Lighting Question?

[NanoGeek13]

So I have scored another sweet Craigslist deal 48" Marineland Reef Capable LED 48 1w 10,000k 8 1w Actinic buitin in timer and an odesea 48" t5ho 4x54w both for 150 bucks! Now my question is should I ues the LED and the odesea 4x54w T5HO or the LED and a Coralife 4x65W PC?

EDIT: I have a 90g tank.

 

[reefer gladness]

Of the choices there I'd use the T5HO, replace the bulbs and put the other 2 lights back on craigslist.

 

[NanoGeek13]

Well I plan on using two of the fixtures so T5HO and the LED it is!

 

[clownfishrule]

T5ho

 

[NanoGeek13]

Here is a link to the CL add I can't wait to get my 90 g setup with these! Aquarium Lights - 48" LED and T5HO

 

[NanoGeek13]

Should be good enough for a clam and some sps right?

 

[clownfishrule]

yea that would def. be fine for a clam.

 

[NanoGeek13]

Sweet how much is a fair price for the 4x65w Coralife Light? I'm gonna post it on CL its like brand new came with the tank I bought.

 

[Doogle]

Not too much, old technology that's being phased out.
Good luck

 

[NanoGeek13]

Well at the LFS by my house they go for 300 bucks! lol maybe ill post it for 75 and hope somebody with a FOWLR picks it up it was only used for a week.

 

[reefer gladness]

Should be good enough for a clam and some sps right?

I wouldn't expect much from that LED fixture. 1-watt LED's don't penetrate the water well at all, it's probably good for 400 PAR at 2 inches and 40 PAR at 20 inches. If we go by the antiquated watts-per-gallon formula the T5HO's only get you in the 2 watts per gallon range, if you want to be generous and add the LED's in there maybe 3 watts.

I'm not a fan of that watts-per-gallon formula and would suggest you just rent a PAR meter so you know what you have before potentially wasting money on lost clams and corals. You can rent a PAR meter for $50 - less than what you'll probably spend on a clam or decent SPS frag.

 

[NanoGeek13]

Here is a PAR reading test that aquanerd.com did for the Marineland LED Reef capable fixture using a Apogee Quantum MQ-200 PAR Meter Marineland Reef Capable LED PAR Numbers | AquaNerd

Average reading of 75 PAR at 24"
247 PAR at 6"

 

[reefer gladness]

don't get me wrong, I do wish you success but I would never recommend a 1-watt LED fixture to someone who wants to keep SPS corals or maximas. The higher wattage 5 and 3-watt LED's are far more efficient yielding higher PAR ratings at a lower wattage. 75 PAR at the sandbed would not be enough to support a maxima but by combining with the T5HO's you might be okay. Knowledge is power which is why I always recommend taking your own measurements so you know what you really have in your own tank at various heights. It's not a cheap hobby and $50 is a pittance when you look at the big picture.

For reference I run at about 200-225 PAR at the sandbed and my white LED's only run at 30% and royal blues at 60%.

 

[BigAl07]

NGI hate to be the "Downer" but that LED should be re-labeled and I honestly feel like Marineland has done a HUGE disservice to their customers. If you'll do a google search on the "Marineland Reef Capable" you'll find many MANY people sorely disappointed with that light. It's only reef capable is you're running low-light loving coral. Keep in mind that many coral are low-light and NO light so in that sense a birthday candle "could be" Reef Capable.

Here's the very first review that popped up on my seach

Switched to this system from a power compact lighting system thinking I would save money by not having to replace the pc bulbs regularly.
Was told the led system would be enough light to sustain and grow corals. Since I have had this light all of my corals have died except one sitting right at the top of my tank on the live rock.
Went to the store that sold me the product and as would be expected they told me there was not problem with the light and sold me food for the corals.
I have now lost the money invested in corals as well as this light. I am now looking for a new light.

Hopefully you can sell it and re-coupe some of your $$.

On my 90g I ran (Very well I might add) an Outer Orbit PRO T5/MH combo unit and grew anything I wanted in the tank for years.

 

[NanoGeek13]

So I am suppose to pick these up after work today, are you saying that I should pass on this for 150 bucks? I thought this would be a good upgrade going from 4x65w PC to 4x54w T5HO and the LED? I've read that many people have sucess using t5ho with good bulbs.

 

[BigAl07]

It's up to you... but I'd wait and spend $150 towards light that will actually HELP photosynthesis in your coral. They will give some color POP but wont lend much in the terms of PAR or PUR for your coral. Ultimately it's up to you but I've seen them first hand and wouldn't pay that for "accent" lighting.

 

[NanoGeek13]

So the T5HO is worthless too? I would be getting them both for 150 bucks. Thanks for the responses.

 

[NanoGeek13]

I will not pick this up if it is not worth it. I do want to keep some SPS but mostly a clam. Any other suggestions?

 

[NanoGeek13]

What if I were to get just the 4x54w T5HO and pick up another say 2x54w T5HO, would this be sufficient for SPS/Clams?

 

[BigAl07]

Some T5 fixtures are really nice but unfortunately that brand has a very dismal reputation and for a period of time was closely linked to a few house fires. I think they've made great improvements and many on RS have had good luck with that brand but I'm not willing to risk it personally.