[afrankiewicz12]

ok, so in a month im getting a 90 gallon tank, an upgrade from my current 40 gallon. and i need a new light, i really wanted a LED fixture because of the beautiful shimmer and the lower heat production. i was wondering what the best option i have is and if any of you guys have any fixtures you would be willing to sell/give/trade to me

 

[Crazy_About_Salt]

If you are up for the cost, the ecotech radions are very nice. If not, then Aqu Ilumination SOL units are probably your next best bet. And if not that, I would do a DIY setup.

 

[afrankiewicz12]

ok wow... i was hoping under $200, $300 at max... see im only 17 and thats alot of money.

 

[Brutality]

if you want to go diy route there is rapid led and aqua styles online that offer some great diy kits. I did a diy kit from aqua styles online and am very happy with it so far on my little nano tank.

 

[Brutality]

ok wow... i was hoping under $200, $300 at max... see im only 17 and thats alot of money.

yah thats gonna be tuff even a diy led kit is gonna cost you more then that bud. a good t5ho fixture for a 90g will run u $300-550

 

[afrankiewicz12]

grrrrrrr... maybe used? or something, how hard is a DIY kit and which would you recomend

 

[afrankiewicz12]

how about metal halide i hear those are pretty good

 

[Crazy_About_Salt]

you could try to find something used, but I would go with something like this

http://www.rapidled.com/servlet/the-58/36-Ultra-Premium-LED/Detail

this doesnt include heat sink/ other accessories

 

[Crazy_About_Salt]

If you did halide, you would need 2, 250 watt bulb. and 500 watts over 8 hours a day doesnt look to good on the electricity bill.. and thats without all the other pumps.

 

[afrankiewicz12]

how hard is that LED kit to assemble from my point of view...

 

[Crazy_About_Salt]

If you know/ know someone who can solder, its is fairly easy. And there are plenty of people here who are good with electronics if you get stuck.

 

[afrankiewicz12]

fantastic and those will look nice on a 90 gallon which is 49 inches long

 

[Crazy_About_Salt]

yes it will. I would PM rustl3r I think he used 36 LEDs on his build (55 gallon), so I think you may need a few more, but hey. Thats the glory of DIY. You can always ad on/ change in the future!

 

[afrankiewicz12]

tell me which one is best

http://www.ebay.com/itm/120W-AQUARI...153?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item4842ef28f1

http://www.ebay.com/itm/MARINELAND-...499?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item5d31f058db

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Marineland-...049?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item5d317f0b31


personally i like the first one

 

[Crazy_About_Salt]

First ones by far. I like to compare the marineland LEDs with a t8 bulb. They are nice for color supplementing, but don't even think about growing corals with them.

Also, keep in mind that those units are not Dimmable which means no special features and capabilities like creating a soft start (0-x% over y amount of minuets), clouds, thunder storms, etc.. And you won't be able I adjust the light of corals are bleaching onl move them lower.

 

[afrankiewicz12]

will just one do or will i need two i was also looking up reviews and they seem to just be like a solid blue color

 

[Crazy_About_Salt]

Sorry I didnt get to this sooner...

You would definately need 2 of them to go over the tank, and you could ask the supplier I they can sen you some more photos to show the color

 

[lilserb953]

Or you could go with a 2 250 watt metal halide with 4 actinics. Its a 48inch Odyssea fixture for $300. I dont know why everyone dosnt get this fixture. There not that expensive and they work great. My corals are growing very nicely. Also you dont need the lights on for 8 hours a day. i put mine on for 5 hours. corals only need 3 hours a day to get all the nutrients they need.

 

[Crazy_About_Salt]

The reason is because about 5 years ago, they had an issue with their ballasts melting and catching fire.

 

[lilserb953]

ohhh, that makes scence. So people are still a little iffy about buying one.