How many of your CREE fixtures?

Discussion in 'OC Reef Aquatics' started by thepanfish, Apr 5, 2011.

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  1. thepanfish

    thepanfish Flying Squid

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    Hello,
    I recently came across your fixture while researching LEDs for my soon to be reality 180. I am still in school so the budget aspect of the fixture is very appealing. This tank would start out as a FOWLR large angelfish setup, and slowly transition to a mixed reef with SPS on top. If I placd this fixture higher up (say 18") above the tank, would it spread to 24" width and depth? I was thinking 3 modules to start, then add a 4th for the reef. Would this light the tank evenly? Thanks in advance!
    Pan
     
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  3. ocreef.com

    ocreef.com 3reef Sponsor

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    Hi Pan,

    Good to hear from you. Your soon to be 180, sounds like it will be a show-stopper, especially with all the pre-planning you are doing.

    Regarding our CREE LED Light Fixtures, hanging them up higher will definitely give you a greater spread for a 24", width/depth, and starting off with 3 units is a smart route to take.

    Feel free to email us anytime, at [email protected], with any further questions that you may have.

    For $5.00 off your first order with us, use coupon code ocfish88, during check-out.

    Regards,
    OcReef.com Staff
     
  4. thepanfish

    thepanfish Flying Squid

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    Thank you for the quick reply! It sounds like your fixture will work great for my tank! Just a question, your site shows some really high PAR at almost 3x a 250MH at 24". How close was the fixture to the water to achieve this? Have you taken PUR Areadings or plan to?
     
  5. ocreef.com

    ocreef.com 3reef Sponsor

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    Here are some of the latest par readings that we've taken, with both the blue and white leds combined, being tested in a 36" x 36" aquarium area, with the light on the highest setting.

    48" depth: average of 270, peak of 380
    36" depth: average of 350, peak of 450
    24" depth: average of 600, peak of 650

    I will get back to you with the PUR Readings, we will be taking those readings soon.

    Regards,
    Dave with OCReef.com
     
  6. thepanfish

    thepanfish Flying Squid

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    WOW! That is huge! Did one fixture light up that 36X36X48 tank? Did the PAR drop much in the corners? What do those bumpy semi clear optics do, spread the light? Sorry for all the questions, just want to understand more. New to the LED scene as you probably guessed :)
     
  7. ocreef.com

    ocreef.com 3reef Sponsor

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    No worries. You may ask as many questions as you'd like, that is great, and is how you learn...

    The unit is equivalent to a 250 Watt Metal Halide in terms of peak values of PAR; and in regards to your 180 gallon aquarium, the spread needed will include factors like how heavily stocked your aquarium will be in the future with photosynthetic corals. Depending on if you were to mount and/or hang the lights vertically and/or horizontally, is what will ultimately determine the differences in the light spread regarding reaching the corners of your aquarium. That's what great about the small footprint of these light fixtures; they can be easily positioned and re-positioned as needed to suite your particular aquarium needs.

    I do think that 3 units would be good for your aquarium for now, since it will be a FOWLR, then you would definitely want to add another unit as you start to introduce corals.

    The bumps you noticed on the lens in the images, are what you would call "diffuser optic lens". The bumps act as another small lens, on top of the surface of the optic lens to further refract light, to give a greater spread and to create a more natural looking light over the water.

    Regards,
    Dave w/ OCReef
     
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  9. thepanfish

    thepanfish Flying Squid

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    I was thinking of doing a 3x 250w halide on this setup, so I'm guessing this would easily replace that!

    So you disperse these randomly for each fixture? Thats a neato idea!
    Thank you for your time and help Dave, I will be sure to give these a good look when the time comes to buy all the nescessary equipment.