seffieuk
I used to be indecisive but now I'm not so sure!
Hardware of the Month
Lighting
Metal halides, T5, T8, LEDs, oh my!
Lets talk lighting
Hardware Of The Month - Lighting
- Thread starter seffieuk
- Start date
Hardware of the Month
Lighting
Metal halides, T5, T8, LEDs, oh my!
Lets talk lighting
Morri
Fish Herder
DIY LEDs
I decided to go down the DIY LED path for a number of reasons, mainly as i wanted to keep SPS and possibly clams at a later date in my nano. The light options for an 18" cube are very limiting so DIY was the best path for me.
I opted to go for the new 3W Cree LEDs these produce enough light at the right density as Metal Halide albeit a little more expensive to make but the pay back on this comes in the long term.
The advatages of LED over MH
1. Longevity (according to the manafactures spec) last 10 years if used for 12 hours a day as apposed to needing changing every 12 months. (this figure can vary if not cooled correctly)
2. Cost I have calculated the cost of running my LEDs for 12 hours a day will cost roughly £3 a month dependant on ballast MH can cost 3 - 5 times these for the same light output
3. Colour with the LED build I have a mixture of 10k Whites with Royal Blues I can fine tune the colour on the LEDs with the turn of a dial to my desired depth of colour from 10k upto roughly 25K
The build it self is very easy all it takes is a little soldering skills and some very basic electronics, This can be more involved if you want to add a computer to the system to create a sunrise / Sunset effect this is not needed but a nice effect and something I may do in the future.
There are some better offerings in the market place now as TMC have released a new range using the same LEDs as the DIYers are using but they do carry a hefty price tag but you do get a warranty.
I am more than happy to do this type of build again as the results are stunning but the lighting arena is changing all the time I think we will be seeing more LEDs in the aquarium lighting in the future we may also start seeing some plasma light units.
Here are a few shots of my tank under diffrent colours I have a few SPS frags under these lights and i am very pleased with the results so far. Ones my tank is a little more mature and stable I will be adding a maxima clam to it.
Just Whites
Just Blues
Whites and Blues
My new reef (Work in progress) under Blues and Whites
Meh cant resist adding this shot in lurve my tank under Blues
I decided to go down the DIY LED path for a number of reasons, mainly as i wanted to keep SPS and possibly clams at a later date in my nano. The light options for an 18" cube are very limiting so DIY was the best path for me.
I opted to go for the new 3W Cree LEDs these produce enough light at the right density as Metal Halide albeit a little more expensive to make but the pay back on this comes in the long term.
The advatages of LED over MH
1. Longevity (according to the manafactures spec) last 10 years if used for 12 hours a day as apposed to needing changing every 12 months. (this figure can vary if not cooled correctly)
2. Cost I have calculated the cost of running my LEDs for 12 hours a day will cost roughly £3 a month dependant on ballast MH can cost 3 - 5 times these for the same light output
3. Colour with the LED build I have a mixture of 10k Whites with Royal Blues I can fine tune the colour on the LEDs with the turn of a dial to my desired depth of colour from 10k upto roughly 25K
The build it self is very easy all it takes is a little soldering skills and some very basic electronics, This can be more involved if you want to add a computer to the system to create a sunrise / Sunset effect this is not needed but a nice effect and something I may do in the future.
There are some better offerings in the market place now as TMC have released a new range using the same LEDs as the DIYers are using but they do carry a hefty price tag but you do get a warranty.
I am more than happy to do this type of build again as the results are stunning but the lighting arena is changing all the time I think we will be seeing more LEDs in the aquarium lighting in the future we may also start seeing some plasma light units.
Here are a few shots of my tank under diffrent colours I have a few SPS frags under these lights and i am very pleased with the results so far. Ones my tank is a little more mature and stable I will be adding a maxima clam to it.
Just Whites
Just Blues
Whites and Blues
My new reef (Work in progress) under Blues and Whites
Meh cant resist adding this shot in lurve my tank under Blues
Idlemind
New Member
That looks really nice, Have you thought about blacklight LEDs? I have been goofing with some LEDs and made a moon light and I also am in the process finishing up some red LEDs for night vision, I dont have corals yet and may not get any lol I have also seen some black light LEDs is that what you have in the last pic or is it just blue lights?
Morri
Fish Herder
I have/am considiring adding some UVs have space for 5 more LEDs in my lid I am not sure of what results have been gained using UV, I plan to investigate furthur at a later date I am working on a few reactors at the moment just to make sure the SPS have everything they need
Littlemonkey
Fish Herder
Just sent off for a 24 led strip kit for my 60 litre, it has no lid just sliding glass panels and order'd some silicon. I would just have these lights on (as the community) on in the evening. Anyone else got one of these kits, I got it off E bay. Or do you think it would be too much.
Morri
Fish Herder
It Does depend on the LEDs in the strip I suspect these will be similar to the LEDs a lot of use for moonlights you may find them ok for FW.
On a diffrent note:
I have done a little more reaserch into the plasma bulbs, these are looking like a very serious option for reefers in the future, they are more effecient than LEDs and produce the same tempature as the sun in a tiny bulb, so should produce an identical light spectrum as pure sunlight a very exciting product. Here is an intresting news article with a demonstrtion of the bulb.
http
/glassbox-design.com/2009/eco-friendly-plasma-lighting-technology-reaches-aquariums/
Littlemonkey
Fish Herder
It Does depend on the LEDs in the strip I suspect these will be similar to the LEDs a lot of use for moonlights you may find them ok for FW.
I have done a little more reaserch into the plasma bulbs, these are looking like a very serious option for reefers in the future, they are more effecient than LEDs and produce the same tempature as the sun in a tiny bulb, so should produce an identical light spectrum as pure sunlight a very exciting product. Here is an intresting news article with a demonstrtion of the bulb.
http
Mmmmm interesting, maybe a tade too technical for my set up ane me
OP
OP
seffieuk
I used to be indecisive but now I'm not so sure!
Is anyone willing to write something about metal halides and T5s please?
Seffie x
Seffie x
OP
OP
seffieuk
I used to be indecisive but now I'm not so sure!
Come on guys, get your lighting up 
Would really like someone to write something about:
Metal halides - Ben, any chance you could do this?
AK to write about his cheap and brilliant option re: MH
T5 lighting
using a mixture of T5 and MH - any takers?
Using a mixture of T5 and T8 - Victor any chance you would write us a piece about your new set-up?
Seffie x
Would really like someone to write something about:
Metal halides - Ben, any chance you could do this?
AK to write about his cheap and brilliant option re: MH
T5 lighting
using a mixture of T5 and MH - any takers?
Using a mixture of T5 and T8 - Victor any chance you would write us a piece about your new set-up?
Seffie x
Truck
UKAPS
I'm just going to add a bit about T6 lighting.
Some T8 users may not be able to afford a lighting refit, so a good alternative are T6 tubes, you can occasionally get them from hardware stores, but they're also available from aqua essentials and a few other online aquatic retailers. You will also need a set of brushings per tube, because the T6 tubes which are 6/8ths of an inch, are thinner than T8's so a form of insulation is needed to prevent water from penetrating the end caps, and causing a short circuit.
T6's are better because the width of the tube means that less light is lost due to refraction from the glass surrounding the tube, with it being thinner there is less refraction which means more light can enter the tank, and twinned with a T5 reflector you can add considerably more light compared to T8's.
Incase anyone is wondering, T6 tubes DO work in T8 ballasts.
Some T8 users may not be able to afford a lighting refit, so a good alternative are T6 tubes, you can occasionally get them from hardware stores, but they're also available from aqua essentials and a few other online aquatic retailers. You will also need a set of brushings per tube, because the T6 tubes which are 6/8ths of an inch, are thinner than T8's so a form of insulation is needed to prevent water from penetrating the end caps, and causing a short circuit.
T6's are better because the width of the tube means that less light is lost due to refraction from the glass surrounding the tube, with it being thinner there is less refraction which means more light can enter the tank, and twinned with a T5 reflector you can add considerably more light compared to T8's.
Incase anyone is wondering, T6 tubes DO work in T8 ballasts.
AK77
Fish Herder
- Joined
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This is probably the cheapest and simplest option for Metal Halide lighting on a budget.
I bought this 70w metal halide security floodlight for £28 inc VAT and delivery, new!
Boxed
Free bulb too (although its not suitable for marine use)
Shot of the cable gland where you feed the 3 core flex through
Once the two top screws are removed, the unit flips upon like so
Shot of the electrics. Note the terminal blocks at the bottom. This is where you wire the 3 core flex into.
Shot of the wiring diagram below the terminal blocks.
The light is working correctly, although I need to make a hood for my tank to house it in and I'm just awaiting the 10'000k bulb to arrive. Once this is done, I will edit this post and add the pictures. I have tested it with the standard bulb and the increase and clarity of light are amazing, all for another 24watts! Total price of this 70w setup is £39. That is around the same price or less in some cases, of a Wave Solaris T5 compact 18w lamp!!
You either bolt these to the wall or mount them in a canopy. I had this running for about 20 minutes and the heat coming from it was negligible. I previously had two 150w versions of these hanging above my juwel 180, which were very hot to the touch.
IMO, for a nano tank especially, these are perhaps the most cost effective and powerful lighting solution available anywhere. I certainly don't think we'll be seeing the likes of Arcadia producing a 70w MH light for under £30 delivered any time soon! The 150w versions are around £35 delivered, so adding £10 for a bulb (ok not the best quality) you have yourself a super powerful lighting solution for about £45. You could if you so wished, put in the expensive marine lux bulbs which cost more than the floodlights lol. This still works out miles cheaper than a "purpose built" light from one of the big manufactures.
Save yourself a few hundred quid with these lights!!
*EDIT*
Wall mounted the fixture above the tank. Lights it up a treat!
I bought this 70w metal halide security floodlight for £28 inc VAT and delivery, new!
Boxed
Free bulb too (although its not suitable for marine use)
Shot of the cable gland where you feed the 3 core flex through
Once the two top screws are removed, the unit flips upon like so
Shot of the electrics. Note the terminal blocks at the bottom. This is where you wire the 3 core flex into.
Shot of the wiring diagram below the terminal blocks.
The light is working correctly, although I need to make a hood for my tank to house it in and I'm just awaiting the 10'000k bulb to arrive. Once this is done, I will edit this post and add the pictures. I have tested it with the standard bulb and the increase and clarity of light are amazing, all for another 24watts! Total price of this 70w setup is £39. That is around the same price or less in some cases, of a Wave Solaris T5 compact 18w lamp!!
You either bolt these to the wall or mount them in a canopy. I had this running for about 20 minutes and the heat coming from it was negligible. I previously had two 150w versions of these hanging above my juwel 180, which were very hot to the touch.
IMO, for a nano tank especially, these are perhaps the most cost effective and powerful lighting solution available anywhere. I certainly don't think we'll be seeing the likes of Arcadia producing a 70w MH light for under £30 delivered any time soon! The 150w versions are around £35 delivered, so adding £10 for a bulb (ok not the best quality) you have yourself a super powerful lighting solution for about £45. You could if you so wished, put in the expensive marine lux bulbs which cost more than the floodlights lol. This still works out miles cheaper than a "purpose built" light from one of the big manufactures.
Save yourself a few hundred quid with these lights!!
*EDIT*
Wall mounted the fixture above the tank. Lights it up a treat!
ben1987
Fish Aficionado
I will write a bit about my halides soon seffie...promise!
ben1987
Fish Aficionado
Right i have no idea where to start.
Basically, halides are the light unit of choice when planning a tank dominated by hard light loving corals. SPS. Or you have a tank with a depth of 2 feet or more where T5 tubes cant penetrate efficiently.
there are 3 main wattages when chosing a metal halide - 150W 250W 400W
As we move up the wattages the more light we get for our corals, but up the running costs go and so does the heat output.
Bulb choice, bulbs differ in price greatly from £10 ones of ebay to £100 ones. I have tried a few i am happy using BLV bulbs i find them good value for money £30-40 and i like the colour they give, my corals like them too. Usually the really cheap bulbs lead to terrible algae blooms. The colour of the bulbs is measueind in Kelvins. The sun is about 6500K and really yellow, most people dont like the really yellow look to their tank. Chosing a bulb with a higher kelvin rating means you get more blue. The most common bulb choices are 10,000k 14,000k or 20,000k. Usually a 10,000k bulb gives the faster coral growth, slowing down bit by bit the further we get away from that mark. 10,000k still gives a fairly yellow look so many chose to suppliment with blue actinic lighting from T5's or LEDs to get the best of both worlds - that quick growth from a 10k halide and a nice effect from the blues. Thes bulbs need changing once a year. One advantage thes have is that all that light comes out of one bulbs, where as we may need 6 T5's to match it. Making bulb chnges relativly in-expensive considering that T5s need chaning more often aswel.
Ballasts.
There are two types of ballast - magnetic and electronic. Electronic ones are most energy efficient and usually run a bit cooler too. There are the ones i would reccomend, although they dont always match the magnects for light output
How may halides do i need?
well this depends on the reflectors you run. In the standard unit we buy off the shelf its usually 1 halide per 2' cubed.
On really serious tanks then lumenarc reflectors help get the best spread from our light.
The unit i run -
Aqua one halide twin 250W unit with 10,000k bulbs. Soon to be supplimented with blue LEDs.
It runs a remote ballast, which means there are two seperate bits, resulting in the unit that hangs above the tank being very light.
It has built in timers and a very good reflector. It is available in many lengths and wattages.
linky
http/www.aquaone.co.uk/marine_metal_halides.php
Basically, halides are the light unit of choice when planning a tank dominated by hard light loving corals. SPS. Or you have a tank with a depth of 2 feet or more where T5 tubes cant penetrate efficiently.
there are 3 main wattages when chosing a metal halide - 150W 250W 400W
As we move up the wattages the more light we get for our corals, but up the running costs go and so does the heat output.
Bulb choice, bulbs differ in price greatly from £10 ones of ebay to £100 ones. I have tried a few i am happy using BLV bulbs i find them good value for money £30-40 and i like the colour they give, my corals like them too. Usually the really cheap bulbs lead to terrible algae blooms. The colour of the bulbs is measueind in Kelvins. The sun is about 6500K and really yellow, most people dont like the really yellow look to their tank. Chosing a bulb with a higher kelvin rating means you get more blue. The most common bulb choices are 10,000k 14,000k or 20,000k. Usually a 10,000k bulb gives the faster coral growth, slowing down bit by bit the further we get away from that mark. 10,000k still gives a fairly yellow look so many chose to suppliment with blue actinic lighting from T5's or LEDs to get the best of both worlds - that quick growth from a 10k halide and a nice effect from the blues. Thes bulbs need changing once a year. One advantage thes have is that all that light comes out of one bulbs, where as we may need 6 T5's to match it. Making bulb chnges relativly in-expensive considering that T5s need chaning more often aswel.
Ballasts.
There are two types of ballast - magnetic and electronic. Electronic ones are most energy efficient and usually run a bit cooler too. There are the ones i would reccomend, although they dont always match the magnects for light output
How may halides do i need?
well this depends on the reflectors you run. In the standard unit we buy off the shelf its usually 1 halide per 2' cubed.
On really serious tanks then lumenarc reflectors help get the best spread from our light.
The unit i run -
Aqua one halide twin 250W unit with 10,000k bulbs. Soon to be supplimented with blue LEDs.
It runs a remote ballast, which means there are two seperate bits, resulting in the unit that hangs above the tank being very light.
It has built in timers and a very good reflector. It is available in many lengths and wattages.
linky
http
/www.aquaone.co.uk/marine_metal_halides.php
OP
OP
seffieuk
I used to be indecisive but now I'm not so sure!
Thank you Truck, AK and Ben - that was fast and a really good informative read. Many people should find it useful 
Truck, would you fancy expanding your piece to write about T5 and T8s?
Seffie x
and a really good informative read. Many people should find it useful Truck, would you fancy expanding your piece to write about T5 and T8s?
Seffie x
ben1987
Fish Aficionado
Thank you Truck, AK and Ben - that was fast
Truck, would you fancy expanding your piece to write about T5 and T8s?
Seffie x
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