Marineland single bright LED

[atitagain]

Looking forward to the report.

+1

[Darrell Ward]

I'm sure they would probably work OK on smaller tanks. The thing is my smallest tank running at the moment is 150 gallons.

[peterhql]

I have some experience with these units.

I have 4 of the Marineland double bright units. 2:48 inch units and 2:24 inch units. I think they are wonderful for small tanks 55 and under.

However on my 90 gallon, two 48 inch double bright units could not provide as much light as my 4 ft 2 bulb t5 fixture. Also two marineland units side to side though short in height, occupy a rather large footprint compared to one 2 bulb t5 fixture with mounting legs. It didn't make for an attractive display tank. IMO.

I like the idea of LEDS though so I ordered two 4 ft current true lumen units.

[TURQ64]

The difference for me is..whether one or forty tanks, I have hardly ever bothered to light tanks individually in the last 15-20 years, depending on room light. More hatchery styled than living room...so, these tanks haven't had the option of prior t5's,8's, or 12's...zip..so, for our needs, I hope they work great..That said, dark is dark, if they truely don't throw light..

[strawberryblonde]

I'm waiting to hear your report too Gary. I have the small single strip in order to put extra light into my 54g pent tank. My original hope was that it would light up the back half of the tank and would allow me to continue using the cheap 15w light that came with the tank.

Though it DOES light up the back half very nicely, it still didn't provide enough light to actually grow plants. For just fish though, it was fine and I liked the shimmer effect a lot. I keep saying that as soon as I have a nice quiet afternoon I'm going to get the LED's back out of the fish closet and rearrange the tank so that I can use them again. I just haven't had that quiet afternoon in the last 3 months. =)

[TURQ64]

It's gonna be a while for a report; somewhere the ordered glitched up from Kensfish, and now the shipping order update says delivery next Monday (whence I'll be on the road to Oregon)..12 days shipping from Mass...coulda walked to SD with them in that amt. of time....oh well, hope they're worth the wait...

[TURQ64]

O.K., here's my review of sorts. It comes with the disclaimer that I have little for comparison. I have always preferred using overheads in the room for general tank husbandry..With that in mind, both the single bright and the double bright are aqequate for what I was seeking in their purchase. The double is obviously brighter than the single, but the single lights my tank well enough to leave strong shadows on the bottom. The lights went on 24" deep tanks. The nite lites are interesting, as the blue lites send a nice ray pattern due to their spacing. The downside isn't the lights; even halides or sodium would yeild the same issue..My driftwood is huge, and both the fish and I like it that way. No light penetration thru the wood, so it's a nice way to show the wood pieces off!.....My camera's involved in the pirate ship coast to coast transport. I'll try for a few comparative photo's later in the month on my return...For their efficiency with electricity, I find LED's the way to go for my future...

[Second Hand Pat]

Thanks Gary, sound like they might work quite nicely for a wilds tank. How do the colors looks on the fish?

[TURQ64]

The colors are good; the double is a little warmer, the single slightly cooler. I think it's how the blues effect the whites..bigger whites in the double. The shimmer is good with the Heckels, and the blue nite bulbs will put a blue circle of light on the sand 24" down...(betwixt the wood!)
here's a good local link regarding LED's..
http://www.minnfish.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=29760

[DonMD]

The colors are good; the double is a little warmer, the single slightly cooler. I think it's how the blues effect the whites..bigger whites in the double. The shimmer is good with the Heckels, and the blue nite bulbs will put a blue circle of light on the sand 24" down...(betwixt the wood!)
here's a good local link regarding LED's..
http://www.minnfish.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=29760

About the blue nite bulbs - in my current setup I have three different timed lights: dusk/dawn (could be the blue lights), morning/evening, and then full sun. I use different light fixtures and timers, but I know that some combination fixtures allow different timing. On this Marineland double bright with nite light, is there only one electric cord, or two? Thanks, -Don

[2wheelsx2]

I run the double brites on my 125 gallon. 2x the 36-48" ones (which are really only 36" long). Plenty of light to grow plants in plain gravel with EI dosing and low dose CO2.

This shot is taken with my Nikon D5100 with 3200 ISO and as you can see, all the odontoides on the body can be clearly seen individually. So IMO, that's plenty of light for your fish and for you to view them with.

[2wheelsx2]

About the blue nite bulbs - in my current setup I have three different timed lights: dusk/dawn (could be the blue lights), morning/evening, and then full sun. I use different light fixtures and timers, but I know that some combination fixtures allow different timing. On this Marineland double bright with nite light, is there only one electric cord, or two? Thanks, -Don

Yes, there is only one cord and the switch is a rocker. Therefore, no way to automate the moonlights, unless you rewire it. My main complaint with this light (besides the misleading lengths).

[Stag]

Gary did you ever get any photos to compare the single and doubles LEDs?