KevinB

Sounds fun! I'd pay 15 for cotton and 25 for a dri-fit. Oh yeah, I'd want an xxl and a kids size 7 ish

Mike can we get a date range going? Meaning: are people going down on Friday and coming back Sunday, maybe some would like to stay a couple more days, etc. Also, any more details on the TSA visit?

Hopefully you haven't had any more isopod issues, but IMHO a cleaner shrimp would not be able to handle an isopod...I doubt it could catch it, and even if it did, it wouldn't be able to get through the exoskeleton. I would not give up on watching for these bugs and trying to catch them, I've read they can lay up to 40 eggs at a time, and you sure don't want them multiplying if you do have more than one in there.

Can't make it...UT Commencement is that day, I'm going to be stuck sweating my arse off in a makeshift video truck.

By the way, something that was never mentioned to me, and I wish I had known is that to mount the LEDs you really need to use countersunk screws. Not that the screws themselves are to be countersunk, but the shape of the screw head is very important, as you don't want the screw to touch the solder pads. Just about the only way to do this is to use countersunk style screw heads. Just a tip so maybe someone else won't have to make an extra trip to the hardware store.

...around 30 of the 42 LEDs. Here's a couple of pics showing the build

Update...the main fabrication is complete on the LED fixture, and I've mounted

I'll be a guinea pig since I have a pretty low coral population

Do you have pictures. Not yet...need to build the fixture first

This is what I'm using to support my led build over my open top tank http://www.aquabuys.com/p/ss_tekl_bracket.html

Obviously individual setups will be priced differently, lenses, dimmers, these extras will add to the price if you use them For what it's worth, I've yet to find a 48" fixture that's got comparable power for under $1000

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.

Oh I thought you wanted to cut it short ways, in that case I'd use a jigsaw

Any kind of shears are going to deform the metal. I'd use a hacksaw and/or dremel

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.

Pm sent

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