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What's the difference between "High performance' LED's and "Regular" LED's?

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1.6K views 7 replies 6 participants last post by  jrmasterbreeder  
J
#1 ·
What's the difference between "High performance' LED's and "Regular" LED's?

So I was at a local shop today, and this is my only questionable experience. Maybe not and I could just be over thinking it. But is there really a major difference between regular LED's and high performance LED's when it comes to live plants? I've heard there are a lot of "low light" plants, but the guy insisted there's no such thing, and by low light, people mean that they die slowly. I have three mini LED strips of three white LED's each. The kind that comes with the new Tetra 10g kits. It seems like a good amount of brightness for a 10 gallon and growing some plants that don't require the expensive T5 lighting. What all have you guys been successful and unsuccessful with? Was he just trying to get me to buy an extra $125 in merchandise (not including the 15 gallon he was trying to push on me saying that plants would do better in... ???) I love this store, and I hate to think they were trying to take advantage of me. They've been around as long as I am old. As a ma and pa LFS now days, that really shows something.
 
E
#3 · (Edited)
There are some better LED lights (more intense, better spectrum) out for plants now, but they are still super expensive and you can't repair them, so you have to toss them in a couple years. My plant geek friends that try LEDs are mostly making their own. http://www.marineland.com/Products/...um-lighting/LED-Aquarium-Lighting/led-aquarium-lighting-for-aquatic-plants.aspx

For small tanks, it is still better to buy a cheap incandescence strip light and screw in some compact fluorescent bulbs.

That being said, I have java moss, java fern, anubias & floating hornwort in very low-light tanks. java moss esp. seems to grow in the dark. Shorter tanks do work better for plants because they are closer to the light, so 15 over a 20H, but I think a 10 isn't taller than a 15. Is there any ambient light on the tank? A sunny window is enough for some things.
 
L
#6 ·
i have been wanting to replace all of the lighting in our fishroom with LED lighting..that would cut my electric bill by at least $150 a month...but it would cost me about $800 or more and i just haven't had that much extra to do it..another problem is that we have a number of planted tanks and would probably have to still use the old fluorescent fixtures kicking the bill back up some...i think maybe i'll sty away from the LED stuff for now...
i truly do not believe that investing $100-$200 in a light for a small tank is such a good idea unless one has lots of unneeded cash to waste.....
 
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J
#8 ·
The tank is next to a window. No direct sunlight hits it... Can you say algae? Lol. Maybe the indirect light would help a little. I can't imagine a new hood for a 10g tank fluorescent bulb costs much. Thanks for the tips. I may go that route eventually.
 
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