T-5 vs LED vs Halides.. Picture thread

trido

Valuable Member
View Badges
Joined
Apr 22, 2010
Messages
1,636
Reaction score
1,062
Location
Lynnwood, Washington
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
so using only Led is Regret for sps keepers.
Only for some. I love my 100% LED tank. My SPS grow, uncrust, improve in color once I bring them home from the LFS and pay for themselves with store credit. I do not buy corals or equipment out of pocket anymore. LED's grow SPS for me well enough to pay for my 450 gallon system.

LED'S are great for making existing color pop. But t5 and/or MH are needed for growth and coral coloring
Maybe for you, but this statement is absolutely untrue.
 
Last edited:

damon.strange.5

Active Member
View Badges
Joined
Feb 15, 2015
Messages
293
Reaction score
74
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
@revhtree
Used to!
It's been a while since I last updated it. I will try to do it soon!
Meanwhile, this is a FTS:
aqua_2.jpg
@ReEfnWrX have you not seen this man's tank nothing but AI Hydras and you can't tell me he has trouble with anything you mentioned.
 

ReEfnWrX

Community Member
View Badges
Joined
Nov 7, 2013
Messages
58
Reaction score
0
Location
Katy, Texas
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
Only for some. I love my 100% LED tank. My SPS grow, uncrust, improve in color once I bring them home from the LFS and pay for themselves with store credit. I do not buy corals or equipment out of pocket anymore. LED's grow SPS for me well enough to pay for my 450 gallon system.


Maybe for you, but this statement is absolutely untrue.
Maybe a bad choice of words. T5 and/or MH are needed for "optimal" growth and coloration. Still have yet to see an LED only tank that would be in top tier for this.

LED'S will mature one day and overcome others light sources but for now... I feel like their strength is supplemental light for color pop
 

trido

Valuable Member
View Badges
Joined
Apr 22, 2010
Messages
1,636
Reaction score
1,062
Location
Lynnwood, Washington
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
Photos like yours that show the decline of corals from LED'S and then massive improvement from T5's or MH/T5 combos always cast a massive shadow over the posts trying to validate LED's.

I've been using LED'S for 3-6 years now. I told myself I would commit and not swap out. I'd give it 2-3 years. I have never been happy. Have tried many spectrums/intensity combinations, typically trying each for 1-1.5 months.

I am building a new tank now and can wait to put back on my 8x54w ATI power modules (not the newer hybrid LED generation).

LED'S are great for making existing color pop. But t5 and/or MH are needed for growth and coral coloring
Maybe a bad choice of words. T5 and/or MH are needed for "optimal" growth and coloration. Still have yet to see an LED only tank that would be in top tier for this.

LED'S will mature one day and overcome others light sources but for now... I feel like their strength is supplemental light for color pop
Obviously you haven't taken a look through my tank thread or my TOTM thread. :D
 
Last edited:

revhtree

Owner Administrator
View Badges
Joined
May 8, 2006
Messages
47,602
Reaction score
85,989
Rating - 100%
1   0   0
Let's bump this one up to the top!
 

revhtree

Owner Administrator
View Badges
Joined
May 8, 2006
Messages
47,602
Reaction score
85,989
Rating - 100%
1   0   0
Nice!!
 

427HISS

2500 Club Member
View Badges
Joined
Oct 3, 2013
Messages
2,873
Reaction score
821
Location
Nebraska
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
Man, I wish I could afford,....:( the new light from Kessel !!! :cool:

It's very well built, thin like the Razors, great spectrum etc......
But the cost is just too high for this reefer.

Love this great review from Melevesreef.
Kessil AP700 Previewed and reviewed-

 

revhtree

Owner Administrator
View Badges
Joined
May 8, 2006
Messages
47,602
Reaction score
85,989
Rating - 100%
1   0   0
Who's next?
 

Anirban

5000 Club Member
View Badges
Joined
Sep 18, 2015
Messages
5,353
Reaction score
9,479
Location
Chapel Hill
Rating - 100%
1   0   0
My LED+T5 combo
20160528_165553_zpsr88nhsr0.jpg
20160528_165507_zps4n4zjcyn.jpg
 

Rob's Reef

Well-Known Member
View Badges
Joined
Jun 27, 2015
Messages
645
Reaction score
384
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
I picked this guy up at reef a palooza in Orange County last year. Picture was taken 10-13-15
2016-06-03 11.27.48.jpg


This same coral top down last night... 6-2-16
2016-06-03 08.13.02.jpg

Growing great under Radions. All I do is water changes. No dosing anything
 

WetWhistle

Well-Known Member
View Badges
Joined
May 13, 2015
Messages
741
Reaction score
482
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
Only for some. I love my 100% LED tank. My SPS grow, uncrust, improve in color once I bring them home from the LFS and pay for themselves with store credit. I do not buy corals or equipment out of pocket anymore. LED's grow SPS for me well enough to pay for my 450 gallon system.


Maybe for you, but this statement is absolutely untrue.

I normally don't weigh in on threads like this but I am tired off people bashing LED when clearly there are a lot of fantastic LED tanks around and it is plane ignorant to just ignore the overwhelming amount of proof. I remember when T5 came out and all the MH users kept not wanting to admit they were another good option of light. Just like with LED 'they will never grow corals some people said'. Even with an army of proof people were not willing to accept it. Lighting is ONE factor that influence coral growth and is by far not the only thing that influences them.

In my experience I find that a lot of time people can't grow corals with LED is because it was something they did and it was not the light. I have helped out so many people with their LED that could not grow sps or other corals that I lost count. It was almost always something they did wrong for settings or they were constantly changing the spectrum, way to low a intensity or were always messing with the settings in some way. This was not always the case but the majority of the time it was. Even when they tried to deny it!

As to t5 and/or MH being needed for growth and coral coloring but not LED it is completely untrue. I have a lot of experience using LED, MH and T5 so I am more then familiar with what the lights can do for growth and color and what they are capable of and I get as good and for some species of coral better growth and color then I do with MH or T5 using LED. I have local T5 or MH guys come over and comment all the time they don't have the color or growth I get.

LED is just not as user friendly as MH or T5 so till you get used to them it is a big learning curve. At one time you would notice a clear line between one light option being better then the other but today it is not so clear. All three are great sources of light and each have pros and cons to them. It all comes down to what the user wants in a light and what options best suits their needs. For what works or is best for me is not necessarily the case for someone else. That doesn't mean my lights are better it just means it is better for me.

There are a lot of very nice tanks for all options of lighting in this thread. Some tanks that are mature and some that will grow into their own. I am really liking the pictures in this thread so keep them coming don't be shy. No matter what lights you use.
 

reefaboo

Valuable Member
View Badges
Joined
May 6, 2013
Messages
1,184
Reaction score
399
Location
Chic-a-go
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
My Tank .. has been using razors for almost a year .. black box leds before that and kessil a360 before that ..
fts1_zpsagm6ks4w.jpg


fts2_zpsknnn0qy2.jpg
 

pdiehm

Valuable Member
View Badges
Joined
Nov 6, 2014
Messages
1,628
Reaction score
584
Location
Delaware
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
I have a photon 48 that currently is maxed out at 80% blue, 20% white, sitting 12" or so over the water surface.

Looking into getting a Seneye for the light reading functionality to better get numbers but Logan from Reefbreeders says that light at 100% is same power as 2 250w MH.

Tank is currently maturing, running zeovit and will be a primarily SPS tank.

Any LED experts who can help out, definitely appreciated
 

WetWhistle

Well-Known Member
View Badges
Joined
May 13, 2015
Messages
741
Reaction score
482
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
My tank with just LED taken around a year and a half being set up.

DSC_0074.JPG


Recent tank pic one year later after the first pic with LED and T5. At this point I have moved to a mixed but SPS dominant tank. The T5 have been on the tank for around 4 months or so at this point. I also don't run a skimmer anymore.


IMG_20160605_143525_edit.jpg
 

A worm with high fashion and practical utility: Have you ever kept feather dusters in your reef aquarium?

  • I currently have feather dusters in my tank.

    Votes: 70 37.8%
  • Not currently, but I have had feather dusters in my tank in the past.

    Votes: 62 33.5%
  • I have not had feather dusters, but I hope to in the future.

    Votes: 25 13.5%
  • I have no plans to have feather dusters in my tank.

    Votes: 28 15.1%
  • Other.

    Votes: 0 0.0%
Back
Top