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30g long LED setup

1K views 4 replies 4 participants last post by  Lia 
#1 ·
I'm sick of my cheapie T5HO setup. The bulbs and reflectors just aren't very good, and they'd be a giant pain to replace (mainly the reflectors).

So, I'm contemplating doing an LED setup, but I refuse to spend $250 for the crazy Marineland 36" strips. That's just not in my budget.

$150 -- maybe, but I'd like to do it cheaper than that, if possible.

The Ray2 setup looks like it puts out a lot of light, and I'm looking for light at the substrate to be nearing "high light" PAR values (under 80 is okay, but 45 would be too low, I think). Looking for good coloration out of my L. aromatica and L. glandulosa.

Would that be my best option, in terms of simplicity, or should I look at something like a RapidLED setup? If so, how many LEDs would I need to get the PAR values I'm looking for? I'm assuming that I'll be using something like CREE 1w LEDs.
 
#2 ·
How deep is your tank? I had a 24" Finnex Ray2 DS on my 29G (~16" to substrate) and I measured approximately 65 PAR at the substrate with the light right on top of the tank.

Those things are built like tanks too. I must have dropped it from the top of the tank onto my tile floors 6 times or so, and it never skipped a beat.
 
#5 ·
How deep is your tank? I had a 24" Finnex Ray2 DS on my 29G (~16" to substrate) and I measured approximately 65 PAR at the substrate with the light right on top of the tank.

Those things are built like tanks too. I must have dropped it from the top of the tank onto my tile floors 6 times or so, and it never skipped a beat.

I use spot lights on my 30 gallon and they work great but prefer a nicer sleeker look over the tank.
I saw the Finnex Ray on Amazon for only $100 and didn't pay attention to it as thought to inexpensive this was very informative, thanks.
 
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