# Led Lighting Question



## bmo (Apr 14, 2011)

Led Lighting Question

I just have a question about Led Lighting for Aquariums.
Is there anything about the leds that makes them special?
Or are they just ordinary led’s? 
I ask because I am just wondering why people don’t use led panels for lighting; there life span is 6 to 12 years they don’t cost that much and there is no replacing or dimming and heat is not much of a problem.
The reason I ask is because I am sure I am missing the reason why they are not used.
Thanks in advance for your help.


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## Algae Beater (Apr 21, 2010)

it has to do with the wattage and intensity of diodes used. lower wattage panels have poor thermal management, are usually cheaply built with low grade electronics (trust me, i have a few of these) due to their low intensity they DO NOT illuminate a water column to an appropriate level even for a fish only system in my opinion. 

look for a fixture with 2 - 3 watt diodes a solid build with lots of aluminum (heat sinking) and less fans. Fans are a cheap alternative to heat sinking which is less reliable and is prone to wear and tear, salt creep etc. When these cheap fans go the fixture will over heat and fail, without a doubt.


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## Captured Moments (Apr 22, 2010)

I think right now LED are quite expensive given the fact that they are rather new still and the choice is quite limited. For the time being until they become reasonable in price, I would stay with the current standard choices. Also, I remember reading somewhere that the PAR value on the LED is much higher than the standard T5 even though they don't seem as bright.


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## SeaHorse_Fanatic (Apr 22, 2010)

Solaris was the first commercially available LED lights and super expensive before the company went belly up. However, the manufacturer holds several patents regarding LED lighting that has caused some concerns for others who entered the market afterwards. Not sure what is going on legally right now.

There are a lot more LED alternatives being offered right now, including a snap-together DIY kits being offered by a company I read about on Canreef.com. I think that when the technology is proven (which some of today's units might already be good enough), then they will become economically feasible in the long-term. However, the truth of the matter is that most people do not keep their tanks up and running for the five to ten years it will take for the cost savings (from not having to replace bulbs and the lower electric bills) to make the higher initial cost of LEDs worthwhile.

I myself have set up, torn down, sold off, or replaced at least ten tanks in the last six years, so buying an LED lighting system at full retail would not be a good investment for me.

Anthony


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## bmo (Apr 14, 2011)

i main reason i ask is because NU-World makes LED panels and i have one of them that i had made by them

Nu World Distribution Inc. » Nu World Products

you can see the specs here and its not high in cost at all, and the power and wattage looks good to me aswell is it not? or am i missing something?

as you said nu world only uses heat sinks and no fans are needed the panels dont get hot at all and the light is amazingly stronga small 6 by 6 panel can be placed on a table and light the whole room. and for price its not much at all less then 100 for a good sized panel, i dont think lighting a tank that is even 4 feet deep would be a problem for these panels being that they are the same ones used for the YVR sign at the vancouver airport and those are not even the MAX versons of the led's


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