Looking for non scientific answers to led questions

[lpsouth1978@msn.com]

Is it the LEDs or drivers that are at fault?

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I can confodently say that it is the LED's that are at fault as I used the same drivers on both builds.

 

[that0neguy1126]

Mark. Not sure what the penetration depth is on the 1w. I would assume it is slightly less than the 3w as I think that would be determined by the sheer amount of luminosity they put out.

 

[cadre]

Mine has 55 leds. 2:1 on the blues. Not sure how it equals 120w, just what I was told. I was robbed! . Regardless it made leds affordable for me and I am happy with em.

The wattage includes all of the leds (usually they are not run at the max wattage) and the drivers. Most Cree fixtures for instance run the leds at 2.2 watts or something like that.

I made brackets last night to lower my lights. Must have bumped my head when I measured cuz they ended up 7.5" above the water instead of the goal 8". Total drop was 6.5". Hopefully I still have a tank when I get home and not a desert. .

The way I imagined the answer to be (about multiple 1watt over less 3watt) is that if they are both in the same environment you would get better side to side coverage with more 1watt but better penetration with 3watt simply based on the fact that the beginning light is stronger.....Does that make any sense at all? sigh..I suck...

The problem with using 1w leds is that the light intensity is significantly lower. Yes, seeing a nice even spread of light over your tank is nice but the corals need intensity. One day we'll take a par meter and find real numbers for you.

You will probably only ever be able to fry the corals at the top of your tank with a 1w fixture. That said, in my experience, zoas seem to dislike intense light from leds, I couldn't keep any in my old tank because they would melt away. On the other hand, the acros that were within 1" of the surface were never happier. (This tank was lit with two par38 bulbs, each has 5 3w cree leds)