The new spin on lights

So I've been looking around the web and dreaming of when I will get my "big tank" and I ran into a delema. With coral care in mind it seems to me everything is relatively affordable except when it comes to the lights and I was curious on how people feel on the new LEDs being put in I know someone has a DIY build with 36 LEDs i think. But on the other hand there is the idea of do you suspend the lighting in your canopy or get fixtures the drill right into the top of it so long as the distance to the surface is ok and proper cooling is provided. So is it better to go and buy individual ballast fixtures and lamps or go for some of these all in one fixtures that include the metal halides at 14,000K with supplemental PC actinics? Just thought I would stir up the beehive on this one.

We have a all in one suspended over the tank fixture, if you are handy and want to build a nice canopy/stand retrofitting is cool and can save some money. LEDS are out of my price range right now.

LEDs are expensive for initial investment but are the best in overall power usage and bulb life. High initial investment but lower maintenance costs and power costs.

Metal Halides are cheap, bright, shimmer, but they are hot and inefficient for power usage. They can transfer lots of heat to the tank, requiring more evaporative or active chiller cooling. Also they usually must be supplimented by either T-5, PC, VHO, or LED actinics.

T-5s are bright, fairly inexpensive, middle ground on power usage, and do not put off as much heat as the typical MH. They offer a wide array of lamp colors to give you some customizability of your tank's look.

No matter which one you go with, all can be either a self contained fixture or a retrofit. You will need to decide whether you want to have the light hanging from the ceiling or if you want it inside a canopy. Pretty much depends on personal opinion for aesthetics really.

Personally I had a TEK T-5 4 bulb fixture built to hang inside my canopy to allow for adjustability. Then I built a retrofit IceCap IC660 6 bulb system that is using the same hanging mechanism inside my canopy as the TEK did. Retrofit kits don't always need to be solid attached to the wood of the canopy if you don't want them to be. (check out my DIY thread... I need to add the final pictures still though)

All 3 systems (MH, T-5, and LED) have been proven to grow SPS corals just fine if set up correctly. But this is also one of the most important decisions to make as it is expensive to change if you decide to go with something different.

FWIW, I have a 250 watt MH Pendant I've opted to sell off...I was going to run it over my 92 corner, but I've decided to switch and go with LEDs. Why? Well, every 6-9 months, I was going to spend $80 just to replace the single 250 watt MH bulb. The LEDs I was going to use are in theory good for 5 years? The math was a no brainer.

Sure, initial investment is higher, and people say energy consumption alone might not pay for the difference at this point, and they may be right. BUT, if you also factor in not having to replace bulbs (assuming you've bought or built a quality LED setup) I think that this year, LEDs are finally in the black. Not always for sure (i.e. a $1200 Acan Lighthing fixture is still a tough pill to swallow, but even then....6 changes of the 250 MH bulb at $80 a shot = $480 in 5 years...the math is compelling) What does it cost to replace 4 good T5 bulbs every year?

Well most people say that if you do not overdrive the T-5 lamps you can get 16 - 18 months out of them easy, maybe more depending on photoperiod. Overdriven the general recommendation is 8 - 12 months depending on photoperiod.

Typical good T-5 lamps will run around the $20 mark each. Some are more and some are less but generally speaking average around $20.

LEDs are getting better and better each year. They may be in the black now but I have not been keeping up with it as much lately since I bought the IceCap system (don't want to change anytime soon). Currently I'm looking at approximately $120 maintenance costs per year on line, assuming nothing else goes wrong. Initial investment was very low since I bought used ballasts and end-caps.