watts-Lunar-60-cm-/290748415127?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item43b1f4bc97</a>

And of course, there is always this fixture but I feel this is WAAAAYYYY overkill for a 15 gallon tank. [IMG]http://www.ebay.com/itm/330869771558?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1423.l2649">http://www.ebay.com/itm/330869771558?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1423.l2649</a>

 

[the-bubonic-one]

 

[kilralpine]

Interested to hear if anyone has experiences with the ones in the 2nd post. Following.

 

[cj22009]

I have a reef breeders full spectrum led light and love it the two year warranty is a huge plus also!

Sent from my DROID RAZR HD using Tapatalk 2

 

[schwaggs]

The-Bubonic-One;837455 wrote: http://reefbreeders.com/value_led_fixtures.html">http://reefbreeders.com/value_led_fixtures.html</a>[/QUOTE]

Yea, I saw this and I believe it is the same as the unit in my 4th link... isn't 120w of LED power way too much for a 15 gallon tank?

 

[the-bubonic-one]

Not sure. These along with the member modified units are simply tao tronics units modified to the right mix of led chips. If you raised them up a bit they would be fine. I had one on a 20long about 12 inches off the surface. Also if you ever upgrade to a bigger tank this unit might come in handy.

 

[schwaggs]

I can't help but think replacing 48w of T5 lighting with 120w of LED lighting is major overkill. On the other hand, I can dim it down to around 10% which is 12w so that might be OK.

Anyone else have ideas?

 

[schwaggs]

I decided to give the EVO 24" 16 X 3W fixture a try despite it being associated with Aquatraders (yuk). Anyway, the fixture arrived today and initial impressions are pretty good. The "optics" are pretty junky, but not needed for my situation. The body is extruded aluminum, end caps are plastic, area around LEDs is plastic. It has an external power supply. Drawback is there are not separate power cords for the blue and white LEDs but you can't get everything you want for $89 including shipping. Now to set it up on one of my tanks and see how the inhabitants do...