Led Lighting

[pamelahaley]

I've been doing a little looking around for LED lighting. I've read of other members using it as well.

My question posed for Reef tanks is, is LED lighting enough or, is it just in addition to regular lighting?

Are all white LED's the same wattage and the difference in quality of light is how many used?

I ask this because I see LED strip lights available for other things
at a significantly lower expense than tank specific lights.

http://www.petmountain.com/product/aquarium-light-fixtures/11442-522297/marineland-adjustable-double-bright-led-hood.html">http://www.petmountain.com/product/aquarium-light-fixtures/11442-522297/marineland-adjustable-double-bright-led-hood.html</a>

[IMG]http://www.superbrightleds.com/cgi-bin/store/index.cgi?action=DispPage&Page2Disp=%2Ftail-brake-turn.html">http://www.superbrightleds.com/cgi-bin/store/index.cgi?action=DispPage&Page2Disp=%2Ftail-brake-turn.html</a>

[IMG]http://www.christmaslightsetc.com/Wide-Angle-Lens-LED-Lights--864.htm">http://www.christmaslightsetc.com/Wide-Angle-Lens-LED-Lights--864.htm</a>

 

[jead85]

These are not really suited for a reef tank. Most aquarium specific fixtures have higher wattage diodes that are in the correct color range... and more of them

 

[peachyreef]

I have one par 38 bulb over my 7 gallon nano. It is strong enough to support clams. I would suggest the nano tuners website for some ideas

Not every led has the same wattage. You should be looking in the 3 watt per led range to sustain coral. It depends on the tank size, inhabitants, and desired color/look for how many leds to put over the tank.

 

[vanished88]

There are not really many options for reef led lighting that are cheap. The inexpensive led lights are typically 1watt or less and dont put out enough par to support corals. The standard for leds used in reef lighting is 3watts per led. rapidled.com and reefled.com carry kits for these leds. If you use the royal blue in combination with the cool white you will not need to supplement anything.

 

[pamelahaley]

I was just shopping around for parts and ideas for my 10 gal tank. What about these things being refit to suit a tank? I know I'd still need to add blue LEDs.

http://www.homedepot.com/h_d1/N-5yc1v/R-100655277/h_d2/ProductDisplay?langId=-1&storeId=10051&catalogId=10053">http://www.homedepot.com/h_d1/N-5yc1v/R-100655277/h_d2/ProductDisplay?langId=-1&storeId=10051&catalogId=10053</a>

[IMG]http://www.homedepot.com/h_d1/N-5yc1v/R-202039302/h_d2/ProductDisplay?langId=-1&storeId=10051&catalogId=10053">http://www.homedepot.com/h_d1/N-5yc1v/R-202039302/h_d2/ProductDisplay?langId=-1&storeId=10051&catalogId=10053</a>

[IMG]http://www.homedepot.com/h_d1/N-5yc1v/R-202532404/h_d2/ProductDisplay?langId=-1&storeId=10051&catalogId=10053">http://www.homedepot.com/h_d1/N-5yc1v/R-202532404/h_d2/ProductDisplay?langId=-1&storeId=10051&catalogId=10053</a>

 

[vanished88]

For not much more, I would get something like this, cree leds have been proven to work with saltwater setups. I am not sure what kind of light spectrum the homedepot leds put out, it could ending up growing tons of cyano and not feeding the livestock.

 

[morganatlanta]

I'd say either go "conventional" DIY LED like with a kit from RapidLED.com or ReefLEDLights.com, or stick with a standard screw-in blub fixture and buy a bulb made for reefs like the Evil PAR38 from nanotuners.

These home depot ones look cheap and will probably be the wrong spectrum to give the nice light you'll want, and you'll waste your time and money on them. There are some home depot PAR38 white LED bulbs, but then you still have the problem of not having enough blue light, and your corals will look bland.