PFO's new 400w LED pricing announced... OUCH!

[Bill S]

A 72" LED fixture for my 215? $4,012! DANG! Not sure THAT'S in the budget!

http://www.pfolighting.com/Solaris-Buy-Now.aspx

[alton]

The interest on $4K will the pay the lighting bill plus new lamps for your MH lighting every year.

[erikharrison]

well you did sell the BMW didn't you? :P

[Bill S]

Alton,

Well, not quite...

My bulbs are over $100 each (DE), plus the $60-70 for VHOs. My electric bill to run them is $40 a month (simple math calculation). Then I need to add the cooling costs for the heat they add. That's probably another $40 a month for the warm months - and my A/C is on NOW...

That's $5-600 a year +/- for electricity (realizing that the LEDs DO use electricity...), putting me at nearly $1000 per year.

I need a chiller - with plumbing that's $800. And, I should be able to get $6-800 for my existing lighting and AquaController - won't need it anymore. With a discount, I think I can get the lights for about $3400:

$3400 LED lights
-800 Current lighting
-800 Chiller
$1800

That puts me at 2 years to pay for it.

[Bill S]

Yes, I DID sell the BMW... But, that was my DAUGHTER'S car, and since we bought her a new car for graduation, that money went against what we borrowed for it. It's already gone to the bank!

[LoneStar]

I sure would like to be able to see these lights on a tank in person....


hmm go to the bank and ask for a loan. They want to know what the money is for. Then you say just ONE light fixture. Thats it. :blink

[erikharrison]

It's already gone to the bank! Shoulda gone to the bank with a T instead of a B.

[Richard]

Let me know when you get it. I want to come check it out.

You know you want it, you know your gonna get it eventually, so stop fighting it and order it NOW.

[caferacermike]

It's still around a year later but you never hear about it anymore. Wasn't LED lighting going to shake the hobby to it's roots? I never even see ads for it anymore. I don't think anyone was interested. What I don't understand, and nobody bothers to ever explain, is that if you have 100 7w LED lights isn't that still 700w of electricity? How is that really any cheaper than any other lighting source?

[Richard]

Bill told me that the reviews from people using them were very good. Still a long way from "shaking the hobby to it's root's" but it hasn't been that long. I think the price needs to come down 35-40% before you start seeing lot's of people using them. There is definately a sticker shock effect at the current price.



What I don't understand, and nobody bothers to ever explain, is that if you have 100 7w LED lights isn't that still 700w of electricity?


The way it works is...
:P

[Bill S]

Joshua,

Yeah, these are new. I've done a LOT of research on this - and the R & D on the LEDs and the lenses is really, really a big deal. It is very easy to create "hot spots" with the lighting, and that's one of the many differences between this one and a DIY project. Here's a review from Advanced Aquarist's lighting expert:

http://www.advancedaquarist.com/2006/8/review2

BTW, the current lights use 3w LEDs - and YES, I've accounted for the fact that they still use electricty. As for popularity, currently, many of the current items are "sold out". The only real problem that's been reported has been bleaching because folks set them up at full power rather than the recommended 70%, without giving their SPS time to aclimate.

[captexas]

I saw an article in a magazine the other day talking about some new high end car's coming out using LED's. Not too big a deal in some car makers using them in dash boards/gauges, but a pretty big deal with two cars that use them as head lights! I'm interested in seeing what they did to project the lights at longer distances.

[caferacermike]

I am surprised that we are not seeing them mounted as reflector bulbs. CT that's what most auto manufacturers have been doing for years with ultra bright lighting. Mount a super reflective material to surround the bulb and aim it backwards to a larger reflector. I have a Pelican Flashlight that does have an ultra bright "usable" LED. Most just group a few together in a reflector, this one actually has a small tripod that aims the LED back towards the handle and is reflected back out through a normal reflector. This produces a focused beam that resembles a good Krypton type bulb.

[Bill S]

But, Mike, we don't WANT a focused beam...