LED and PAR

1guydude

1guydude

Well-Known Member
okay so i had a fellow hobbyist come over today with a PAR meter to read my leds....
1st off these leds are a new thing in the hobby and can do nothing but grow and advance!
2nd i didnt get the numbers i was looking for!
~Ecoexotic par38
1 1/2 ft from tank
40deg optics
21w consumed
5 3w cree leds
6" down out of water
1900par
6" under water
160par
6" under water 6" to the left and right
70-80par
12" under water center
135par
-Also this bulb is about 11/2ft from my tank! Still though not all that great! We found that the wider the optics the more par u LOSE as u sway out of the beam....doih
Also Leds are good at penetrating air and not so much water lol!
~Rapids par38
1ft from tank
80deg optics
17w consumed
7 3w crees running at 2w
6" down out of water
600par
6" down under water
75par
12" down under water
60
-Needless to say this one was a complete failure and i recommend getting the 60deg optics at best....better thought dont even bother with this unit! We didnt measure from left to right cuz it didnt really matter LOL.
~Stark LED
8" from tank
60deg optics
60w consumed (has fan)
20 3w crees
6" out of water
800par
6" under water
270
12" under water
220
24" under water (bottom of tank)
60
-this is the best results...=(
I recommend doing a DIY led kit if u can or have the skill! The more the merrier!
Also do more with less deg optics otherwise u may not see good and healthy coral!
We also tested Ai sols
they didnt do much better than the stark fixture i have...
sry i didnt write down those numbers but im sure i can get em later tonight when they are posted on another forum!
 
1guydude

1guydude

Well-Known Member
Im saying all the hype about led is Bologna and that someone somewhere just wants to make a buck!
The stark fixture is way better than the par bulbs! LOL
The par bulbs have no par! LOL
I can grow sps on the top part of my rockwork but thats about it!
as for the smaller tank with the par bulbs....i cant really do sps!
 
1guydude

1guydude

Well-Known Member
Par results of AI Sol Super Blue standard optics
Lights are 15" above the tank
6" below lights outside optics (Air) 800
6" below lights inside optics (Air) 1900
6" Below water level (21" below lights) 220
12" below water level (27" below lights) 195
Bottom of tank (39" below lights) 145
Click to expand...
 
2quills

2quills

Well-Known Member
Something ain't right here man. Even in regards to your results from the AI fixture, they are not even close to what every body else is seeing.
Have a look on the big thread...*******************************
mod edit=link to other sites are not allowed so i edited out your link.
 
geoj

geoj

Active Member
ClamSeasQuest on a different forum about AIs PAR, "The real deliverable is PAR - 75 watts through a single AI = 364 PAR at 24"
So I would wonder why you have a different reading?
 
bang guy

bang guy

Moderator
It's all about the angle.
I am not yet on board with LED because of the inconsistent focussing. Once that's fixed they may well be on their way. Light reflects instead of penetrates at obtuse angles so even though LED put out a lot of light for the energy the angle of water strike is just too inconsistent so far.
 
1guydude

1guydude

Well-Known Member
Quote:
angle of water strike is just too inconsistent so far
+1
thxs for saying it...i couldnt put my finger on how to say it..
we were getting readings all over the board...just by moving it 1/4"!
So we took averages!
all in all...i reccommend a DIY fixture and maybe down the road they will be putting out fixtures that are actually worth the $...
the ai sol has 70deg optics on the outside pods and 30deg optics on the inside ones!
These are the readings we produced!
 
1guydude

1guydude

Well-Known Member
2quills i looked at the thread...the reading we took were over a 75gal...
also his AI's were running the width way and a lil more spread apart!
As said its about the angle and optics....
 
1guydude

1guydude

Well-Known Member
i hear from multi sources that RC is full of know it all ********...this info is on another forum....kinda my local forum!
******************
thread is LED par testing!
 
2quills

2quills

Well-Known Member
Quote:
Originally Posted by 1guyDude http:///forum/thread/387357/led-and-par#post_3407784
2quills i looked at the thread...the reading we took were over a 75gal...
also his AI's were running the width way and a lil more spread apart!
As said its about the angle and optics....
It is about angle, optics, output and spacing I agree. Just saying that your guy's readings for whatever reason don't seem to be showing the real potential. Aside from par readings, real world observations alone over the multitude of diy'ers and led owners alike should be enough to confirm that leds over reef tanks in the last few years is not bologna. There are alot of inconsistencies out there as Bang suggested and I would agree. When it comes down to led technology over out tanks, if you have specific tank needs then you really need to know what to look for in a fixture before you make a purchase. Otherwise you may not end up happy. And happiness doesn't always come cheap.
 
geoj

geoj

Active Member
I have my one AI sol blue 8" above the water on my 60gal cube with Euphyllia, Favites,Tridacna crocea,Caulastrea furcata.
set to WH 65, BL 45, RY 50
and it is like a 250MH with dark areas at the sides..
 
1guydude

1guydude

Well-Known Member
Quote:
And happiness doesn't always come cheap.
agreed! LOL
DIY is still the way to go...all im sayin!
u can get a lil more bang for ur buck me thinks!
When i said bologna....i was just a lil upset that i wasnt getting the readings i thought i would! It cant be worse than my t5s though!
Quote:
and it is like a 250MH with dark areas at the sides..
also agreed....
these high power led units are like mhs without the heat, bulb replacement, and energy suking $$$ grabbers!
His coral looks to be good, some coral i gave him a couple weeks back looks to be coloring back up and doing well...if ur talking about coral growth in size matters than that is well too!
also have u guys heard of PER???
i guess its wat light is actual usable to the coral! I think LED would have some decent measurements from PER if they could read it!
 
acrylic51

acrylic51

Active Member
The numbers don't jive.......Using a PAR meter isn't going to give you a true accurate measurement, and what were you using to measure wattage???? I can't attest to the PAR 38 bulbs though....As far as the AI units still think his numbers aren't adding up.......Again as Corey and Bang pointed out earlier about inconsistencies, but the bottom line is how are your corals reacting???? I can link you to a thread where the guy started his tank SPS dominate on the AI units, and the tank is incredible........I can show you another thread wheer the guy made the switch to LEDs, and did a whole lot of other changes, and chalked it up to LEDS not being enough, but I think he made to many changes to fast to know what exactly was the cause of his problems.....
 
1guydude

1guydude

Well-Known Member
Quote:
we were getting readings all over the board...just by moving it 1/4"!
So we took averages!
why is everyone all upset??? This is just wat his meter was sayin! If u dont agree than u dont agree!
All of my coral are doin fine...the AI's were over another hobbyist tank and his were doin fine as well!
These are just the numbers we got! If u guys can get a hold of a par meter ($100s)
id be more than intrested to see wat u come up with!
 
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