RSM 130D LED Retrofit Choice

[ReturningReefer]

I'm considering updating my RSM 130D with LED lighting. I've come to two choices on my own and was hoping to get some feedback from the group. Links to my two choices are below and if i'm not on the right track, please let me know that as well.

If anyone has any installation ideas as far as controlling the lights as well, i'd love to hear those ideas as well. I really appreciate the input from all of you.

Steve's LED's:
http://shop.stevesleds.com/Red-Sea-Max-130-and-130D-LED-retrofit-kit-RSM130.htm

Rapid LED:
http://www.rapidled.com/solderless-red-sea-max-130d-dimmable-retrofit-kit/


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[Gastel]

I too have narrowed down the choice for my 130 to the two you have picked. A at this time I am leaning towards the rapid led full spectrum kit with the storm controller.
I believe this offers the best available setup for our tanks whilst retaining full use of the hood. The rapid led system is rated at 75 watts which should be ample for all corals. Also I have emailed rapid several times with questions and they have responded quickly and informatively.

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[ReturningReefer]

Thank you for the feedback. When you add the storm controller does the set up still stay within the hood? I'm trying not to add anything to the exterior of my tank. Did they send you anything about the lighting controller and it's set up and install.


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[Gastel]

Check out their website. All of the info is there. If you have any questions they are happy to help. Also download the installation instructions from the site to get a feel for how easy it is.
Keep in touch with how you go.

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[reefer gladness]

IMO the RapidLED kit beats out Steves on just about everything.

Heatsinks - Steve's uses two 1.25 inch aluminum tubes tig welded together for a heat sink (cheap and cruddy design IMO). The fan only effectively cools one tube as the heat transfer between the two aluminum tubes will not be efficient. Also, the Steve's heat sink will only be 2.5 inches wide vice 4.25 inches wide on the Rapid heatsink. The RapidLED heatsink will allow for better placement of the LED's and it's pre-drilled so you don't have to worry about the glue-epoxy coming loose (and it does eventually).

LED's - Steves using Luxeon and Rapid using CREE - I'll go with CREE every time.

Drivers/powersupplies - I prefer the Meanwell drivers that Rapid uses. Remember there are two different versions of the Meanwell drivers for analog and PWM dimming.

Instructions - Maybe I'm biased but I've built two LED systems using RapidLED's instructions and find the website much better designed and more informative with links to product spec documents etc.

 

[Snid]

Mind if I piggy back on this thread a little bit? Seeing it made me wonder.

I purchased the Current - Orbit Marine LED lighting system (Current - Orbit) I'm curious if my system is a good one to have. I won't be able to change it anytime soon, and thus far have been happy. I'm curious, however, if later down the road when I really start getting involved with corals, if my current (no pun intended) lighting system is worthwhile. If it is something I need to think about changing one day, sooner rather than later is always the best option because I'm striving for tank stability. Thanks for any input.

Sorry for the interruption... Just seemed like a worthy thread to chime in on, especially since it is the one that got me thinking.

 

[reefer gladness]

Mind if I piggy back on this thread a little bit? Seeing it made me wonder.

I purchased the Current - Orbit Marine LED lighting system (Current - Orbit) I'm curious if my system is a good one to have. I won't be able to change it anytime soon, and thus far have been happy. I'm curious, however, if later down the road when I really start getting involved with corals, if my current (no pun intended) lighting system is worthwhile. If it is something I need to think about changing one day, sooner rather than later is always the best option because I'm striving for tank stability. Thanks for any input.

Sorry for the interruption... Just seemed like a worthy thread to chime in on, especially since it is the one that got me thinking.

Honestly this is the type of LED system I try to warn people away from. It uses 1/4-watt LED's that just don't penetrate water very well. It will be okay for corals with low light requirements, it would not support SPS corals or photosynthetic anemones.

 

[Gastel]

The orbit marine led is only 23 watts. If you have an rsm130 or similar it is too weak to cover any but the easiest of corals. It has some good features and for a shallow fish only tank it looks nice but it isn't the one for a full reef tank. IMO.
I have a second hand one which I use with my T5s on the 130 and it looks good. Has done little to enhance color or growth though.

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[Overlook Reef]

About a year and a half ago I did the Modular Led kit. (They have discontinued this kit and have a new kit) I almost decided on Rapid Led.

If I had to do it again, I would use the Rapid Led.

I am happy with the results, but the reason I would use Rapid Led is that they are the same watts and they have many different options.

Modular discontinuing this kit caused me some problems when some LEDs stopped working. I had to write many emails and phone calls before I got replacements.

They even suggested I go to Rapid Led to get replacements because they do not carry them anymore!

Anyway, I am happy with the results.

 

[Snid]

Thanks guys! I feared that answer, but it is what it is I suppose. So in terms of pars, how much should be hitting the sand bed basically for allowing more diverse corals? (FYI - My tank is 18" deep) I of course am researching this on my own as well, but enjoy mixing my research with opinions and experiences from those who have the same goals as myself.

 

[reefer gladness]

Thanks guys! I feared that answer, but it is what it is I suppose. So in terms of pars, how much should be hitting the sand bed basically for allowing more diverse corals? (FYI - My tank is 18" deep) I of course am researching this on my own as well, but enjoy mixing my research with opinions and experiences from those who have the same goals as myself.

Hey Snid, it really depends on what type of corals you want to keep, and at what depths in your tank you want to keep them. An SPS dominant tank for example needs more light than the average mixed reef.

And there's nothing wrong with keeping corals that don't have high light requirements, your light should be fine for a variety of soft corals, zoas and mushrooms (maybe some LPS placed higher in the tank) and there are some really cool non-photosynthetic critters also.

Here's a link to some sun polyps for example, cool looking corals but my tank is probably too bright for them where your tank would be perfect. http://www.vividaquariums.com/p-6406-sun-polyps.aspx

 

[Snid]

Reefer,

Cool. I was just looking at Glenn's Sun Polyps that he just moved out of his main DT. So I will probably work this backwards then when it comes to my corals and compile a list of preferences on types of corals and then figure out what lighting changes, if any need to be made. I also was just thinking that it would be real easy for me to add light rather than replace light with my setup.

Also... I am halfway through reading this interesting article and thought I'd share it with you guys...

LED Aquarium Lights, Lighting; How they work, DIY

 

[Snid]

Ok... So I'm still doing fact finding, but I thought I'd chime in on a few things worth noting.

Wattage used to power the lights is no indicator of how powerful the lights really are, as some lighting systems use Pulse Width Modulation, which reduces the amount of wattage needed, yet still powers the LEDs at their fullest capacity. My lighting system uses PWM for example. (see above posting with link to article)

1/4 watt LEDs, or 5mm LEDs aren't necessarily a strength indicator either. As Yoda says,"Size matters not. Judge me by my size do you? Hmmm?" As indicated in this article, 10mm LEDs might only be as powerful as 5mm LEDs, just housed differently. (All About LEDs)

Cree vs. Luxeon? That battle seems to have been raging for quite a few years now, and in most case studies, Cree ends up being the better option. Especially when it comes to cost efficiency for the long haul. The competition between the two is pretty stiff.

What it really boils down to are the par readings at various distances penetrating the water and the spectrum of light provided. So when shopping for lights, one should get the specs on those two measurables for sure. Just paying attention to wattage used to power the system and/or the size of the LEDs isn't really a good way to go. In fact, those two indicators can be very misleading.

If I could get my hands on a par light meter, I'd do some extensive testing on my system myself, but that doesn't seem feasible at this time. I don't suppose someone wants to loan me one? Everything I've read, and what has been mentioned here indicates that my system isn't strong enough for some corals. I'm glad to know this now, rather than later for sure!

The Rapid system seems to be the way to go between the two mentioned above, and either is better than what I have for sure. I'll probably consider such an upgrade (or addition) once I figure out which way my tank is going coral wise.

 

[Overlook Reef]

I do have a older picture of my with par reading. The LEDs I have with Modular are Cree and it may give you an indication of what to expect.
For the record, when it took the readings, I had two white LEDs out. (The readings, are not as high as I expected, but the corals seem very happy)

Let me know if you want to see it. I can post it on this thread or email it to you.

 

[reefer gladness]

Wattage used to power the lights is no indicator of how powerful the lights really are

This is 100% true with LED's, total wattage can be very misleading but I'd like to expand a little as to why. Factors to consider are:
1. The color of the LED (more specifically - relative spectral power distribution)
2. Efficiency of the LED, this is how efficient the LED is at converting electricity to lumens
3. A decent understanding of PAR (photo-synthetically active radiation)

One of the reasons I prefer both RapidLED and CREE is because Rapid links all the product data sheets for the CREE LED's - good luck finding that for Luxeon or any other manufacturer. If you look at the flux characteristics for white XP-G series for example you will see that all 'whites' do not put out the same amount of lumens. But don't let this mislead you - a bigger number isn't necessarily better and this is related to point 3 above about understanding PAR.

When considering PAR it's important to note that light created at different wavelengths (ie - colors) is used to varying degrees for photosynthesis with some wavelengths being more readily usable than others. This varies quite a bit among species which leads us to PUR (photo-synthetically usable radiation which in theory is a more realistic value of the photo-synthetic radiation used for photosynthesis but extremely difficult to calculate or measure.

Anyway, point being is that cool white LED with higher PAR values may not be providing the full spectrum of radiation that can be used by the organism. The first generation of LED's used for reefing were pretty much all a combo of cool white and royal blue LED's which produced the highest PAR ratings/per watt. This eventually led to the 'full spectrum' LED kits we see now as reefers began to realize how narrow in spectrum LED's are and how much of the spectrum was not being covered by the cool white/royal blue combo.

FWIW, white is the combination of all colors and is the first and most important LED to choose and then select other 'colored' LED's as needed to fill out the spectrum.

Understanding what light is and how it's used for photosynthesis is a really in-depth topic (that I won't pretend to understand) but the introduction of LED lighting really does require a little more investigation and knowledge right now because there are so many manufacturers trying to make a quick buck from inferior designs.

 

[Mrsalt]

Also is the change in colour temperature as the led matures it may no longer sit within the spectrum originally designed. This has to do with the heat that can be efficiently managed thus prolonging the life of the diode. Many manufacturer run there LEDs flat out which gives a high output at first but drop off to less than 50%.

 

[Gastel]

I ordered my rapid led kit for the 130 today. Full spectrum with storm controller.
I will post updates on the build as I go.

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[Corvus]

Very interesting thread as I am considering a 130D or a C-130. I'm not good a soldering so I'm hoping I can get all I need in a "foolproof" kit! LOL I want the dimmable kit so I guess I'd need a controller, too.

C.

 

[reefer gladness]

They have a dimmable kit that doesn't require soldering (or at least not much). Dimming can be performed manually with 1-10v analog potentiometers or you can go with a controller for automation.

Honestly though, the skill sets required to retrofit an LED kit into an RSM hood are greater than the skill sets required to set-up a drilled tank IMO and then you can hang any light you want over the drilled tank. Neither project is very hard with the help available though.

 

[Gastel]

My rapid led dimmable kit arrived yesterday. I will be installing it this week. Will update on the build as I go.
And yes rapid led do a solder less kit with the storm controller.

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