So I decided to take the plunge and drop $1100.00 on 3 sets of Blueline LED's for my 125 I am currently running T5's which I have been running for about 10 months now and am very happy with. I spent a few hours working on the stands for the LED's and about $50.00 in material. Well needless to say when I fired them up I hated them, the tank had dark spots in the corners and the lighting looked too dark. These were the 2W LED's I know I could have gone brighter but here was the deciding factor. When my T5's are on my total draw on the tank is 5.5 Amps and when I fired up the LED's the total draw was 5.4 Amps according to my trusty Apex controller (BIG DEAL .1 Amps). So after all this carrying on I'm just gonna stay with the tried and true T5's, has anyone else experimented with these lights to see what the hype is all about??
LED's
- Thread starter JoeRocket
- Start date
PIMPALA
Well-Known Member
not that brand... but ive had great luck with my LEDs. ive had MH and T-5 both. I dont see myself ever going back.
but with a 125 (im assuming a 6' tank) depending on the optics (if any) the length of the units, and the height from the water... they may either need adjusted, moved around, or another unit added.
but with a 125 (im assuming a 6' tank) depending on the optics (if any) the length of the units, and the height from the water... they may either need adjusted, moved around, or another unit added.
magnetar68
Member
That's a bummer. Not all LEDs are created equal, so I would not give up on LED lighting entirely. Honestly, these Blueline units are very inexpensive. 120W for ~$339. The AquaIllumination SOLs are 72W for $529. This might be a case of you get what you pay for. My LFS has the AquaIllumincation SOls and they look great and the corals appear to be doing great. The other LFS I go to has two Kessil 36W Blue fixtures over a 90g and it looks great (New LED fixture from Kessil offers an attractive spotlight design) and the corals are doing great too. These are about $250 each.
magnetar68
Member
BTW, here'a video of the Kessil's at my LFS[video]http://youtu.be/UsxEa5eyT8E[/video].
angnak
Active Member
Bought three AI sol blues and am very disappointed too. Check it out.
http://www.reefsanctuary.com/forums/equipment/69378-ai-blue-sol-just-plugged-unimpressed.html
http://www.reefsanctuary.com/forums/equipment/69378-ai-blue-sol-just-plugged-unimpressed.html
chipmunkofdoom2
Well-Known Member
Do you have a link to the system you bought? I can't seem to find much info about these lights.
Current draw aside, these Bluelines, while they might be sold by aquarium suppliers, do not appear to be built with aquariums in mind. Blueline's site seems to be more about cheap general purpose LED lighting solutions than anything else. Also, 2W LEDs simply do not cut it for aquarium use. Get a unit with 3W LEDs, focusing optics, and keep in mind you'll need to provide much greater coverage than with T5s or MH, and you'll be in business.
Current draw aside, these Bluelines, while they might be sold by aquarium suppliers, do not appear to be built with aquariums in mind. Blueline's site seems to be more about cheap general purpose LED lighting solutions than anything else. Also, 2W LEDs simply do not cut it for aquarium use. Get a unit with 3W LEDs, focusing optics, and keep in mind you'll need to provide much greater coverage than with T5s or MH, and you'll be in business.