Custom led lighting

[Hesselrode]

I know you should have warm white, cool white, and blue, but could I do uv and maybe red or green? Would this cause more algae or kill something or cause harm?

 

[Dav3]

The red and green spectrums coming from the white should be enough and shouldn't need to supplement them. There are no true uv led yet. You can get close with something like a ~420nm led.

 

[Hesselrode]

That was what I meant. I'm looking for the ripple effect in the tank, and figured I would build one since I have the skills. Gonna be around $60-$100 for what I'm doing. How do you know if you have enough light? Is there some sort of formula or something? I have seen some say wattage doesn't matter but watts=voltsxcurrent which makes sense to me.

 

[Dav3]

Led are a complex subject. You generally have 1watt and 3watt LEDs. And then you have optics to add to the equation. There are others on here who can help you better with customs than I. Might want to try googling for custom reef led light builds.

 

[Hesselrode]

Waiting on a resident expert.....

 

[Hesselrode]

I am thinking that lumens would be more important than wattage maybe.