That is awesome.

I'll buy a 20k one.

These look great! Trying to get a good understanding... Is this a replacement for lighting to where the white is day and blue is night? Or just specifically for moonlighting?

scratch the 35 degree optics.. located them in different ones and see that 60 degree is an option.

12K is more of a clean crisp white. 20K is more blue.

There will be a group buy starting in about 2 weeks where you will be able to order one.




The white an blue LEDs are there to simulate different color temperatures. This is a little more than a moonlight



I ordered these and verified that they are 60 degree optics. Where do you think I got these from? It's not Eco-Lamps.

This is an exciting update, evil. Now will you please take that other project out of the oven:

Ding, Ding, Ding <------That's your oven timer sounding.

Working on it

damnit I new i should have waited before i ordered a light.... oh well... maybe i need more lights

Will you be taking custom orders for the group buys like 12g NC?

I know it's not eco lamps.. but I've got a very good idea.. I looked into this a few weeks back myself.

cheers
Joe

got it

Hay evil do these screw in just about any light socket, do they need ballast, and what is the price for one lamp like that one from u?

Can you take some pics with a ruler next to them and can you give the dimensions?

Similar



Please see post #49. Answers all your questions



I'll take some shots a little later when I do the PAR measurements.

Thanks evil i didnt see that last time i was in a rush.

DAMN YOU BRO!!!

Now I really want to set-up a Pico!!!

Ok, PAR measurements. Keep in mind, this is only 6W of LEDs so the numbers aren't going to be mind blowing. They will be better than most any option we have for small pico lighting. Measurements are taken from bottom face of the lamp to the sandbed.

18": 60 PAR

14": 80 PAR (gives better color blending)

12": 120 PAR (blue becomes more noticable)

9": 200 PAR (effective illumination area goes down to 6" diameter)

Here are some pictures showing the effect, and the amount of blue that starts coming in as you lower the lamp close to the sand bed (left side on the pics).


14"


12"


9"

The tank is 8"x8"x6" so you have a size reference.

evilc66: I was thinking about these LED setups and the spectral output of a cool white cree is between 4800-5500k, correct? Well, with the majority of the light coming from these led's, wouldn't the increased amount of light from the lower spectra also increase algal growth?

For example:


The 5000k produces significantly more light of longer wavelengths(reds and yellows) that would tend to increase algal growth in comparison to the 10000k, which is closer to standard reef aquarium lighting.

Any thoughts on this? I haven't used LEDs so I don't have any experience with this, but I would be curious to see your take on this subject.

10K bulbs actually produce a very large amount of red light. The balance of red to blue in the 5000K LEDs hasn't shown any issue with algae growth at all so far. It's mainly due to the fact that the peak is still relatively narrow, and not as intense as a typical 10K PC bulb.

LEDs end up working a little differently because of the very selective spectral output that can be designed into the LED as opposed to the very broad, full spectrum output of any other white lighting source.

Currently I have 24w of PC lighting over a 3g JBJ pico. I have been considering a 70w Viper or the 36w dual satellites. How would one of these compare to either of those choices? The tank is mainly softies but will have SPS.

Might be a little weak for sps unless you get the lamp closer to the tank. You would also need two of them for proper coverage.

how bout some dimensions?

2.5" diameter, 3" long.

Interesting. Have you tried running for example cree cool whites by themselves on a tank? If the red spectra are limited from the bulb, then there should be little algal growth based on that same hypothesis. I may end up testing this out over the summer although I don't have any spectrophotometers or whatever they use in this type of application.

Very nice evil. I will end up getting one I'm sure. Just gotta start the new tank but I gotta wait a few months.

I haven't run any arrays with strictly 6500K LEDs, but have seen no issues with algae growth that have been directly linked to the lights themselves. I use 6500K cool whites on all my fixtures, Cree and Luxeon. I have been planning on setting up my planted tank with LEDs, but the purpose of the growth kind of negates the test

Is the a way to mod it as actintic replacements?

-pinner

as per the actinics, Evil said earlier that it was 85 for two blues and one white instead of 75 for one blue and two whites. so im guessing it would be 95 for all three blues.

What's the consensus on how everyone is going to mount these over their picotopes?

If it simply screws into a standard light socket... seems like it would have that amateur DIY look with a standard lamp sitting on your tank stand or clamped to the side of your tank? I don't think anyone has mentioned it yet in this post... so I'm curious to see how everyone is going to use these lamps on their picos.

I like the more integrated look of the LED's that Evil did in the CurrentUSA fixture.

I just may have to try this then. If the spectrum is narrow enough, it sounds like an interesting concept. I'll let you know how it works if I decide to try it out.

Very nice Evil.

Any reason you didn't go with 3W Crees? Would heat be an issue?

They are 3W Crees. They are just not driven to 3W. The heatsink wouldn't be able to support a 50% increase in heat.

the heatsink has to be open to the air as well.. unless you build a hood with a fan in it to draw the heat out.

So you think they'll be too weak for SPS? That's a great size for my little .6 gallon but I suppose i could double up on them and see what I can make happen.


As for mounting them...if I were to do 2 like that it might be interesting to rig up a little frame over my tank and hang them so as to look like 2 spotlights. If they'll screw into standard fixtures then you could really just mount the fixture in whatever apparatus you like and then screw the lights in. They look pretty slick for our tiny picos. It'll be nice to have a light that looks proportional to the tank.

Now to get it to support my incessant interest in SPS growing in tiny spaces.

Bill

Sps is possible, but it greatly depends on how high you mount the light. For a 0.6g tank, you can mount it pretty close, still get good color blending, and be able to support sps.

For all that are interested in this, would a different mount be better for you, like a GU10 or MR16? There seems to be more stylish lamps available for these types of bulbs. I went with the medium base bulbs for simplicity, but it seems like it may not be the best option. GU10 would be the most flexible as it can be purchased as 12v DC or 110v AC depending on the fixture. Price would be the same.

What do you think?

I think the medium-size socket is best just for convenience and ease of installation. That way, people can put them in desk lamps or whatever else they might want to use.

Did you just say a 0.6g sps tank!?

Thats the angle I was going for, but it seems like there are more stylish options for the other bases. It is a lot harder to get GU10 and MR16 sockets though for custom setups.

I think the setup you're offering now is just fine. The desk lamp compatability is a major plus for these tiny tanks. If you shop around you can find some neat stuff that looks custom but is fairly cheap.


And yes I did say SPS in a .6 gallon tank. I think it will do well...and no it's not my first tank.

Keep up the good work Evil.

Cool. I'll just offer the medium base bulb this time around. If there is demand for it later, I will look at GU10 and MR16 versions.

That's a good call. I agree that the other bulbs do look a bit more stylish but the functionality of the medium base bulb puts it in the lead.

I'm in! Do I need to put my name on a list for the 20k? What's the procedure for the group buy?

Thanks!

I'll be posting the group buy in about a week. I'll let you know in this thread as well as others when it kicks off.

Just as your avatar says evil... "LED Gawd"

How many would I need for a 5 gal octagon tank (15 in high)? Will the 10K grow coral well?

does anyone know of a sleek fixture that could accommodate such a bulb? preferably clip-on?

My best advice is to just look around your local Lowes or Home Depot in the lighting section until you find something that best fits your application. If you can't find something you want, you can wire your own socket in a minute or two and mount it in whatever you want to. With a medium base bulb, the possibilities are nearly endless.

This really isn't the best option for a tank of this size. You need something with more power than this can provide. You would have to place the lamp very close to the surface to get decent performance at the sandbed, but color blending would be poor at the upper levels (the blue LED would be very noticable). You could do two lamps and have them overlap closely to remove some of the color issues.

Would three be overkill? Overlap? side by side or depth wise (one higher than the other)? Please excuse the noob questions. Your post was timely, as I was just starting to decide what light to get and the led solution sounds cutting edge.