DIY LED Par Results

[balto777]

Just thought I would post the par results I got from my DIY LED fixture. My tank is a 40g breeder and the lights are pretty well spaced throughout, so I have pretty good uniformity throughout the length of the tank.

10" from light fixture / 1" above the water: 600par
2" under water: 450par
7" under water: 350par
13" under water (sandbed): 250 par

[philip_r5]

Not to bad. I kinda thought it would have been higher. That was at max watts?

Sent from my DROIDX using Tapatalk 2

[balto777]

No, I actually forgot the most important part:
UV's at 95%
RB's at 95%
CW's at 55%
NW's at 45%

With everything on 100%, I was getting almost 400 at the sandbed.

[philip_r5]

Nice

[ccampo]

This is cool Aaron,

and does it matter if it is white, blue, red or green ?

any pictures on how the tank looks ?

[balto777]

Cesar,

I don't have red or green LED's, and I didn't try testing them individually. Might do that tomorrow around noon and see how much each type is putting out. I am trying to get good pictures, but the tank always looks more blue than it actually is. Doing some reading on how to take pics of LED lit tanks.

[smpolyp]

balto777 are you saying you made these fixtures? And if so are you testing these "HOT"(does it come with sunscreen?) fixtures on coral?
Pics on coral with light any light? Find some one who will trade pics for coral.
If your building and in the US let me know.

[smpolyp]

That was do you have pics of the coral with any type of light? This way we can have a reference. Sorry I'm just excited to see high numbers like your testing.

[balto777]

I got most of the DIY LED parts from RapidLed. They are fast to ship and have great service. My tank is very new, so I only have 2 "small" frags in it right now - but I will get pictures for you.

[balto777]

Here are more detailed results (Note: My camera cannot white balance correctly to show the colors as they actually are.):

Here is a pic of the par values where I have it set personally for me:


Here is a pic with all of the LED's on full blast:


Here is a pic with just the UV's on full blast (Note: I do not think the par meter is accurate at these wavelengths.):


Here are only the royal blues at full blast:


Here are only the cool whites at full:


Here are only the neutral whites:

[techbiker]

awsome

[techbiker]

I dont even get close to that, and i though I was doing good, I will lower the units to see if i get a better par
My sand bed is at 21" and I am getting 155, is that good?

[balto777]

Ricardo,

Your tank is deeper than mine. I get those number on the sandbed at about 14" under water - that is why I love shallow tanks like the 40g breeder. I was shooting for 200 at the sandbed, so I think you are fine.

[philip_r5]

Alot of soft coral love that 150 area, I even have clams at that in my metal halide setup at sandbed. This probably isn't the best for the clams for growth but they are living well under it. I wouldnt think hard corals would do all that great here but you never know.

[philip_r5]

I think you have awesome results congratulations on your setup and diy lights. Can't wait to see it full over glowing coral.

[YodaHart]

Very cool! What quantity and type of LEDs are you using? I'm about to setup an LED system on my 40B with XM-L and XT-E LEDs. I'll have to find someone that has a PAR meter so I can compare it with my current MH setup.

[balto777]

YodaHart,

I am using the XT-E royal blues, but I am using the older XP-G whites. Those new XM-L's put out a lot of power, so you may need either fewer of those whites or more royal blues to get the tank the way you want it to look. As of now, I am running the cool whites at only 55% and the neutral whites at only 40%.