t-5 or t-12
- Thread starter bizzleb01
- Start date
iamwrasseman
New member
go with the t-5s because of the ease of purchasing bulbs for your personel needs .and i second what noboddi said too .
reefgroupie
New member
I am new to the reef hobby so I hope I don't come off as foolish but have two t5 54w bulbs on my 55 gal tank. Will that be enough light to run a reef. If not how much do you suggest.
yes, you can still only run 4 bulbs off 1 icecap 660, and yes, you get more light output from t5s of equal wattage
t5s are narrower, which means the reflectors can reflect the light around the bulb and into the tank much more efficiently. a t12 is so thick that the reflector reflects much of the light back through the bulb. t5s with individual reflectors increase the light something like 3x. So you get more light, and deeper penetration.
T5s are much more popular so you have many more bulb choices and higher PAR bulbs. There is nothing T12 does that T5 does not do as well or better, the reverse cannot be said
Do they make 60" or 72" T5 bulbs? If not, if you have a 6' tank than that means 2 sets of T5 bulbs to span the length of the tank as opposed to just one T12. If getting lots of light isn't a major requirement, the cost savings of 1/2 the electronics and 1/2 the number of bulbs to replace may be worth considering. Sure a 6' T12 isn't the same cost as a 3' T5 but it's not twice the cost either.
yes, they make 60" T5. 72" no, but a lot of people do retros 1 size smaller, say 48" on a 60" tank, and then stagger the bulbs so the whole tank gets coverage. The only time light isn't a requirement is on a FOWLR tank, and I don't think we would be talking about VHO or options like that if it were FOWLR
I have a splash shield so my T5s are about 3 1/2" over the water
wet reefer
New member
I wouldn't worry too much about staggering the lamps or even using 60". You may find yourself looking for shaded areas after going to T-5. I went with 6- 60" over a 72" (18" deep) tank using Ice Cap reflectors and ballasts leaving 6" at each end with no lamp directly above. It is still too bright for some LPS, Monties and other low light corals at the ends of the tank.
addicted2reefin
New member
u cant look at wattage between pcs and t5s. pcs are apple and t5s are oranges. theres no comparison. oranges kick the #(@# out of apples! the light output on a t5 is a little better than on pcs, also with the individual reflectors, light is better reflected, meaning NO light is wasted going back into the bulb, or elsewhere. there was a test done that ran 3 t5 bulbs with individual reflectors and 4 bulbs with a single reflector covering the all. the 3 bulb had HIGHER par output. a icecap660 will drive the 54watts to 80 watts.
i have 6x54 watt on my 75 and i can keep sps anywhere
i have 6x54 watt on my 75 and i can keep sps anywhere
RC Slocum Rules
New member
There is one application where those who know the difference will choose T-12.
When using an actinic bulb. Using a real actinic bulb, many will choose the t-12 over t-5 because it just has more power. Actinic bulbs are not for PAR but are used for color and the most power you can get is with T-12.
addicted2reefin
New member
a 54 watt t5 bulb can be driven to 80 watts. URI /UVLclaims there bulbs can be STABELY driven to 80 watts. they make on there bulbs v-ho V being variable. it also says 54/80
PAR is the AVAILIBLE ammount of USEFULL light to plants and possibably corals. it hasnt been PROVEN that corals use the same spectrums for PAR, but having a high par hasent been a bad thing in a reef tank.
PAR is the AVAILIBLE ammount of USEFULL light to plants and possibably corals. it hasnt been PROVEN that corals use the same spectrums for PAR, but having a high par hasent been a bad thing in a reef tank.
