T5 Lighting Question

[MrsGsClassroom]

Hello! An 8 bulb T5 light fixture was donated to our classroom by a student's parent. (They used to be in the hobby I guess and dropped it off at the school- I don't know who donated it otherwise I would ask them). It currently has 4 blue bulbs, 2 white, 2 purple and 4 moonlights and 2 fans. It works really well but I wanted to know how high to hang it. We want to host mostly softies and LPS- which will be on the rock work as well as the sand bed.

Also, to me, the lights appear too blue, and my students agree. Its not super visually appealing. (Our white and purple bulbs come on at 8am and turn off at 6pm. The blue is on from 11am-3pm.)Any suggestions on light that is both good for the coral but visually appealing?

Thanks in advance!

 

[thegrun]

6" to 12" off the water would be a good height as long as you have good light spread front to back. By blue bulbs do you mean actinic? If they are actinic you could replace two of the "blue" bulbs with white bulbs. Most of us stay towards a bluer color as it tends to show off the corals better and is less inclined to promote algae growth. On a side note T-5 bulbs should be replaced every 10-12 months as they shift in color and lose intensity over time.