Do LED lights wear out?

[Starrhmsp]

Sorry, probably a bumb question but I was wondering if the led lights ever wear out or lose strength. I have a 12g jbj that I've had for three years now.


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[jetli1969]

It is well known that LED lights last a very long time, but a question that is commonly asked is, “Do LED lights dim over time.” Unfortunately, there is really no short answer to this question. LED lights are known to be quite durable and have a longer life span than most other bulbs; in fact, they can even last for decades with normal use. However, LED lights will dim once they begin to reach the end of their life cycle. Unlike other bulbs that blow or burn out all at once, LED lights will gradually dim. And again, the good news is it will take quite a long time for this to occur.

[unbereefable]

Short answer is yes. The will lose par over time. It may not be a noticeable decrease in light output, but par WILL be affected over time. The main thing to keep LEDs healthy is to make sure they run cool. I've build many DIY fixtures and when looking at the data sheets to some high end cree and bridglux diodes, it did show a noticeable decrease in par around the 5-6K mark of actual run time. I would imagine cheaper diodes would be way less than that.

[crabbysd]

Yup. What he said.
I have the jbj 28g nano. the leds are MEH. new teck stuck in a current lid with cut corners.
Good news is its cheaper than ever to replace. you dont have to replace them with stock leds either. UPGRADE AVAILABLE! better color better output better spectrum. etc.
replace the leds and the driver(heat kills it over time too) and your good for a few more years.

[Starrhmsp]

I would love to replace with two drivers so I can have just the blues on. The one I have now is all or nothing.


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[Tapio]

I am still using MH and T5 since I have not found any LED I like or a price that is reasonable. With more LEDs out there more and more information trickles in showing that not only is the lifespan of the emitters more limited than initially hyped by the industry, the spectral quality is suffering with age too. For now I see no reason to change to LED. Just having solar panels installed soon.

[jasonp87]

I think the standard life span for LEDs is around 50k hours if they are well cooled and protected from the elements. Be sure to keep them clean too as dust can build up and cause reduced air flow in fixtures resulting in more heat.

[jschnepf]

I am still using MH and T5 since I have not found any LED I like or a price that is reasonable. With more LEDs out there more and more information trickles in showing that not only is the lifespan of the emitters more limited than initially hyped by the industry, the spectral quality is suffering with age too. For now I see no reason to change to LED. Just having solar panels installed soon.

I'm not sure how you can say price is unreasonable with leds. The maintenance cost on a 4 bulb t5 is at least 160 per year, assuming you replace the bulbs every 6 months which is the "community accepted" lifespan of a t5 bulb running 10-11 hrs a day. That is with cheap t5 bulbs, using some nice ati bulbs and your yearly cost will be well over 200, plus the price of mh bulbs and the electricity to run it. You can get a china box 165 watt full spectrum led for 79.99 with free shipping on fleabay. I know there are plenty of reefers just here is sd using these with good success. This should easily last you at least 5 years or until the something better/ newer comes along. In 5 years you should have saved enough to get a nice new setup. Another option is led / t5 combo, you can still get the wider spectrum from the t5, but cut down the amount of hours you are running them to 4-6 and only have to replace bulbs once a year. Still saving at least 80 buck a year in bulb replacement.

[sushi]

Yep LEDs even nice ones are much cheaper to buy and to operate (power use) over time and are more full featured with dimming and also less heat.

[jkennedy1007]

Radion LEDs lost over 60% PAR in 2 yrs! - "Reef Central"

[sushi]

Radion LEDs lost over 60% PAR in 2 yrs! - "Reef Central"

Dang. That's rapid degradation.

[Tapio]

I'm not sure how you can say price is unreasonable with leds. The maintenance cost on a 4 bulb t5 is at least 160 per year, assuming you replace the bulbs every 6 months which is the "community accepted" lifespan of a t5 bulb running 10-11 hrs a day. That is with cheap t5 bulbs, using some nice ati bulbs and your yearly cost will be well over 200, plus the price of mh bulbs and the electricity to run it. You can get a china box 165 watt full spectrum led for 79.99 with free shipping on fleabay. I know there are plenty of reefers just here is sd using these with good success. This should easily last you at least 5 years or until the something better/ newer comes along. In 5 years you should have saved enough to get a nice new setup. Another option is led / t5 combo, you can still get the wider spectrum from the t5, but cut down the amount of hours you are running them to 4-6 and only have to replace bulbs once a year. Still saving at least 80 buck a year in bulb replacement.

These are my reasons for the "unreasonable cost" statement.

I am using suspended light fixtures on top of both my 6ft and 4 ft tanks, and if I would change to LED, I would still prefer to have open tops with suspended good looking continuous length hoods. Such hoods cost upward of 2500-4000 and some much more. Of all LED fixtures that I have seen, the Giesemann Futura and Lani LED look good but there are others. Perhaps I would not need the higher end ones but even something like several Radions would not be cheap. So, the investment is substantial and with the technology continuously evolving, it makes no sense to me at this time.

My main interest is good SPS coloration, and I know MH/T5 can provide that. I also like the look better than any cheaper LED I have seen. I don't change bulbs as often as the common wisdom says. I use both T5 and MH bulbs about 18 months before changing. The MH intensity decreases rapidly after 4-6 months but stays pretty much the same up to 2+ years after that, but the spectrum changes, which is why I change them after about 18 months. The T5 keep good coloration in corals also well beyond 1 year. Replacing the bulbs at 18 mo is about 330.

[sushi]

2500-4000 or more? Hot dang!! In that case, I'm with you buddy. It's like why I buy contacts instead of LASIK.

[knightnsd]

50k lifespan approx, and 8 hours a day is 3000 hours/year but they dont burn out like a light bulb, they decline gradually

[jasonp87]

Radion LEDs lost over 60% PAR in 2 yrs! - "Reef Central"

Wow, that's a crazy stat. i'll have to read through it. my guess before reading it is that in order to gain performance they are overpowering the LEDs, reducing their lifespan.