does anyone have LEDS on a 36" tall tank

My $200 price includes shipping. I think my final price was $213. None of the units on the website is what I am actually getting. The base price for my unit was $160. There is a 50 x 1w led unit and a 100 x1w led unit on the website. At first I thought that is what they were trying to sell me (the 50 x 1w), but it was not. They sent me a price sheet which listed the following (these units are on the website)

ES-50W-3AB $95 (50 led unit)
ES-100W-3AB $160 (100 led unit)
ES-200W-3AP $280 (200 led unit)

The above was in a PDF attachment they emailed to me. I have 4 PDF's in total. If I knew how or if I could, I would upload the PDF's to this site. In the body of the same email they posted these prices.

The unit price is as follow:
25x3w $95/pc
50x3w $160/pc
100x3w $280/pc

There was a lot of confusion after this part and I exchanged 2 or 3 emails with them looking for clarifcation. I emailed them and told them the price sheet PDF quoted $95 for the 50 unit LED, and why I was paying $160. I said I wanted the unit that was the closest to the CREE unit. That is when they said that the unit they were quoting me was 3w led's and not the 1w led's on the website or the PDF. They said that this is a new unit and they didn't have it posted yet.

So, what I should be getting is a 50 LED unit with 3w Led's in it. It has 90 degree optics on it. Price $160 (not including shipping - about $50 for shipping). I don't know what LED's are in it, but they use Cree, Epistar, and Bluelux. It could be these or something else. I don't know. I am just hoping I actually get something. It doesn't have to be perfect for me. I just want something better than the stock biocube that was under $300 and provided a more stable light spectrum. I think these will be, and that is all i wanted. I am not expecting Orphek results and I'm not paying $900 either for those results. After all of this and before I did send my final payment, I did think there could a risk I am getting a 50 unit 1w Led unit, but at that point, I just didn't care anymore.

After all of this discussion, it has sparked my curiosity as to try to quantify it's performance. I really don't want to spend $300 or $400 on PAR meter, so I am going to call my LFS's and see if they will loan me one for $20 if they have one, otherwise I will see if I can buy a used one.

I will post an update when I get it, take some pics, if it has a manual or any spec's on it, I will post those as well.
 
Wow! Thank you guys for your overwhelming amount of info. I was hoping to keep it simple and use 3 - 4 fixtures, I'm mostly concerned with dark spots in the tank and shadows, remember that the tank is 30" front to back and I only have about 10" or so to hang them from the canopy.

Thanks
 
mlreef said:
Wow! Thank you guys for your overwhelming amount of info. I was hoping to keep it simple and use 3 - 4 fixtures, I'm mostly concerned with dark spots in the tank and shadows, remember that the tank is 30" front to back and I only have about 10" or so to hang them from the canopy.

Thanks
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No one has addressed the 36" height of the tank, almost everything that I have read always indicates at most 24 - 30" where the par value usually take a huge plunge and is only concentrated in a small circle.



I really need some advice.

Thanks in advance.
 
I talked with a LFS today that has a PAR meter. They are either going to let me take it home and use it, or I might just take the unit into them and test the PAR readings at different levels in their tank. I'll see if I can get readings at 36 inches and let you know what it reads at different spots. My unit is suppose to have 90 degree optics which should spread the light out and make the readings more consistent. I'll post my analysis and readings when I have everything.
 
back to the original post, the wisdom goes;

the higher the fixture, the tighter the optics. that's all, doesn't really matter how high the fixture is. obviously you don't want 10ft headroom, but you'll be fine.

you will get spot lighting eventually.....but the idea is if you look at the @inch pictures where they show you the spread over 3 different instances, you are just pushing that farther with tighter optics. that research is really up to you which optics you think you need to make it look good, really is eye of the beholder. I'm looking at right now at spotlighting 3 islands, with little sand splash and going with corals only on my rock. very japanese look, and hard to do.
 
Here are a couple of more pictures. I made a temp. light holder out of PVC pipe. I have a bolt inserted in the side that I can put in and take out to raise it and lower it by an inch over a 1 foot span. I don't have it cemented yet so I better take it down before the light falls in the tank. It only took about 30 minutes to come up with an idea and put it together. My only concern is that I don't know if PVC pipe will break. I don't know much about how strong it is and if it can hold that light up.
 
KiLaGo said:
Here are a couple of more pictures. I made a temp. light holder out of PVC pipe. I have a bolt inserted in the side that I can put in and take out to raise it and lower it by an inch over a 1 foot span. I don't have it cemented yet so I better take it down before the light falls in the tank. It only took about 30 minutes to come up with an idea and put it together. My only concern is that I don't know if PVC pipe will break. I don't know much about how strong it is and if it can hold that light up.
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Looks good, Please let me know what the par values are when you get the meter. Also is the LED unit dimmable?
 
I don't have a par meter, but I have an orphek PR156 40 inches from the sandbed and my Haddoni Carpet is doing fine. My PR 156 has the 120 degree optics. Orphek makes PR 156 with 90 degree optics that can penetrate even deeper.
 
ColaAddict said:
I don't have a par meter, but I have an orphek PR156 40 inches from the sandbed and my Haddoni Carpet is doing fine. My PR 156 has the 120 degree optics. Orphek makes PR 156 with 90 degree optics that can penetrate even deeper.
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Thanks for the info, My Main concern is that it is going through at least 32" of water and the probably at least another 12 -15" of air above the tank.

The density of the water will impede light travel.
 
mlreef said:
Thanks for the info, My Main concern is that it is going through at least 32" of water and the probably at least another 12 -15" of air above the tank.

The density of the water will impede light travel.
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I think my next tank will be a shallow one. It's so hard to work with, getting down to the deep portions of the tank. But I have a 92gal corner and only using 1 PR 156 with 120 degree optics and it lights up my whole tank. Saves me money on buying multiple fixtures.
 
ColaAddict said:
I think my next tank will be a shallow one. It's so hard to work with, getting down to the deep portions of the tank. But I have a 92gal corner and only using 1 PR 156 with 120 degree optics and it lights up my whole tank. Saves me money on buying multiple fixtures.
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You don't like having to get into full scuba to adjust that low coral?

Just kidding. I have a 27" deep tank its 3' thick!

Oh, and I have LEDs on mine. They are the AI Sol. They do a great job and not even at 100% power. Check their specs for comparison.
 
I've heard nothing but good things about the AI sols, and No, I don't like getting wet up to my shoulders just to mess with the corals all the way to the sandbed, LOL
 
jcarlilesiu said:
You don't like having to get into full scuba to adjust that low coral?

Just kidding. I have a 27" deep tank its 3' thick!

Oh, and I have LEDs on mine. They are the AI Sol. They do a great job and not even at 100% power. Check their specs for comparison.
Click to expand...

why is your tank 3" thick?

I'll research the AI sols later today. Thanks!
 
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