DIY LEDs RadioShack 20g Tall Reef

Awesome thanks! Yes, I have always been one to ask a lot of questions.

$225 isn't too bad. It's not $100 though

I'll check out those LEDstrips. It's about 11 pm and I still have a presentation to finish up and an exam...all by 9 am! Woot woot!

I'm closely following Stercus Accidit's 20g. He seems to be on the right track. Which spectrums do corals grow on? I thought it was on the actinics,

 

6500k = most growth, but also equals butt ugly.

10k = good growth, better color

14k = marginal growth, much better color

20k = even less growth, but very awesome color

So heres the deal, the more blue the better growth but ****tier color! The more white the opposite! Most people seem to recommend a 60%blue/40 white ratio! In a small tank like that I'd go more for color as you're gonna run outta room for stuff to grow as you keep wanting to add corals! Corls=addicting! Always a cooler one ya want! just IMO! i'd youtube it! There are videos of guys turning their blues up and down and whites via DIMMERS!lol so you can see the different looks! Another advantage of getting dimmable drivers and putting your whites on one and blues another! ya can change your look a you like!

 

I have seen some videos with that. It's hard to tell though on youtube because a camera isn't the same as the human eye but you can definitely tell there is some difference.

Great...another addicting hobby. Just what I need I didn't realize that corals grew best on 6500k. I try to run 6500k bulbs on my freshwater tanks.

I'm waiting to hear back from Stercus about the LED kit he purchased. He seems to have exactly what I need (And he's putting together a 20 as well so that's a good sign).

 

This is the link to the led fixture Stercus is using on his 20g. It's definitely in my price range. I'd also enjoy figuring out how to build a top to house it.

Aquarium 14 LEDs

 

It comes with a free hanging kit! I think most people just roll with that! Check the price after checkout! There's another company that sells the same set up but is in America! Still the same chinese system, but i guess they're communication is better and priced comparable after adding the shipping!

 

ocreef.com

 

over a 20 gallon you could probably get away with 12 or 18 LEDs

 

Do you really think I'm going to end up paying $100 in shipping from China? The price at AquaStyle (China I'm assuming) is $70 before shipping. I'm not sure how to select color combinations other than the 14 blue 14 white or 7 and 7 but I can email about that.

The DIY Kit on the OCReef site's price doesn't seem to change between the default 24 LED kit (the one they're trying to sell more of) and the 14 LED kit. It is listed at 169.99. However, the moonlight strip that OCReef has seems like a really good deal.

Blue Accent Aquarium LED Lighting Strips - A stunning Blue LED Effect

I'm also searching around my craigslist listing for the Washington, DC area and hoping to find some good deals on a tank, filter, heater, refractometer/hydrometer, all that good stuff that I don't have. Someone posted a listing last week saying they are taking down their reef tank. I may be able to get some live rock from them which should make cycling a much faster process! Yay! They also have a huge listing of corals available at what seem to be more than reasonable prices (better than an LFS). Anyway...it's a place to start.

 

Nah, i just remember reading someone saying it was close after shipping! Not sure! Are you buying a new tank now too?lol

i heard that aquastyle is good about letting you tweak your lights! The only major negative i heard about these systems is that the maxwell drivers get hot and can make a buxxing sound! But you can always upgrade to meanwells later if you don't like them!

 

cool cool. Yeah I'm completely starting from scratch. I've got nothing but my two freshwater tanks and the african cichlid tank I set up for my father.

You scared me. I thought I was going to end up paying $100 in shipping costs! That would have been insane! I think I'd want to add in a moonlighting DIY to the fixture.