Debating going to T5s...
- Thread starter dreaminmel
- Start date
Cptn Spaulding
New member
after spending some time with that captain, im not sure how straight you'll be able to think.
+1 btw
superkat
Premium Member
quite possibly...TMI.:hmm4:
Cptn Spaulding
New member
if you have the hardware, you might as well. saves you tons of money to start up. monetarily speaking T5's in the long run are cheaper, but you dont get the shimmer or look you get with halides. colors pop and you get great growth, but the halides do look a bit more natural, unless you find the perfect combination... and if so let me know because i would love to find that out
jfl14609
Active member
Hey Walter does anyone locally carry 60 inch bulbs? I remember looking for them a while back and they had to be ordered. I do have a fiend running 6 3 foot geissman bulbs not being over driven on a 180 and he keeps mainly lps and anemones and the colors rock it looks great
dan10342
New member
It's all a matter of preference. I personally dont care for the shimmer. I find it distracting to the eye, and takes away from everything else. if you want the shimmer... LED's will give you that.
In MY opinion, the best reef tanks i've seen online, and in person (minus a few MH lit larger local tanks) were lit by t5s. (and we're arent talking 2-4 bulbs here... more like 6-10).
This aquarium (sonny's) was partial inspiration for my own aquarium (mine is not even CLOSE yet) and it is lit by all t5s.
-dan
In MY opinion, the best reef tanks i've seen online, and in person (minus a few MH lit larger local tanks) were lit by t5s. (and we're arent talking 2-4 bulbs here... more like 6-10).
This aquarium (sonny's) was partial inspiration for my own aquarium (mine is not even CLOSE yet) and it is lit by all t5s.
-dan
alphaferret
Pitcher Hill Reef Society
Not alotof experience here but my simple t5 set up has been a great upgrade from my vho-
I shy away from mh because of energy and heat issues-Also i just don't trust all that heat in my home unattended-paranoid I know. The ability to have multible combos seems to be a serious plus.
If you were going all acros I would suggest staying w/ MH+ t5 suppliment-Maybe 150's
The last straw for me was the propagation thread from the guy in Portugal who uses only t5s-his nursery and other tanks are unbelievable! Sorry i forget his name but look in coral props to find his huge thread.
Like I said limited experience here though
and yeah sonnys rimless is awsome
I shy away from mh because of energy and heat issues-Also i just don't trust all that heat in my home unattended-paranoid I know. The ability to have multible combos seems to be a serious plus.
If you were going all acros I would suggest staying w/ MH+ t5 suppliment-Maybe 150's
The last straw for me was the propagation thread from the guy in Portugal who uses only t5s-his nursery and other tanks are unbelievable! Sorry i forget his name but look in coral props to find his huge thread.
Like I said limited experience here though
and yeah sonnys rimless is awsome
captain7359
Active member
I hadn't read that before, but I searched and thats what their claiming. Almost positive I've seen it done though, so I'd be interesting to give it a shot. I can pull my light rack apart easy enough to try it with some 5 footers.
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:rollface::lmao::rollface:
TRS has Giessmans in stock for sure and ABC Fairport may as well
dreaminmel
New member
The Reef Shoppe definately carries them as I saw some there yesterday.
I am definately leaning hard in the direction of changing over. Overall the cost shouldn't be too bad because I've already got a 660 ballast and have access to a nicely priced 430. That just leaves me grabbing reflectors, bulbs and endcaps. The total for everything seems like it's going to be manageable. Plus, I can get at least a little return getting rid of my current MH setup.
With the shimmer, I don't need it. Most people that come to my house and see the tank actually complain that it makes them feel dizzy and they cannot look at the tank for very long. I don't like that. I love that T5s illuminate the entire tank and get rid of many shadows, that I could spread out cost of bulb replacement by doing it in stages, that I could have just as good growth and color in coral and most importantly that the change will cut down on the energy bill. Right now there is 1040w of lighting over my tank...
Dan... I love SunnyX's tank too. I still can't decide if I like this one better or the previous setup. Both = stunning.
Conesus_Kid
Premium Member
I ran 4x54 on an IC 660 with the Icecap clip-on reflectors over my 75 gallon aquarium. The one thing that I didn't like was that there weren't many low-light places to put LPS and other corals that don't like being blasted with PAR.
That being said, I think the 26" height of your tank will help eliminate that problem. Just understand that the overdriven T5's put off a lot more light than you think. I've never bleached a coral under the 250w MH's at school, but bleached plenty under the T5's.
That being said, I think the 26" height of your tank will help eliminate that problem. Just understand that the overdriven T5's put off a lot more light than you think. I've never bleached a coral under the 250w MH's at school, but bleached plenty under the T5's.
I'm having a difficult time using the search function here,I swear its not working at all.Can someone turn the link into an image?
Anyway, heres one that maybe of interest:
http://www.thelightedge.com/img/technology/temp_chart1.gif
Anyway, heres one that maybe of interest:
http://www.thelightedge.com/img/technology/temp_chart1.gif
dreaminmel
New member
Here is the image. 
dreaminmel
New member
I'm definately prepared for some adjustments being needed but am hopeful it won't be too bad. I've always gradually acclimated coral to lighting changes and so far (knock on wood) have only ever bleached two things. Bleached my war coral LPS frag and an orange pavona frag. Now that I've cranked the flow down a bit I have a lot more placement options with them.
Sooo... if I only run three 80w bulbs on the 660 will it still be overdriving them?
mr86mister
Saltaholic
Just my 2 cents to throw in. I am currently running 6 80w t5's over driven to 100w with 2-660 Icecap ballasts. I have a 135 gallon aquarium measuring 72"L x 18"W x 25"H and they fit perfectly in my canopy. I have them fan cooled by two 4" fans and run a dawn/dusk effect. The lighting options for that length are a bit limited from a t5 stand point, but the colors are fantastic. Great depth penetration and they are 13" off the surface.
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