I have been using two of the Chinese 120W LED fixtures for the greater part of a year now. My corals grow fine, but the color in SPS is definitely lacking. I'm planning to switch to proven T5 technology. I've got in mind a 4 bulb fixture (48'' 54W) for my 100 gallon tank (48''x24''x20'') I was wondering if a four bulb fixture will be strong enough to support thriving life? I plan to heavily stock SPS in the near future. Any input would be greatly appreciated.
Four T5's Enough?
- Thread starter BrownParticles
- Start date
I disagree with 4 bulbs not being enough if run in conjunction with led lights...
one thing to remember is that you want a gradient for light so you can place different corals throughout the tank, blasting the entire tank with light is great and all... but growing sps on the sandbed is a bit unrealistic.
i am currently running 2 tanks with led/t5 hybrids and each tank shows some very nice colors. one is a maristar 2 fixture that can be found here:
http://www.socalireefs.com/forums/showthread.php?50500-Hondas-New-100g!
it consist of 3 panels of 21 3w led lights and 4 48in t5 lights.... I havent put a par meter on it yet but everything is responding nicely with polyp extension/growth and color.
i have another tank running 23 3w leds and 2 24in t5s and same goes here, everything is doing great...
check out the DIY section for both of my LED builds.
one thing to remember is that you want a gradient for light so you can place different corals throughout the tank, blasting the entire tank with light is great and all... but growing sps on the sandbed is a bit unrealistic.
i am currently running 2 tanks with led/t5 hybrids and each tank shows some very nice colors. one is a maristar 2 fixture that can be found here:
http://www.socalireefs.com/forums/showthread.php?50500-Hondas-New-100g!
it consist of 3 panels of 21 3w led lights and 4 48in t5 lights.... I havent put a par meter on it yet but everything is responding nicely with polyp extension/growth and color.
i have another tank running 23 3w leds and 2 24in t5s and same goes here, everything is doing great...
check out the DIY section for both of my LED builds.
I'm old school 110 watt VHO and MH.
Without going into specifics non Cree LED Fixtures lack the spectrum.
Take this another step forward and consider the source of the Chinese LEDs...
For SPS I'm a huge fan of a 400 watt MH equivalent for 4-6 hours a day.
This has your intensity covered.
IMHO cover the growth with 420-460nm in an intensity equivalent to a 250 watt MH...400 Watt preferred...
Tweak the colour with a spectrum that highlights the pigments...
I'm very pleased with the results using Cree LEDs on my personal tank as one can choose specific bins and cover the full spectrum of a reef if one chooses the right LED Mix...
The bottom line is you have to choose a quality LED Fixture...
You more often than not get what you pay for and to complicate things some LED manufacturers sell more than they provide...
My apologies on the rant but proven T5 Technology reminds me of 8 track where now we have smart phones that have all our two sided records on one little card from Walgreens...
Bill
Attachments
Last edited:
