Eco-lamps LED fixture review (pics) (UPDATED PICS: pg3)

[evilc66]

You won't be able to touch the LEDs. The lenses are bonded to the PCB to start, and the LEDs are bonded directly to the PCB also. There is no way to modify that fixture at all.

[nani87]

ooo show me more do u know if they come with a hanging attachments ? thinking to get one for my new tanks

[QbnSuperman]

You won't be able to touch the LEDs. The lenses are bonded to the PCB to start, and the LEDs are bonded directly to the PCB also. There is no way to modify that fixture at all.

agreed. the existing LEDs can't be modded. some high wattage LEDs can be mated to the bottom surface though, don't you think? use the whole housing for heat transfer

 

ooo show me more do u know if they come with a hanging attachments ? thinking to get one for my new tanks

yeah, the larger sizes come with mounts and hardware. the little instruction sheet shows it. seems like little eye-loops and steel cable.

[hsiehlung]

logged onto the right account now >.>

 

its really looks good and the price better than most led units out there

 

just wonder are you able to change the LED if it blew if they are bonded ?

 

any chance of getting a par reading

[Waterproof]

Nice looking light. I'd love to see how the PAR compares to my LED build. I spent about the same $, but this is a whole lot less work!

 

For your comparison shots, did you use a constant exposure (i.e. fixed aperature and shutter speed)?

 

Did the mfg indicate an esitimated lifetime for the bulbs. The only downside I see with this setup is that you'd need a complete new light if some of the LEDs fried. Do the LEDs appear to be run in series?

[evilc66]

It's more likely a series parallel setup. The driver is 12v @ 100W, so it would be limited to 3 LEDs in series per leg. It also looks like the pcb it set up so that it can be cut at certain intervals depending on the fixture length, also indicating that it is series parallel.

[QbnSuperman]

logged onto the right account now >.>

 

its really looks good and the price better than most led units out there

 

just wonder are you able to change the LED if it blew if they are bonded ?

 

any chance of getting a par reading

thanks.

nope, seems like those LEDs are there to stay. PCB seems pretty nice though and so do the diodes. we'll see how long they last. Can't beat the price though! lol

 

no chance for a par reading unless God makes one appear in my sock drawer or some other place lol

 

Nice looking light. I'd love to see how the PAR compares to my LED build. I spent about the same $, but this is a whole lot less work!

 

For your comparison shots, did you use a constant exposure (i.e. fixed aperature and shutter speed)?

 

Did the mfg indicate an esitimated lifetime for the bulbs. The only downside I see with this setup is that you'd need a complete new light if some of the LEDs fried. Do the LEDs appear to be run in series?

yeah, i used a manual mode on the SLR. differences in brightness though are on the large part white balance. its mutes the whites and brings out the blues for some reason (daylight white balance setting)

 

idk if there is an estimate on life, but they're LEDs. i'm not too worried. the unit seems sealed too so i don't think moisture will shorten the life (silicone sealant)

 

the LEDs seem to be in small clusters in sereis and those clusters are run in parallel.

[acrofish]

Thanks for the review, it is great. I really like the look of the light and the pictures (I know it may not resemble the true colour) show very nicely.

 

What is your lighting schedule?

 

It is too bad they don't allow you to have independent control of the day and blue lights. How/If do you plan to put it on a timer?

[QbnSuperman]

Thanks for the review, it is great. I really like the look of the light and the pictures (I know it may not resemble the true colour) show very nicely.

 

What is your lighting schedule?

 

It is too bad they don't allow you to have independent control of the day and blue lights. How/If do you plan to put it on a timer?

thank you very much.

 

i have it turning on at 11:30am and off at 11:30pm just plugged into a regular digital timer i bought at a hardware store (lowes). There's a good amount of glare from the sun outside during the morning so it isnt too much of a shock when the timer turns the LEDs on. I'm pretty much just not using the moon lights so that the fixture can be completely automated with the timer.

 

I did exchange some emails with the guy at eco-lamps today though and he told me the next version will include built in timers.

[lacassiere101]

cool lighting.

[iMaGin3]

I did exchange some emails with the guy at eco-lamps today though and he told me the next version will include built in timers.

 

OH SNAP! I wonder how thats gonna go? maybe control the blue and white leds separately? Sounding like a decent fixture at a great price! I might have to invest in one after my DIY build.

[QbnSuperman]

OH SNAP! I wonder how thats gonna go? maybe control the blue and white leds separately? Sounding like a decent fixture at a great price! I might have to invest in one after my DIY build.

lol yeah. i'm kinda curious too. i guess we'll see.

[acrofish]

I dug up the specs for the 18" version (http://www.eco-lamps.com/pdf/KR91-18FB.pdf) and it says something about "Luminous Intensity" at "1500-1600LM". The lamp runs at 50W.

 

Can anyone tell me what the above can grow? I mean practically what does that translate to in terms types of livestock one can keep?

 

The manufacturer claims "MH replacement" in the ads, is that fair?

 

PS: There is nothing about PAR mentioned in the specs.

[QbnSuperman]

I dug up the specs for the 18" version (http://www.eco-lamps.com/pdf/KR91-18FB.pdf) and it says something about "Luminous Intensity" at "1500-1600LM". The lamp runs at 50W.

 

Can anyone tell me what the above can grow? I mean practically what does that translate to in terms types of livestock one can keep?

 

The manufacturer claims "MH replacement" in the ads, is that fair?

 

PS: There is nothing about PAR mentioned in the specs.

the 18" has 3 bars of light, so i'm sure its brighter.

 

mine for sure is not MH replacement. Its about equal to the stock biocube lighting, maybe a little better... but no where near MH. I don't think i'd be able to grow any sps

[travisurfer]

So from my understanding of your post, there is no way of running the moonlights without flicking the electrostatic switch to be set on moonlight mode?

[QbnSuperman]

So from my understanding of your post, there is no way of running the moonlights without flicking the electrostatic switch to be set on moonlight mode?

yep :-\

its a downer.

[evilc66]

I dug up the specs for the 18" version (http://www.eco-lamps.com/pdf/KR91-18FB.pdf) and it says something about "Luminous Intensity" at "1500-1600LM". The lamp runs at 50W.

 

Can anyone tell me what the above can grow? I mean practically what does that translate to in terms types of livestock one can keep?

 

The manufacturer claims "MH replacement" in the ads, is that fair?

 

PS: There is nothing about PAR mentioned in the specs.

 

1600lm at 50W is 32lm per watt. Thats really low by todays high end LED standards (Cree XR-E Q5 is over 100lm per watt)

 

 

the 18" has 3 bars of light, so i'm sure its brighter.

 

mine for sure is not MH replacement. Its about equal to the stock biocube lighting, maybe a little better... but no where near MH. I don't think i'd be able to grow any sps

 

Don't judge the fixture by visible brightness alone. The only true way to see what it is capable of is to get a PAR meter on it. My 12" fixture at 30W can produce more PAR than a 70W MH, but only 1/4 of the lumens.

[QbnSuperman]

Don't judge the fixture by visible brightness alone. The only true way to see what it is capable of is to get a PAR meter on it. My 12" fixture at 30W can produce more PAR than a 70W MH, but only 1/4 of the lumens.

yeah, i understand that... and i know i don't have experience with MH, but i was at a LFS this past weekend and i could see the differece. the CF and such nano's looked pretty much the same, with just a different color temp while the nano's with MH had glare on the higher surfaces which I don't have with the eco-lamps fixture.

 

so far, all i can really say is that the xenia are growing like crazy and the rics have puffed up and grown as well. my mushroom has acquired amazing blue radial stripes it didn't have before. I thought maybe these were just fluorescing due to the blue LEDs but I shown it with a 5w luxeon LED tactical flashlight and I could still see the strong blue colored bands.

[Ron99]

Any updates? I don't suppose you tried any sps in the tank? How are corals at the bottom doing?

 

I ask because I emailed eco-lamps for some more info and they said the LEDs are 0.5W cree chips. So I am wondering what kind of par those are putting out? Probably not enough for anything but softies.

[QbnSuperman]

Any updates? I don't suppose you tried any sps in the tank? How are corals at the bottom doing?

 

I ask because I emailed eco-lamps for some more info and they said the LEDs are 0.5W cree chips. So I am wondering what kind of par those are putting out? Probably not enough for anything but softies.

 

haven't tried any SPS but I don't think its enough for them. my softies are very happy. the new rics at the bottom are spreading quickly and the xenia at the top is growing new heads at what I consider to be a shocking rate. i'll take pics in the next couple of days and post them.

[battman]

haven't tried any SPS but I don't think its enough for them. my softies are very happy. the new rics at the bottom are spreading quickly and the xenia at the top is growing new heads at what I consider to be a shocking rate. i'll take pics in the next couple of days and post them.

 

Any new pics ?

[QbnSuperman]

Any new pics ?

sorry, been busy. i'll take some soon.

[QbnSuperman]

here are some updated pics. unfortunately, its hard to show you size scale to demonstrate growth..but i'll give rough estimates.

 

FL ric under full lights and what is a pretty accurate representation of color temp. this thing has to have grown over 30% in diameter. It used to be more or less the size of a thumb nail, but is now close to an inch across:

 

auto-white balance:

 

royal blue LED light. i tried so hard to get the orange fluorescence to show..but i failed. but yes, the green tips of the ric actually glow orange.

 

my other ric. he's slightly discombobulated (remember these guys came detached) but has also grown a great deal.

 

mushroom. This guy seems about the same size but seems to have started to stretch and split. does that happen? also, since switching to the eco lamps, it went from a blue/brown color to this beautiful set of colors. and i have checked if its just the lights by illuminating it with flashlights and such. it is actually those colors

 

mushroom under blue:

 

xenia growth is mind boggling. new heads show up daily but from what i've read, this isnt unusual. most 'spreading' growth is visible behind the frag, so not really visible in this pic.

[battman]

cheers for your review! I shall get on to it!

[QbnSuperman]

cheers for your review! I shall get on to it!

lol thank you very much.

so far so good.