Halides vs LED

yes, that is unfortunate.

In my own experience, LEDs do quite well if you provide a reasonable range of spectrum and intensity and acclimate. The reality is, if I went from a 10000K halide, to a 20000K halide, I'd have the same issues people complain about with LEDs. We used to always have all sorts of issues switching from T-5s to halides, or CF to T-5 etc... now a new technology comes along and everyone seems to forget the past. Any time you switch light spectrum, your corals are going to be grumpy. My experience with LEDs, is if I acclimate, the same way I would with halides and then provide roughly the same PAR as a halide, I get more or less the same results.

I mean, don't you have a 70g cube? And 1 radion? I've seen the PAR graphs for a radion and it isn't going to be anywhere near the par, over a 30" x 30" area as a 250W halide with a decent reflector... (and maybe not the same spectrum, but depends on the comparison). Coral color pigments are produced when exposed to high intensity illumination. That is pretty well documented. If the intensity is less, so, is color... People go on and on thinking that LEDs are magical and you need less light, yada, yada, yada... There may be reasons you need less watts, but you still need PAR.

Regardless though, the reality is, if you pick a MH, match the spectral response with diodes, and match the intensity, you would get the same result. There is nothing magical about light from one source or another. Now, whether you can do that with off the shelf LEDs is a different question, in my experience, it can be pretty darn close if you know what your doing. I do agree, if you just pick "the best" LED and hope it will work well, it very well may not. The biggest benefit to LEDs is their flexibility, but this is also their downfall, as they are not nearly as plug and play as halides and honestly probably never will be.

For a lot of people, I think life is much simpler sticking with halides, or T-5s and there is nothing wrong with that. But blanket statements comparing one subset of one light source, to one subset of another does no good. If I stuck a 400W halide, over a 1g pico, bleached all my corals, and went around the net declaring halides suck, that would of course be completely ridiculous for the same reasons...

 

Power Compacts = Poop! You read it on the internet, it must be true!

 

Yes, I still have the 70g cube. The Radion was being advertised as equal to a single 250w MH so that was my incentive for getting it. But it just didn't live up to or match the standard I thought it would. Don't get me wrong, there are aspects of LEDs I love but I just hate to see posters say MH is old/dying tech, etc.

+100 on the plug-n-play aspect of MH vs LEDs tinkering and tinkering.

 

Sure, but over a smaller area... Ahh, one thing less reliable that blanket internet statements... people who want your money ;D

 

I am loving this poll.....great statements and opinions!!!! The one thing we all can agree on, is that we LOVE this hobby. There is no right or wrong. It is the vast knowledge and experience that makes this community great. Keep posting, and keep stating your opinions!!!!! I savor everyone's post with the greatest respect!!

 

I think the best looking setups have always been MH+T5. MH provided the intensity and the T5s set the color over the top. But I've never been motivated to have a MH setup (regardless of the undeniable results). Too hot, too much electricity, yada yada. That's just been my preference. When I broke down my last tank LEDs where right in the test phase.....now setting up the new tank they're a big player in the hobby. I personally want LEDs to succeed greatly because they're right for ME and the system I want to run. I will have LEDs over my new tank for all the reasons already stated.

I don't think it has to be a battle to the death, everyone should just run what they want and hopefully we all have excellent reef tanks to show, compare and congratulate each other for

 

Absolutely!!!!

 

I have both. I was under the impression that LED's aren't powerful enough for the growth I desire and I believe this to be true.

 

Light adds up. Add enough LEDs and you can get all the growth you want. Unfortunately at this time they don't provide sufficient results in the SPS color department for me to be happy. When they do, Then they win in my book. The good thing for LED manufacturers is that there are many more like me that will also be willing to switch.

 

MH is toooo costly, not practical. This reef keeping hobby is costly and you should try to conserve as much as possible. Last summer I went back to using my MH and it was during my pig roast party, it was really good at keeping the roast nice and warm. Don't be selfish be green.