Good lighting?

[Carlsburg]

I'm getting back into the hobby after a year or so out and have been throwing around the idea of going full T5 for my tank because of cost and temperature issues. The dimensions of my tank are as follows: 24"L X 18"W X 21" D. I have my old trusty icecap 660 ballast laying around and was thinking of using it to drive my T5's, however I am only able to use the 24W bulbs due to the length of the tank. I was going to run 4 24W bulbs, 2 11k aquablues and 2 Blue Plus, in TEK parabolic individual reflectors. Will this be enough light for an BB sps only tank? Or will I have to only place the sps on the top half of the tank? Thank for any suggestions,

Thomas

 

[Carlsburg]

nobody?

nobody?

no one's got any experience with the 24 w T5 bulbs? They should be the same brightness as the larger bulbs per length of the bulb right?

 

[gvibes]

I'm just a noob, but I really doubt that's enough for keeping SPS. I would pick up a single 175 or 250W metal halide setup.

 

[Carlsburg]

lights

lights

i've run several reef tanks over the years ... from 50 gal up to 150 gal and run everything from 175W and 400W SE to 250W HQI's and while i've been happy with the results, the heat is a big problem. And what with the success of people like danano and his TOTM, i wanted to try out the new technology.

 

[raynist]

I run the tek fixture on my 75g tank and have acros on the bottom doing well. I run 3 11k and 3blue plus.

I am not sure about using the 660 on the 24w lights though.

 

[RichConley]

Dont run T5s to save $$, theyre not really any cheaper.

If you think theyre a better option for your tank than MH, then run them.

 

[Carlsburg]

icecap 660

icecap 660

anyone tried running the 24w bulbs on the icecap ballast? I imagine they'd be overdriven quite a bit there. A new ballast isn't really a problem, they are pretty cheap and easy to find. Mostly my desire to run T5 comes from heat concerns regarding metal halides.

Thomas

 

[GrumpyDave]

You can run 2, 3 or 4 power compact bulbs with your 660.

References:

http://www.icecapinc.com/flapp.htm

and here:

http://www.icecapinc.com/aq.htm

Click on "Fluorescent Wiring Diagrams" to get info on how to wire up each configuration.

dave