CCXGT Posted February 2, 2015 Share Posted February 2, 2015 Okay, so I want to add some UV/Purple LED's to my moonlighting on my 10G. On my current LED fixture the moon lighting/actinic lighting is provided by 27 LED's. These are 3w each and are in the 460nm spectrum. The tank is just far too blue with not a whole lot of fluorescence. This is why I want a supplement. I don't know whether I should go with UV LED's (400nm) or a Magenta/Pink colour. I feel as if the UV just won't be visible over the 27 Royals.. In my search, I've found these http://www.aliexpress.com/item/5pcs-3W-UV-400nm-410nm-Purple-High-Power-Bright-Ultra-Violet-LED-Lamp-Bead-Light-for/1742339178.html But I have no clue on how I would go about linking them up. I could stick them to the underside of my current fixture but I've no experience with this sort of stuff. So, should I go with UV or Magenta and what wattage LED's should I be looking at? Link to comment
Sailfish Posted February 2, 2015 Share Posted February 2, 2015 I don't know much about fluorescence spectrums, but 3W LEDs are way to bright to use as moonlighting. Still, when dimmed all the way down, I would be careful. If I were you, I would switch to 1W LEDs for moonlighting and have at least 4 hours of complete darkness every night. I'm sure Evil or Ben can help you out with what spectrums are best to cause fluorescence in various corals Link to comment
jedimasterben Posted February 2, 2015 Share Posted February 2, 2015 Use no more than two LEDs and run them less than 300mA, as low as you can get them to go. Moonlight is for our 'pleasure' and can do more harm than good if you are trying to actually see what is going on in the tank at night with blue light, which we really can't see very well at all. Link to comment
CCXGT Posted February 2, 2015 Author Share Posted February 2, 2015 Use no more than two LEDs and run them less than 300mA, as low as you can get them to go. Moonlight is for our 'pleasure' and can do more harm than good if you are trying to actually see what is going on in the tank at night with blue light, which we really can't see very well at all. No more than two of these 3w ones? Or find a 1w version as suggested? I don't know much about fluorescence spectrums, but 3W LEDs are way to bright to use as moonlighting. Still, when dimmed all the way down, I would be careful. If I were you, I would switch to 1W LEDs for moonlighting and have at least 4 hours of complete darkness every night. I'm sure Evil or Ben can help you out with what spectrums are best to cause fluorescence in various corals I guess I forgot that I had my current LED's down at minimum power.. My bad. I'm trying to have a look for 1w's but I'm not having much luck. My moonlights are only on for around 2 hours right now. Link to comment
jedimasterben Posted February 2, 2015 Share Posted February 2, 2015 It doesn't matter what wattage the LEDs are sold as, wattage varies depending on the current you run them at. 300mA is less than one watt for an average LED. That being said, finding a 1w LED that doesn't have a funky voltage or something like that will be harder than finding a '3w' LED, which you can just run on a low-current driver. Link to comment
CCXGT Posted February 2, 2015 Author Share Posted February 2, 2015 It doesn't matter what wattage the LEDs are sold as, wattage varies depending on the current you run them at. 300mA is less than one watt for an average LED. That being said, finding a 1w LED that doesn't have a funky voltage or something like that will be harder than finding a '3w' LED, which you can just run on a low-current driver. I'll be honest... I'm not sure what a low-current driver is. Is this basically a power dampener to keep the LED's from overloading? Link to comment
jedimasterben Posted February 2, 2015 Share Posted February 2, 2015 The driver is what converts AC power to the DC constant current that LEDs use. The average current used for DIY setups is 700mA, which is 2-2.5 watts for typical LEDs. You want below 350mA for moonlighting so that little power is applied to the LEDs and keeps them dim. Link to comment
CCXGT Posted February 2, 2015 Author Share Posted February 2, 2015 The driver is what converts AC power to the DC constant current that LEDs use. The average current used for DIY setups is 700mA, which is 2-2.5 watts for typical LEDs. You want below 350mA for moonlighting so that little power is applied to the LEDs and keeps them dim. Would the LED's come with wiring themselves? Or would that come on the driver? Link to comment
CCXGT Posted February 2, 2015 Author Share Posted February 2, 2015 Yknow what... This seems like a lot of messing about and add the fact that I have no clue how to even start... I still want a more purplish colour but these DIY setups are just not for me. Link to comment
Sailfish Posted February 2, 2015 Share Posted February 2, 2015 If you want something that is meant for the aquarium, then maybe Current TrueLumen Lunar Moonlights is something for you? Personally I just use a waterproof 12V blue flexible LED strip, like this: http://www.ebay.com/itm/Super-Bright-1pcs-Flexible-Car-Van-12V-Strip-Bulb-Light-Blue-Waterproof-48-LED-/121557979365?pt=Motors_Car_Truck_Parts_Accessories&hash=item1c4d6b90e5&vxp=mtr Link to comment
CCXGT Posted February 2, 2015 Author Share Posted February 2, 2015 If you want something that is meant for the aquarium, then maybe Current TrueLumen Lunar Moonlights is something for you? Personally I just use a waterproof 12V blue flexible LED strip, like this: http://www.ebay.com/itm/Super-Bright-1pcs-Flexible-Car-Van-12V-Strip-Bulb-Light-Blue-Waterproof-48-LED-/121557979365?pt=Motors_Car_Truck_Parts_Accessories&hash=item1c4d6b90e5&vxp=mtr I already HAVE the 460nm blues. What I'm looking for is a supplement to them which would add a pinkish colour to the tank at nighttime. I've had a thought.. If I were to just stick a Red LED strip on, would that mix with the Blues to make a more purple colour. Link to comment
Sailfish Posted February 2, 2015 Share Posted February 2, 2015 I already HAVE the 460nm blues. What I'm looking for is a supplement to them which would add a pinkish colour to the tank at nighttime. I've had a thought.. If I were to just stick a Red LED strip on, would that mix with the Blues to make a more purple colour. If it is only the purple color you are after, then maybe. It won't produce more visible fluorescence though Link to comment
CCXGT Posted February 2, 2015 Author Share Posted February 2, 2015 God I don't even know what I was thinking... I saw a pretty picture online, I wanted to copy it, I'll probably wreck it, it'll look awful... Never mind, the Royals look fantastic themselves, I mean, if my Mushrooms glow under them, then I can't wait to see what'll happen to Euphyllia. Sorry for wasting your time people! Link to comment
Sailfish Posted February 2, 2015 Share Posted February 2, 2015 Don't worry about it, mate We all get great ideas, that we may later figure out wasn't as great in the end.Still, I'm sure you can copy it if you want. It shouldn't be too difficult considering we have LEDs in all kinds of light spectrum now a day Why don't you post the pic here, and let the LED gurus have a look at it and help you in the direction of what spectrums you should look into? Link to comment
CCXGT Posted February 2, 2015 Author Share Posted February 2, 2015 I really don't want to get too excited about this. I thought it was a good idea, but in hindsight it couldn't possibly be done well. Link to comment
CCXGT Posted February 2, 2015 Author Share Posted February 2, 2015 This is the fixture. The black rim around the outside was where I was going to stick the strips. This is the tank under the 460nm 'moonlights', which I am COMPLETELY FINE WITH! Link to comment
jedimasterben Posted February 2, 2015 Share Posted February 2, 2015 Yikes, those are the moonlights? Those are very, very bright. Link to comment
CCXGT Posted February 3, 2015 Author Share Posted February 3, 2015 Yikes, those are the moonlights? Those are very, very bright. I only have them on for 1 hour after the whites go out.. I guess I'd rather just have a UV spectrum and not bother with these at all.. But I can't see it going well. Link to comment
CCXGT Posted February 3, 2015 Author Share Posted February 3, 2015 Quick question before I head to bed.. Can I make one of these strips go around all four sides of my current fixture AND all be run by one dimmable driver? http://m.ebay.co.uk/itm/301296556956?nav=SEARCH Link to comment
jedimasterben Posted February 3, 2015 Share Posted February 3, 2015 Not sure what the goal is. You'd need a LOT of those to have any effect, and violet light is more photosythetically active than blue, so it is even worse to run at night. Link to comment
HecticDialectics Posted February 3, 2015 Share Posted February 3, 2015 27 3w leds even with the power turned down is like 100 times brighter than a moonlight should be. And that's not even an exaggeration lol. You are basically just leaving your light on an extra hour... In order to balance out that blue you'd need A LOT of other light. Like jedi sayin' Link to comment
CCXGT Posted February 3, 2015 Author Share Posted February 3, 2015 27 3w leds even with the power turned down is like 100 times brighter than a moonlight should be. And that's not even an exaggeration lol. You are basically just leaving your light on an extra hour... In order to balance out that blue you'd need A LOT of other light. Like jedi sayin' Okay.. So what if the moonlighting was ONLY the UV strip? I'd just have the fixture turn off at the same time and switch to the ring of UV LED's? Not sure what the goal is. You'd need a LOT of those to have any effect, and violet light is more photosythetically active than blue, so it is even worse to run at night. Well since the blues are all wrong apparently. The new goal is to replace them as moonlights and use UV instead. Link to comment
CCXGT Posted February 3, 2015 Author Share Posted February 3, 2015 So.. For this project thing, i need: 1x UV LED Strip - http://pages.ebay.com/link/?nav=item.view&alt=web&id=301296556956 3x Strip Connectors - http://pages.ebay.com/link/?nav=item.view&alt=web&id=350946531371 1x Dimmable Driver - http://pages.ebay.com/link/?nav=item.view&alt=web&id=311193683401 1x Power Supply - N/A.. Now I'm not sure what power supply to be looking for so an example would be nice. Link to comment
jedimasterben Posted February 3, 2015 Share Posted February 3, 2015 I would not move to using violet as moonlight if you have corals. Moonlight for tanks is only for our viewing pleasure and if it is bright enough for us to easily see, then it is bright enough for corals to 'stay awake'. Violet is the most photosynthetically active part of the visible spectrum, but humans can see violet light very poorly. To get enough violet light to be able to see the tank, you're going to need an immense quantity of it, to the point where it will probably be interfering with the corals. I would just leave things how they are. Link to comment
CCXGT Posted February 3, 2015 Author Share Posted February 3, 2015 I would not move to using violet as moonlight if you have corals. Moonlight for tanks is only for our viewing pleasure and if it is bright enough for us to easily see, then it is bright enough for corals to 'stay awake'. Violet is the most photosynthetically active part of the visible spectrum, but humans can see violet light very poorly. To get enough violet light to be able to see the tank, you're going to need an immense quantity of it, to the point where it will probably be interfering with the corals. I would just leave things how they are. Well... After you yourself told me that my current 'moonlights' were way too bright, I'd like to get things sorted. I've sat down with my Dad's mate who is an electrician. He's pointed me in the right direction and told me what to go with. I'm much more confident now. Link to comment
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