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Tank Pics Switched to LEDs growth pics

Discussion in 'General Discussion' started by FishBrain, Apr 5, 2016.

  1. Pygmey Well-Known ReefKeeper

    751
    Cedar Rapids, IA
    Ratings:
    +119 / 1 / -0
    So the apogee 200 which is the one I believe the club and myself own.. There are multiple articles and even Apogee's own site stating that the 200 requires an adjustment to the readings for it to be considered close to accurate.. Apogee just released an upgrade to the MP500 from the 200... According to them this sensor is much better and also supports all forms of light. Seems like from what i have read the white light measures more accurate and blue light is where the issue is. Here are a few articles.. The first is a comparison of on Apogee's site of the two different sensors...

    Aquarium Par Meters - Apogee Instruments

    Here is an article from Apogee on how they calibrate the MQ200 sensor.. They also include a table for error correction..

    Light Intensity Measurements for Light Emitting Diodes (LEDs); Correcting for errors

    Here is an article of how other hobbyist have adapted their readings.

    Apogee Par meter and LED's - Lighting Forum

    This is the article that I really found interesting.. Reefbuilder uses both meters to compare the results..

    Apogee MQ-500 PAR Meter hands-on and first impressions - Reef Builders | The Reef and Marine Aquarium Blog

    Last one for your bathroom reading :) This article is Reefbuilder introducing the new MQ500 sensor..

    New Apogee MQ-500 with improved PAR readings for LED light - Reef Builders | The Reef and Marine Aquarium Blog

    Thanks.. I am looking to upgrade mine in the future.. I will take readings before and then send it off to be upgraded..
     
  2. FishBrain Expert Reefkeeper GIRS Member

    New London
    Ratings:
    +396 / 6 / -0
    Thanks for the heads up!
     
  3. jeremy Acro Addict

    Davenport, IA
    Ratings:
    +836 / 4 / -0
    How's everything looking? I know Hart had a kick *** tank with hydra 26s on it. I never saw it in person but the pics were amazing. Just curious to see a reef breeder lit sps dominant tank.
     
  4. FishBrain Expert Reefkeeper GIRS Member

    New London
    Ratings:
    +396 / 6 / -0
    The corals seem to love the lights. I'm seeing plenty of new growth. Here is a short video. Definitely not true color though. To the eye in person it looks exactly like Radiums.

    http://vid562.photobucket.com/album...3-C873-4022-A284-662B1530F768_zpsq7sdvy1s.mp4
     
  5. Dave Experienced Reefkeeper GIRS Member

    Des Moines Area
    Ratings:
    +450 / 1 / -0

    20160310_204814.jpg


    Jeremy - here is a reefbreeder lit SPS dominant tank. These are the value fixtures.
     
    Last edited: Apr 8, 2016
  6. jeremy Acro Addict

    Davenport, IA
    Ratings:
    +836 / 4 / -0
    Bill and dave. How many lights are you running? BTW both your tanks are looking great.
     
  7. Dave Experienced Reefkeeper GIRS Member

    Des Moines Area
    Ratings:
    +450 / 1 / -0
    Thanks! We have 6 value fixtures over our 210 (tank above) and 4 photon 32's over our 280.
     
  8. FishBrain Expert Reefkeeper GIRS Member

    New London
    Ratings:
    +396 / 6 / -0
    I'm running 4 value fixtures. A normal tank my size could probably get by with two. But with my rockwalls and Sps basically everywhere I went with four so I had good coverage everywhere.
     
  9. Bud Loves Bacon Website Team Board of Directors Leadership Team GIRS Member Vendor

    West Des Moines, IA
    Ratings:
    +1,814 / 14 / -0
    Good info!!
     
  10. FishBrain Expert Reefkeeper GIRS Member

    New London
    Ratings:
    +396 / 6 / -0
    I took the LEDs down. Colony after colony has started to stn. And a couple deep water acros have rtn'ed. All water parameters are in check and have been. Don't know for sure or the LEDs caused it but I switched back so if it stops then it was definitely from LEDs somehow.
     
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  11. Eric Experienced Reefkeeper

    West Des Moines, IA
    Ratings:
    +33 / 0 / -0
    That's too bad Bill. LEDs are stronger than people expect and without gradually increasing output many have lost specimens. May not be the issue but LEDs are your only recent change.

    -Eric
     
  12. F.D. Reefer Well-Known ReefKeeper

    506
    Fort dodge
    Ratings:
    +98 / 1 / -0
    Been there done that!
    I'm an extremely lazy reefer so the simplicity of halides worx to well
    I also experienced rtn and lost many sps.
    But on a good note,a few did come back after switching out fixtures.






    Sent from my iPhone via App
     
  13. jeremy Acro Addict

    Davenport, IA
    Ratings:
    +836 / 4 / -0
    Hope you get it to stop and turn thing around. DAMN! That sucks.
     
  14. blackx-runner Administrator Website Team Leadership Team

    Cedar Rapids, IA
    Ratings:
    +738 / 5 / -0
    If it ain't broke, then don't fix it. Your system was definitely not broke. Hopefully you didn't end up with too much damage in the main tank.

    Do you really have that much heat issues in the summer? I would think with the basement sump and all that water moving around down where it's cooler would help some. What about switching to 250w halides in the summer to cut down on some of the heat built up in the canopy?
     
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  15. FishBrain Expert Reefkeeper GIRS Member

    New London
    Ratings:
    +396 / 6 / -0
    Yeah had to chop up the following due to rtn; Hawkins blue, red dragon, green dragon. And the following are stn'ing; pc rainbow, strawberry shortcake, fox flame, bubble gum milli, red robin, Oregon tort, and a few more I can't think of off the top of my head.
    Oh well it happens I guess. I find myself tinkering a little to much sometimes.
     
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  16. FishBrain Expert Reefkeeper GIRS Member

    New London
    Ratings:
    +396 / 6 / -0
    Yeah it really heats the house up if I run the halides during the day. But I offset it by having them off from noon tell evening and then back on. So basically two short photo periods. When the corals recover I'm going to try a Ati power module.
     
  17. jeremy Acro Addict

    Davenport, IA
    Ratings:
    +836 / 4 / -0
    Can't go wrong with t5. Plug them in and watch everything grow. Then you will have to fiddle with bulb combos lol. Like I did till I found one I liked.
     
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  18. Kungpaoshizi Well-Known ReefKeeper

    561
    davenport
    Ratings:
    +39 / 1 / -0
    When i went from mh to leds I had to start from about 10% and it took a good 4 months to be able to turn the lights up without things paling out. I have found though too that the wide angle 120's are much preferable to the 80/90's.. They're like freakin lazer beams.. That and having to feed a lot more were the noteworthy lessons I learned. I did lose an sps frag shortly after the 4 months because I moved it about an inch towards the center of the light and an inch or so up, went clear and melted within 14 hours or so..
    Hopefully youre stuff will pull through. :(
     
  19. tangers Well-Known ReefKeeper

    455
    Ankeny
    Ratings:
    +155 / 0 / -0
    I'd have to agree with some of the previous posts. I currently have my kessils at 100% during a short period of time during the day and it took me a long while to get them there. Without digging out the laptop I'm also pretty sure that my par numbers are about half of what you have. I freaked at first when I saw they were so low....but after a lot of reading I came to the conclusion that leds have a lot lower par value than other lights due to the fact that they don't show up on the scale. Inot fact bulk reef in one of their videos says that par values shouldn't even be considered or even something you should worry about. I think 4 fixtures may be a lot for the tank and %levels may be a little high out the gate. I'm guessing the corals are in complete shock. I understand if you don't want to do it again given your experience and the collection we all know you possess...but if you do if recommend taking it slower and lover. I've seen the growth on many tanks...so it can obviously be done...just not quite as foolproof as the "older" stuff. Trust me I know...I was in the same boat you are in now last year the whole led game is/was new to me. Good luck/ hope everything makes it ok.
     
    Last edited: Apr 12, 2016
  20. FishBrain Expert Reefkeeper GIRS Member

    New London
    Ratings:
    +396 / 6 / -0
    I think I'll hang onto the lights for a future build. But I'm definitely not putting them back on this tank lol. It's one thing to nuke a frag but it's way worse to nuke a two year old strawberry shortcake! Not that mine is nuked lol.
     
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