[clownplanted]

Is there a more up to date list on par values with new led lights that have come out?

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I am also wondering this. Would be great if this thread was updated with the latest LED lights.

 

[Esteban Colberto]

@samamorgan I didn't really go through all 22 pages but you might be interested in this reference if you haven't already seen it. Online Excel spreadsheet with some manufacturer and measured data including offset, light spread, etc.

Love your reference. Personally I have 4 Aquaray GroBEAM 600 Ultima lights and I had no idea they were made by a company called TMC. A new clue for me right away. Thank you sir.

 

[geektom]

wow, this thread has been super helpful to me, as I am considering how to light my latest project, a 150g tank that is 60" wide by 30" deep by 18" high.

With an average depth of 3" of substrate, I avoid the problem normally associated with high tanks, but I don't know how to estimate how many fixtures I will need to cover the *depth* of the tank. Most of the manufacturers I have looked at don't do a great job of documenting the spread of their lights.

Additionally, I would like to suspend the lights over the tank, because it is euro-braced (leaving the top almost completely open).

Any suggestions on how to determine the actual coverage of your typical strip LED fixture? Other than expensive trial and error?

Thanks!

 

[jeffkrol]

Simple math gives you most data..

almost all small LED's are lensed at 120 degrees w/ a high proportion of the light in a smaller angle of ..say.. 100.
Which is why most are "close to top" mounted..
Hanging you need to look more to lensed fixtures..or DIY and choose your own lenses..

So say you have a 120 lensed fixture..and want full coverage front to back @ 18" wide..
Single (or tightly packed multiple ) row..
6" above the water line is a ballpark estimate..20" f/b coverage at the water line..

So when calculating par at the "floor" need to add 6"..approx.
need more PAR at the bottom? double up..

 

[geektom]

ok, I will bust out the protractor and do some work... sounds like for most of the reasonably priced units (Like the Finnex) I will need to double up to adequately cover the 30" depth, so I just have to figure out the cost comparison of multiple reasonable units vs 1-2 high-end ones.

 

[jeffkrol]

ok, I will bust out the protractor and do some work... sounds like for most of the reasonably priced units (Like the Finnex) I will need to double up to adequately cover the 30" depth, so I just have to figure out the cost comparison of multiple reasonable units vs 1-2 high-end ones.

no need for a protractor..
tan of 1/2 the beam angle x the distance of diodes from target = radius of the light cone
2x radius = cone diameter..

http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/10-lighting/1086521-led-depth.html

as to "depth".. that's a different story..
suggest looking into Beamsworks 3W versions 90 degree lenses for that..
Other alternates include much more expensive lights.
https://sbreeflights.com/16-freshwater-plant-lights/36-sbox-pro-16-timer.html
these or Even Radion XR15 gen4 freshwater..

 

[geektom]

I think I confused things when I used the term "Depth"...

The tank is relatively shallow (18 inches high) but is 30 inches front-to-back-- that is what I meant when I said deep. Sorry about that.

So I am trying to figure out whether a single fixture (or line of fixtures) can effectively reach both my foreground and the back of the tank, due to that 30" measurement.

 

[jeffkrol]

I think I confused things when I used the term "Depth"...

The tank is relatively shallow (18 inches high) but is 30 inches front-to-back-- that is what I meant when I said deep. Sorry about that.

So I am trying to figure out whether a single fixture (or line of fixtures) can effectively reach both my foreground and the back of the tank, due to that 30" measurement.

Around 8" off the water line...
Rough effective depth would be 26- minus substrate..Figure 24"for PA at the substrate...
to be honest I'd still favor 2 lights 60" wide.. Which is a bit problematic..
butting LED's end to end can be problematic..Stretching 48" to 60" is a bit annoying personally..

 

[geektom]

Around 8" off the water line...
Rough effective depth would be 26- minus substrate..Figure 24"for PA at the substrate...
to be honest I'd still favor 2 lights 60" wide.. Which is a bit problematic..
butting LED's end to end can be problematic..Stretching 48" to 60" is a bit annoying personally..

Yeah, and with the euro-bracing, the opening on top of the tank is 54" x 24", and there is no rim because of it, either... I am thinking I may need 4 x 30" fixtures (2 lines of 2 each), or, because the depth (front to back) is 30", I could try 30" fixtures across (perpendicular to the long side).

Lol, this is hard just using words...

I also want my hardscape to come out of the water- another reason to hang the lights.

 

[Deanna]

Nice to see that someone once made an attempt to characterize the many models of the burgeoning LED approach to aquarium lighting. Too bad it isn’t being maintained. I still struggle trying to calculate the amount of light that reaches across the floor of my substrate, given lens distance and model. I wonder how long before “calculators” start to appear, such as with EI dosing models, where you would enter your model and/or PAR value, best-guess PUR (based upon eyeballing spectral curves) value, LED angles, breadth, depth (front to back), lens height from substrate and water surface, etc. Then the tool is available to non-scientists for better sensitivity analysis of the light aspect of planted tanks.

 

[Lingwendil]

Nice to see that someone once made an attempt to characterize the many models of the burgeoning LED approach to aquarium lighting. Too bad it isn’t being maintained. I still struggle trying to calculate the amount of light that reaches across the floor of my substrate, given lens distance and model. I wonder how long before “calculators” start to appear, such as with EI dosing models, where you would enter your model and/or PAR value, best-guess PUR (based upon eyeballing spectral curves) value, LED angles, breadth, depth (front to back), lens height from substrate and water surface, etc. Then the tool is available to non-scientists for better sensitivity analysis of the light aspect of planted tanks.

Well, if you know the details of the emitters and bins used, Spectra is a useful tool-

SPECTRA

Pretty good functionality, assuming you're a "power user" enough to know the technical details of the emitters and info, good for getting a rough idea. Doesn't have all the details for lenses or reflectors, but can give you a good idea of some things if you punch in the right idea...

 

[Deanna]

Spectra is a useful tool

Interesting, but lacking much in terms of the criteria I listed. My idea was to see a model that would tell users what to expect from a product (not a DIY LED setup) and, where the user does have control, what to do. This what the EI models do.

For example: You have a tank that is 12" wide and 30" long with a water depth to the substrate of 13" and you want the light to be 5" above the water surface. You put those numbers into the calculator. You want a PAR of 70 at the substrate. You are looking at several different brands and models of LED lights (not DIY emitters). The calculator would ask for PAR and estimated PUR values at important wavelengths (blues and reds) based upon the manufacturers spectral distribution chart. Although the calculator would allow you to choose from many of the more popular brands and have all of those particular specs included, you would still have the option to input PAR, PUR estimates, beam angle, etc., if the brand wasn't in the calculators list. Is it direct lighting or do you have a glass cover that will destroy parts of the blue spectrum. Acrylic is much better, so output be different.

Now you can play with each variable to find optimal values for your situation. You see that the GroBeam 600 is more than enough and might do best at 7" above the water surface. However, some other brands can do almost as well. Yes, you can plow through these calculations without such a calculator, but it could take hours to comparison shop or to find optimal settings for your current light setup. Such a calculator would save that time and make it so much easier, especially for novices, to get it right the first time.

If I had the know-how, I'd do it myself.

 

[AquaThumb83]

Don't know if this has been posted yet but thought I'd share.

 

[Seattle_Aquarist]

Don't know if this has been posted yet but thought I'd share.

Note the above are "open air" readings not through water and no data for PAR off the center line where if 90 degree lenses are utilized the drop off in PAR could be substantial.

 

[iamaloner]

Note the above are "open air" readings not through water and no data for PAR off the center line where if 90 degree lenses are utilized the drop off in PAR could be substantial.

Air measurement for sure
I wonder how much less it will be with water.

Goes to show you need at least 2-3 for proper coverage on any tank more than 16" depth

Might as well buy a Kessil or a sbreef or a ecotech imo. So much better for high tech.

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