KevinB

I spent $230 on LEDs, wiring and thermal grease. My aluminum will run around $50. I'm buying the controller/3 dimmer package from boost led for $145. So that's about $425. There will be probably another $50 in misc expenses, so I figure to come out under $500.

I worked in event production in college, earned my bachelor of fine arts (majoring in graphic design). After getting out of college I got a job as a junior art director at a design firm in San Antonio. I was fired in 3 weeks after what I felt was not much of a chance to get into a groove. I then moved to Dallas with a job as an art director for an insurance company. I spent 18 months there feeling like the job was torture. I then moved to the Austin area after getting a job at an event production company which is where I still work, 6 years later. I still enjoy what I do and where I work. I mostly work on PowerPoint and keynote presentations, although I do get the occasional work that's a little more creative. However I also wear the hats of: audio engineer, video director, cameraman, and scenic carpenter. My favorite type of design is logo design, which is why I decided to redesign the ARC logo shortly after joining the forum. I'm glad my skills can be put to use in a great community.

Thanks for the great suggestions, BAMF. I did end up buying Cree's after all, just received them yesterday. My thinking in going with the XP-Gs was that I wanted to start out avoiding spotlighting issues as much as possible. My rationale was: more less powerful lights = more spread out light. Anyway, I'm sure this will be plenty of light for my needs. My violet to RB ratio is in line with what you were saying, 1:2. I'm trying to avoid adding fans altogether, the aluminum I'm using is 1/8" thick, but I could go with something thicker if it would keep fans off the light. I'll check the temps after firing it up and if it gets so high that the CREE's efficiencies go down by 10%, I'll add cooling. Attached is the "final" layout for the LEDs. The only thing I might tweak is the space between the Cyans and Reds / Red-Oranges. I might move them closer if they don't blend enough.

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Also PayPal info please? Thanks!

Would 2 of these be too much for a 75?

Each module is controlled by a lighting board and can be controlled directly or run as a slave, color mixing is very impressive with four colors able to be dimmed independently. White is usually the hardest with these, and these make the best white I've seen when using no white LEDs used

Each one makes 2400 lumens max, and draws up to 120w. The bright spot you see is just my phone freaking out...it doesn't actually exist in real life

Lol @ derrick...if only! Mike they are for color washes on walls, etc

Red green blue and amber, DMX color mixing. Retail price is $1200 per module.

Any luck catching the creature?

Me too please! I'd love one. If you have any left over

Oh yeah, pods are blind to red light, I would observe the tank at night and check on the trap with a red flashlight

Did you make a bottle trap with an inverted top?

Dude I don't know, I'm not sure about how strong a bite a wrasse has, but when I killed them I cut their heads off with a butter knife and those things are HARD. Actually maybe it's an urban legend, but I've read mention of them killing a fish that ate it whole. Ugh.

I caught two in my tank before I added any fish. Both I noticed when they were zipping around at night. I netted both but it wasn't easy. I killed them with great satisfaction.

They slowly drain a fish over a period of time. I would net it and manually remove it by sliding something thin like a credit card under the isopod to get it to detach. I would definately do it tonight, you want to have the smallest chance possible that it lays eggs in there if it hasn't already. They usually only feed at night and let go before daylight, so this could have been going on for a while. I would also set out a baited bottle trap tonight.

FYI, looks like a cirolanid isopod to be specific. Here's info: http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2006-02/bp/index.php

It's a nasty booger that comes out mostly at night to attach to fish and feed. You should be able to trap it with bait and a bottle. They are very fast swimmers Did you add rock recently? Usually that's how it would come in. If you didn't add rock, then you may have more in there.

It's an isopod (parasitic)

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