Lighting your reef... Best bang for your buck.

[oyf709]

Everyone must have awesome reef tanks in China. Just sayin...

Well when you can buy a 150g glass tank with cabinet and canopy for $120USD, I am sure they can spend more money on coral and other stuff that are not man made. I went to their so-call LFS well can't really call it a store cuz the market was made with over 500 fish tore in it and it was the size of 3 football field. Their glass tank are so cheap that I almost want to ship one back to Cnada, the only problem is that the shipping would have lots issue including that using wood material to secure the tank is expensive as those board all have to go thru treatment to ensure no infestation of pine beatles etc

 

[MBliss81]

Hey X, what are these Chinese LED units called? If they are up to snuff quality-wise, I may want to look into it. I have never been one to trust any off-brand electronics. But of you have owned them without problems, maybe I would reconsider in this case.

 

[TommyP]

What about these for a 48'' tank?
EVO 48" LED Aquarium Light Coral Reef Saltwater 32X 3W 3 Watts Lunar 120 Cm | eBay

 

[Daniel Fishy]

To me they look like a marine land version. I'm waiting to see what x thinks about the reef breeder and the hong kong ones seem similar to reef breeders.

 

[TommyP]

I'm thinking about picking these up if Mr. X things they're okay - he knows his stuff:
EVO 48" LED Aquarium Light Coral Reef Saltwater 32X 3W 3 Watts Lunar 120 Cm | eBay

 

[Animal-Chin]

I'm thinking about picking these up if Mr. X things they're okay - he knows his stuff:
EVO 48" LED Aquarium Light Coral Reef Saltwater 32X 3W 3 Watts Lunar 120 Cm | eBay

I dont think those are reef strong. 96 watts total on a 48 would probably be ok for soft coral or fowlr.

 

[TommyP]

Thanks for the input - hopefully I can find a similar setup with more watts. What would the ideal wattage be 120?

 

[Psychocircus91]

The sunrise, sunset, cloud cover, and lightening storm effects are the things I would never use anyway. I think it's total nonsense to waste money on that stuff. If that's what makes those other fixtures so expensive, I don't see how they are "the best".
I'm interested in a good looking tank, at a good price. This is a reality.
Btw, MBliss, one of these cheapo Chinese units will make your tank look 100% better than 2 T5 lamps.
And to anyone who was questioning whether they could sit one of these Taotronics units on glass, you can. The amount of heat that comes off of them is less than a T5 fixture. Barely warm to the touch.

thanks mr X. your opinion is certainly valued. My concern is that they recommend hanging them about 10" above. If I do buy these fixtures for a glass canopy should I get the standard, 60 degree optics, or 90 degree optics? Does it matter?

PS I have a standard 75 gallon.

 

[CorallineAlgae]

I'm thinking about picking these up if Mr. X things they're okay - he knows his stuff:
EVO 48" LED Aquarium Light Coral Reef Saltwater 32X 3W 3 Watts Lunar 120 Cm | eBay

They run very hot. You have to put a fan on both the fixture and the ballast. I'd skip that fixture.

 

[MBliss81]

I just ordered an Ecoxotic 36" stunner strip to add to my existing 36" Coralife 2-bulb T5 HO fixture. I'm hoping that the extra light will be enough to start to keep a few SPS corals, and to make my LPS corals even happier (already growing and spreading really well). I'm going to start a thread with pics as soon as the new lights arrive to document the installation and difference it makes in the tank.

 

[Mrc8858]

I just ordered an Ecoxotic 36" stunner strip to add to my existing 36" Coralife 2-bulb T5 HO fixture. I'm hoping that the extra light will be enough to start to keep a few SPS corals, and to make my LPS corals even happier (already growing and spreading really well). I'm going to start a thread with pics as soon as the new lights arrive to document the installation and difference it makes in the tank.

That light isn't gonna add much to your setup really other then some shimmer effect. Imo I don't think thatll be enough light for any sps really.

 

[oyf709]

i don't even think it will provide the shimmering that much simply the T5 would blend all those LED lights and because of that the shimmer effect might be very limited.
As well as the LED are less than 1W each which means the PAR value would drop by quite a bit after 16" to 18" deep.

 

[mr_X]

I'm thinking about picking these up if Mr. X things they're okay - he knows his stuff:
EVO 48" LED Aquarium Light Coral Reef Saltwater 32X 3W 3 Watts Lunar 120 Cm | eBay

I don't have any experience with those. Doesn't Aq-LED have something similar?

Hey X, what are these Chinese LED units called? If they are up to snuff quality-wise, I may want to look into it. I have never been one to trust any off-brand electronics. But of you have owned them without problems, maybe I would reconsider in this case.

TaoTronics, but that's just one name. Many people are branding these fixtures and selling them.

 

[TommyP]

I don't have any experience with those. Doesn't Aq-LED have something similar?

Yes they do but it's $380 and those are $130 free shipping... sorry AQ

 

[mr_X]

Well, makea mistake with that one, then another.....and then you spent 380 and don't have a fixture at all that suits your needs. Just sayin.

 

[TommyP]

Well, makea mistake with that one, then another.....and then you spent 380 and don't have a fixture at all that suits your needs. Just sayin.

Yeah I hear ya. Currently I'm running 4bulb T5 but want to invest in something better for my corals.

 

[oyf709]

wait...waht you saying? $380 with $130 shipping?Might be some kind of err on my site, if you want you can let me know your address and I can quote you a shipping for that fixture. If you are 48" tank, I would suggest the 2x24" cuz it would be cheaper to ship.

 

[TommyP]

Hi Frank, I am located in Kings Park, NY which is on Long Island. I was stating earlier that the unit you were selling, which I know is very good is $380 + shipping ( i didnt look in to the shipping). The unit I found on e-bay was $130 + free shipping. Sorry for any confusion.

 

[oyf709]

oh haha, I see, there are differences in application, if you are keeping the nothing but soft coral 96W spread in a 48" size tank might be enough. However, I am not sure how that would do for anythig else. I just Sold 2 90W fixture to a guy with 48" 90g tank, and he said the tank is so dark that he have to get another one. but of course, it is talking about bright or dark, not actaul PAR/PUR for the fixtures. And he is compaing the LED to his 2x250W MH =p

You will need at least 120W to cover your 4' tank, that would be my personal suggestion. Someone else might be able to chip in more opinion

 

[TommyP]

Thanks so much for the information. I will keep that in mind and may save up to buy one of your fixtures. Do your fixtures mount on top of the tank, or can only be hung?