Alastair
Member
Having recently changed my lighting, i thought it would be a good opportunity to do a small review and my opinion on the above units that are currently on my latest tank http://www.ukaps.org/forum/threads/currently-unnamed-1400-litre-biggie.29326/
id read up on some reviews of their marine variants and from peoples feedback on forums, and after a chat with Sanj, i decided these were the ones for me.
They are very popular on the marine side, and par readings are massively high which was also what attracted me to them. They are just beginning to expand into the freshwater side so hopefully this review might give people who are thinking of a new led unit an additional option to think about.
Here is the fancy stuff all about them http://www.eco-lamps.com/
I was eagerly awaiting these for a few weeks as they are shipped to order, so from my initial contact with rachel at ecolamps.co.uk, (who is extremely helpful and must have one of the best email response rates) it took about 3 to 4 weeks for them to arrive roughly. mine were 2 x 48 inch versions in silver.
they came last thursday well packed and when opened, the boxing immediately stands out.
very posh.....
and after pulling all the bits out like a child at xmas this is everything that comes in each box.....
i was quite surprised how slim these units are, i was expecting them to be really chunky given the power of them but they arent and are very light too.
first initial impressions was that these were really good quality. id been a little hesitant with the units, with having some blue leds so was curious to get them up as quick as possible.
They came with both hanging kit and aluminium tank bracket which looks very nice but i had to use cables.
the instructions at first glance made it seem really hard to work out how to program them but after a play about for an hour, i realised how simple it was. i believe a new controller is being made for them now which is much easier. But it was just a case of ignoring everything else and going straight to auto setting, change to user and then input times, power percentages for each of the channels and then an off time that was it. simples. the contoller is built into the side of each unit.
here are the two units plugged up after fiddling about
note the audio cables connecting the 2 together, these come with each unit and allow you to multi link so i didnt have to go through setting the time, manually changing the default on off power etc etc. The second one just runs in tandem with the first.
what i hadnt taken into account is that with my tank being so big, the light spread wasnt enough for full illumination of the tank edges at 10cm above water as they have 55 degree lenses. i knew 48 might be too small....doh. but easily resolved as im in the process of switching them out for full 72 inch versions in black nom nom. for the photo purposes i have them raised as high as possible for full spread.
it took minutes to hang them, and once on, i was pretty gobsmacked. These things have some serious punch. light goes right to where its needed to and not all over the room. I was really unsure that the blue would over power everything but it didnt even at a mix of 70/70. currently on 40/70 and not too low down. Colour rendition is perfect and everything looks so clear and natural. Plants really pop.
I know Dan Crawford had mentioned my tank looking really clear when he popped by to say hello and have a snoop, but this made it look like there was no water in the tank.
heres a couple of pictures of the units over the tank, i havent adjusted colour or anything. their is a slight yellow to the water purely from the alder cones but the lights even seemed to make that almost invisible.
Luckily i have a par meter on loan currently and when i tested them on full whack, the readings are massive. i have them written somewhere so will stick them up. in water too the par was far greater than other units ive had.
ive only ever had a couple of led units before but Really impressed with the look, controllability, and the price range is good too. they'll take me a bit of tinkering to find the right limit to stay below before i go hitting high light.
The storm function is fun to play with too and flick it in demo mode and you can really see what you can do with it.
They start from £225 for the 12 inch up to £875 for the massive 72inch unit.
Which compared to the rest of the range eco lamps offer is really cheap.
These were from www.eco-lamps.co.uk.
I spoke with Rachel throughout the whole shipping process and id ordered a load of seachem ferts from her too as she runs Weston Marine life so is a hobbyist herself. I got constant up to date info on how long was left etc.
The prices along with the picture of the unit are to be updated as the picture of the lights isnt right. I think the whole website is getting updated shortly.
Overall i think these are great units at a really good price and cant wait to get the right size over my set up and see how the tank grows. I haven't got anything negative to say about them which is unusual for me as im always picky. No led buzz, very little heat from the lights themselves and no whirring fans on them which is a bonus too (they dont come with them). well worth a look into. Would be good to see a few other members with one of these above their tanks at some point.
id read up on some reviews of their marine variants and from peoples feedback on forums, and after a chat with Sanj, i decided these were the ones for me.
They are very popular on the marine side, and par readings are massively high which was also what attracted me to them. They are just beginning to expand into the freshwater side so hopefully this review might give people who are thinking of a new led unit an additional option to think about.
Here is the fancy stuff all about them http://www.eco-lamps.com/
I was eagerly awaiting these for a few weeks as they are shipped to order, so from my initial contact with rachel at ecolamps.co.uk, (who is extremely helpful and must have one of the best email response rates) it took about 3 to 4 weeks for them to arrive roughly. mine were 2 x 48 inch versions in silver.
they came last thursday well packed and when opened, the boxing immediately stands out.
very posh.....
and after pulling all the bits out like a child at xmas this is everything that comes in each box.....
i was quite surprised how slim these units are, i was expecting them to be really chunky given the power of them but they arent and are very light too.
first initial impressions was that these were really good quality. id been a little hesitant with the units, with having some blue leds so was curious to get them up as quick as possible.
They came with both hanging kit and aluminium tank bracket which looks very nice but i had to use cables.
the instructions at first glance made it seem really hard to work out how to program them but after a play about for an hour, i realised how simple it was. i believe a new controller is being made for them now which is much easier. But it was just a case of ignoring everything else and going straight to auto setting, change to user and then input times, power percentages for each of the channels and then an off time that was it. simples. the contoller is built into the side of each unit.
here are the two units plugged up after fiddling about
note the audio cables connecting the 2 together, these come with each unit and allow you to multi link so i didnt have to go through setting the time, manually changing the default on off power etc etc. The second one just runs in tandem with the first.
what i hadnt taken into account is that with my tank being so big, the light spread wasnt enough for full illumination of the tank edges at 10cm above water as they have 55 degree lenses. i knew 48 might be too small....doh. but easily resolved as im in the process of switching them out for full 72 inch versions in black nom nom. for the photo purposes i have them raised as high as possible for full spread.
it took minutes to hang them, and once on, i was pretty gobsmacked. These things have some serious punch. light goes right to where its needed to and not all over the room. I was really unsure that the blue would over power everything but it didnt even at a mix of 70/70. currently on 40/70 and not too low down. Colour rendition is perfect and everything looks so clear and natural. Plants really pop.
I know Dan Crawford had mentioned my tank looking really clear when he popped by to say hello and have a snoop, but this made it look like there was no water in the tank.
heres a couple of pictures of the units over the tank, i havent adjusted colour or anything. their is a slight yellow to the water purely from the alder cones but the lights even seemed to make that almost invisible.
Luckily i have a par meter on loan currently and when i tested them on full whack, the readings are massive. i have them written somewhere so will stick them up. in water too the par was far greater than other units ive had.
ive only ever had a couple of led units before but Really impressed with the look, controllability, and the price range is good too. they'll take me a bit of tinkering to find the right limit to stay below before i go hitting high light.
The storm function is fun to play with too and flick it in demo mode and you can really see what you can do with it.
They start from £225 for the 12 inch up to £875 for the massive 72inch unit.
Which compared to the rest of the range eco lamps offer is really cheap.
These were from www.eco-lamps.co.uk.
I spoke with Rachel throughout the whole shipping process and id ordered a load of seachem ferts from her too as she runs Weston Marine life so is a hobbyist herself. I got constant up to date info on how long was left etc.
The prices along with the picture of the unit are to be updated as the picture of the lights isnt right. I think the whole website is getting updated shortly.
Overall i think these are great units at a really good price and cant wait to get the right size over my set up and see how the tank grows. I haven't got anything negative to say about them which is unusual for me as im always picky. No led buzz, very little heat from the lights themselves and no whirring fans on them which is a bonus too (they dont come with them). well worth a look into. Would be good to see a few other members with one of these above their tanks at some point.
Last edited: