LED Scrubbers

[Ace25]

Most people can't solder, and want nothing to do with wires or electricity, much less understand it. Only if a lighting unit is ready-to-plugin would it be halfway "easy". And even then it becomes hard for them to mount the lights properly and safely.

Please explain the difference between the CurrentUSA T5HO fixture you're using and the E-Shine LED fixture your using. How are they different other than the fact they are different types of lighting. Both are fixtures, both "plug and play", and both have the exact same mounting concerns (unless your solely speaking about mounting onto the SM100, but even then a small ABS template to wrap around the LED light would solve that issue). Even CFLs have mounting concerns to worry about as well as humidity/corrosion at the socket.

When there is a waterproof unit available that is ready to plugin, then it can be recommended. That's the reason 9 out of 10 people use CFL's... because they are ready to plug in. For T5's you have to wire up the sockets and ballasts.

You mean waterproof like the CurrentUSA T5HO lights that are recommended for the SM100? There is a product called LED Seal, just spray that on and you water proof the LEDs.

http://www.ledsupply.com/9013-07.php

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=07yWAi5Wkdo

Then of course there is the vast majority of aquarium owners (or would-be owners) who walk into LFS... they want nothing to do with building anything at all.

Maybe in your neck of the woods that describes the majority of aquarium owners, but that is completely opposite from the aquarium owners I know and I have worked at a LFS and talked to thousands of aquarium owners, out of that I can count on 1 hand the number of people not willing to do anything DIY for their tank. Certainly opposite of just about ever member on this site. Even if that were true and the majority of people wanted "plug and play" and nothing to do with building, anyone can Google "LED Grow Light", you will find hundreds of types and styles, some are even water proof. With all the different types available on the market there is one that will fit in any scenario imaginable, and worst case you have to spray some LED seal on it to make it water proof, which you would have to do on any type of lighting in a humid environment if your truly concerned about avoiding corrosion.

[SantaMonica]

Please explain the difference between the CurrentUSA T5HO fixture you're using and the E-Shine LED fixture your using.

The Current unit (now discontinued) is designed to handle splashing and high humidity. The E-Shine is not; it has an open frame on the sides, and fans on the back which suck air and water into it. Even I have dripped water into it. It's a serious electrical shock waiting to happen. Lastly, the E-Shine has 120v going into it, when it could just have 10 or so instead.

There is a product called LED Seal, just spray that on and you water proof the LEDs.

That's not very plug-n-play. Plus you have to spray it on the pcb; most hobbyists don't want to deal with pcb's.

anyone can Google "LED Grow Light", you will find hundreds of types and styles, some are even water proof

Let's see them; I'd like to buy some. I'll take "splash resistant", but waterproof is even better. I've searched many times and not found anything.

[kerry]

DIY LED's and T5/8's are for sure a build that needs to be taken on by a person that knows and understands electronics and electricity. Its best to have the CFL's for a DIY build but, with these new units coming out in about March or so that are smaller and can be mounted on the top of a tank how is one going to mount a CFL or T5 up there with a small unit???? If its smaller I would think a LED would be best. I guess I would need to see it first before I make any real constitutions but, if its small I would not know how an easy CFL with reflector is going to work.

[Floyd R Turbo]

Are you saying the Current T5HO fixture has been discontinued?

Also there are waterproof LED fixtures. The builder that I had make my custom fixtures for my experiment said they carry light bars that can run fully submerged but only 1W bars and the density of LEDs was a bit too low for our needs.

[SantaMonica]

Yes I don't see it listed on the Current site, or on Marine Depot.

[Floyd R Turbo]

It's on their site here

http://www.current-usa.com/lighting/nova-extreme-2x

and while I couldn't find on Marine Depot, I found it on several other sites like here

http://www.aquariumguys.com/current-...276_a_7c236414

[SantaMonica]

I saw somewhere that it was discontinued. I'm sure the retailers still have some though.

[Floyd R Turbo]

Thus endeth the T5HO scrubber era. IMO. Because that's the only fixture that had a decent price and reflector, even though the sockets were cruddy

[Ace25]

Sorry SM, I have tons of respect for you, but in this instance I feel you are just making excuses in regards to LEDs. You have not made any arguments against LEDs that can't be said for T5HOs as well. What power does the T5HO fixture have going to it? 120v, ballasts are inside, just like the drivers are inside the E-Shine fixture. You can't drop the T5HO fixture in water anymore than you could drop the E-Shine. Your making assumptions that the LED fixture will not handle humidity, you can make the same assumption about T5HO lights as well (I have seen plenty of corroded non-water proof endcaps on T5HOs, same end caps that are used in CurrentUSA fixtures, even over displays). Until you can show the reality of how long the LED fixture will last, you know they they say about assumptions.

Also, since the T5HO light has been discontinued, I am highly doubting there are any other T5HO fixtures that would fit into a SM100 as snugly as the CurrentUSA fixture. The SM100 seems designed for that one type of fixture, anything else requires a little DIY work.

Since the day I built my LED scrubber I get a little humidity inside the light box due to not being to best design/cleanest cuts on the glass so there is a slight gap between the lid and glass where humidity can get in. I never water proofed my LEDs, and there is water dripping from the heatsinks at times, and I have yet to have an LED fail on the scrubber going on a year now (although I have switched out LEDs in that time, but the original warm white Cree LEDs I started out with still work). My LEDs are open to the air/humidity, at least the E-Shine fixture has casing around it to give it some "splash" protection. I purposely didn't try and fix the humidity issue because I wanted to see how durable LEDs are... and I do believe they are way more durable than T5HOs, although it is always best for anything using electricity to avoid humidity as much as possible.

Since getting into 3w LEDs, I have had a total of 2 fail, both Cree XP-E Royal Blue on a display light (old style LEDs) and they failed within the first 30 days, not one LED has failed for me since then and been running 10+ hours a day for well over a year now. Before I ran LEDs, I ran MH+T5HO, and I used an Icecap660 ballast for the 4 T5HOs that went with the MH, 6 T5s were on another tank and that consisted of 2 CurrentUSA fixtures (4bulb + 2bulb), I would blow 1 bulb every 30 days, sometimes 2 using the Icacap660 ballast on 24" bulbs. I went through over 24 T5HO bulbs in a year on a 4 bulb fixture before I gave up on the Icecap660. I even used T5 V-HO bulbs that were supposed to handle the extra power, they didn't fair any better. So for me I have a much better track record with LEDs. Let's see, in a year I have spent $10 replacing 2 LEDs, how much would I have spent if I had my old lighting, which was 10 T5HOs and 1 250MH? $30x10 for T5s and $75 for a Radium MH bulb = $375. I think I am well ahead of the game now since switching to LEDs. The power saving alone just in 12 months paid for the LED lights, savings I get from bulb replacement cost this year is just gravy.

Oh, and here is your link.
http://www.lmgtfy.com/?q=waterproof+led+grow+light

[Floyd R Turbo]

Oh burn man. pulling out the lmgtfy link ouch!

the first pic that shows up is the one I looked at and was saying you could get but just not quite right, yet.

I have to say that I agree with Ace though, while the e-shine fixture isn't perfect, it certainly can be protected by taking the right steps in designing the scrubber enclosure around it. Which I am currently doing, and whatever I come up with hopefully will be translatable to the AS-II coming out....soon I hope! The fans are definitely throw a wrench in the works though.