I've been noticing a lot of the led lighting companies are using diffusers on their lights. Do any of you DIYers have any ideas for a diffuser material. The ones I have seen seem to be using a frosted glass, would any frosted glass work?
What can be used as a diffuser
- Thread starter bigroost
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Lazys Coral House
Well-Known Member
Diffusers blend the colors, reduce hotspots from shimmer lines and equal out the PAR. BRS just did a video on Phillips LED that has a diffuser and shared some information about that so we will likely see some discussion on the topic. I thought the video was well done, here is video if anyone wants to watch. @bigroost they have light diffusers at hardware stores but they may significantly reduce par and discolor since they are plastic. Worth a try though to see how it does.
Flippers4pups
Fins up since 1993
The longer I stay in this hobby, the more I see selling strategies swing from one subject at one extreme, then back to the other side to another extreme, with little or no independent laboratory testing done.
Back in the day (for me, early nineties) metal halides were the pinnacle of reef lighting. They grew everything under them, but at a cost. The best tanks full of thriving SPS corals had tons of "shimmer".
People with T5's tried to emulate this "shimmer" by adding LED's strips.
Now, "shimmer"/"disco ball effect" is being labeled "hot spots" and to be avoided like the plague with NO empirical data to back up the claim, just personal interjection and loose "popular today, unpopular tomorrow " rhetoric.
Now, light diffusers are becoming popular based on personal opinion, not independent Laboratory testing. (Back in the day everyone would have thrown any light diffusers in the trash.)
Be careful of "sales" hype.
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Lazys Coral House
Well-Known Member
@Flippers4pups you must not have watched the entire video. They did a pretty good job showing with spectrometer and par meter the results with diffuser plate on and off. They also explained the difference in shimmer from a metal halide (single shimmer line) to led (1 for each led)
I don't think anyone is able to say that there is a benefit to live stock one way or another. Even with testing as there is always variation with living animals. Just like the advanced into LED's many years ago, their is still debate and no imperial data to backup either side. I commend companies that are not staying with the status quo by trying new things. Some will work out and become a standard others will not.
I don't think anyone is able to say that there is a benefit to live stock one way or another. Even with testing as there is always variation with living animals. Just like the advanced into LED's many years ago, their is still debate and no imperial data to backup either side. I commend companies that are not staying with the status quo by trying new things. Some will work out and become a standard others will not.
I have actually just ordered different shades of this "diffuser panel" in the following link and will be trying them out on my reefbreeders led
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000B75TTE/ref=cm_sw_r_sms_awd_xs_imnkybSWCR9JH
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000B75TTE/ref=cm_sw_r_sms_awd_xs_imnkybSWCR9JH
Flippers4pups
Fins up since 1993
lighting diffusers didnt work on leds as they were not powerful enough.
like all diffusion. it makes make the light warmer. in kelvin. ie red yellow orange. (thats why ya don't diffuse MH) glass will probably add green too unless its really good btw.
and yes we are suffering through the trial and error phase of led. My industry is the same. and yse its all diffusers there unless you want spots or shimmer or like that.
happens when we switched to HMI bulbs for arc lights in the 80's, t12 tubes in the 90's, now led.
to reduce shimmer disco and get better spread i pulled the lenses, and used a meter to set the lights. Im going to pass on the diffusion, I have tons in the basement of several flavors.
If you want a diffusion get glas prob. light as you can. you can also look at "half Opal" its movie gel.
the farther you put diffusion from a multiple source the softer it gets. the closer the diffusion is to the multiple source the softer each lil source is. thats why kinoflow Arri and others use BIG THICK KNARLY diffusion to soften the source not thin diffusion. they want a large soft source.
and yes this product is selling hype. thats what advertising is. everybody advertises. but yes this is the future of reefing light in led.
keep in mind. pretty much all light will grow coral. some just a lil better than a t12, or JBJ:D
like all diffusion. it makes make the light warmer. in kelvin. ie red yellow orange. (thats why ya don't diffuse MH) glass will probably add green too unless its really good btw.
and yes we are suffering through the trial and error phase of led. My industry is the same. and yse its all diffusers there unless you want spots or shimmer or like that.
happens when we switched to HMI bulbs for arc lights in the 80's, t12 tubes in the 90's, now led.
to reduce shimmer disco and get better spread i pulled the lenses, and used a meter to set the lights. Im going to pass on the diffusion, I have tons in the basement of several flavors.
If you want a diffusion get glas prob. light as you can. you can also look at "half Opal" its movie gel.
the farther you put diffusion from a multiple source the softer it gets. the closer the diffusion is to the multiple source the softer each lil source is. thats why kinoflow Arri and others use BIG THICK KNARLY diffusion to soften the source not thin diffusion. they want a large soft source.
and yes this product is selling hype. thats what advertising is. everybody advertises. but yes this is the future of reefing light in led.
keep in mind. pretty much all light will grow coral. some just a lil better than a t12, or JBJ:D
organics like paper and cloth add more warmth. ;)
ya know how some folks are about adding RO&Y
dont like the light or just an experiment? Its a cool experiment. peper to try it, if you like the look invest.
I pulled my lenses for the spread instead of diffusion.
Marc.The.Shark
Active Member
I use a self stick diffuser material & have been for the past 4 years. When I set up my first full spectrum diy light, I tried lenses, no lenses & still had color banding or "spots" on my rocks/sand, mostly from the OCW red & cyan. I did some digging & found a guy on RC that tried some different ones with a par meter on a dry & wet tank. The best one that he found was a self stick diffuser called "sand" from an online company called BerlinWallpaper (now out of business). The results of his tests were a 5-7% loss of PAR, reasonable to me at the time for eliminating the color banding. I ordered a roll for $10, which thankfully will last me forever. I installed on my acrylic splash shield & couldn't believe the difference! No more spots on my rocks/sand and plenty of shimmer. I just built a new light with pucks for my new tank & also put some on the splash shield, great shimmer & no color separation. Love it & wouldn't have a light without. I'm also a believer in no lenses for better color mixing, but the diffuser definately helps. Mine sits about a 1/4" below the diodes & the light is mounted 10" above the tank. There's some credibility to this claim, especially with the right material!
Seems to have a lot of "hotspots" maybe would be the right word, I can have a coral that is doing great move it laterally a couple inches and it will bleach. In that video the diffuser really seemed to flatten out the light, It may all be marketing hype and I'll never be able to afford a light like that. I maybe a little experiment if nothing else.
yup, ya saw this?
id sat try the sharks method. $10..
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