T5 users, please post you bulb combination!

[ReefCowboy]

Just fyi........# of bulbs only will affect width not depth. More bulbs does not = more par or depth penetration.

If each bulb is 300, 4 bulbs is 300 as well & 6 bulbs are also 300. 6 bulbs will have a wider coverage and hit a coral from wider angles so it may help it grow/color better as it's covering more area of the coral......especially corals that would fall outside the range of a 4 bulb set up versus a six bulb set up.

6 bulbs will look brighter than 4 bulbs because coverage and overlap is better, but it doesn't create more par.

Dude, read my post again.
I said FRONT TO BACK... Some say width as length deep as width. I wrote front to back, how can you see that as top to bottom...if you want i can also post the credible article that has stated the bulb rule fyi

 

[A. Grandis]

At what height are those numbers?

For my combo I run 2 blue+ and 2coral+

I'm sorry, but I don't know the height. I took notes of the numbers to compare. I don't remember if he gave much details of how the measurements were obtained.
I do know that the comparison was made with same heights and conditions.
That's why I post them together.

Perhaps it's time to do that again.
I still don't have a PAR meter.
Every time I want to get one there is something else that I prefer to spend the money with.

Grandis.

 

[Sugar Magnolia]

Blue plus
Purple plus
Blue plus
Coral plus
Blue plus
Blue plus

 

[A. Grandis]

After debating for a while on the coral+, i got the combo 4Blue+,1 coral+, and1purple+ like some here. I must say it brings a beautilful look. I just switched from 3 blue+ 1 purple+ and two 10ks. Its too early to tell how my acros and sps will react, but i dont see how it wouldnt be ok. Some of my acros had gone from 2" frags to some at about 8" now, so i always thought the lower k was needed for them. What made me switch was tanks of other reefers in the 20k range having not only the growth i had, but also much better color rendition.
I was wondering par on coral+ as well, so will be tagging along if anyone has that info...
If that helps, here is a pic of before and after the switch. The bluer combo, even though looks dark in the pic( its hard to capture the real colors with my camera), in person is much brighter, and the contrast is amazing.

That's very interesting.
Higher Ks, not too high, would probably give them a more comfort spectrum to spread upwards and therefore they would deposit the calcium carbonate in a different pattern. That should have correlation with water flow too, so...
Assuming that water flow wasn't changed, the higher spectrum is what did it alone. PAR is just one more fact to deal with when artificial light comes to the subject.
All I can keep is zoanthids, so...
I noticed that some zoas would prefer higher spectrum in order to reproduce/grow faster. Not all the species though. That's one of the reasons people just can't have all the zoas doing wonderfully at the same time. I've noticed that here is a need of at least one bulb with a lower spectrum range to keep some of the protective pigments on some of the zoas. That's where the bulb combo needs to be addressed with caution.

Thanks very much for your post!!
Your tank looks great!

Grandis.

 

[A. Grandis]

An offshoot question (yes related to the post):

I see a lot of you are using the 6 bulb fixture and was wondering if this has a significant advantage over the 4 bulb one. I have a 4 over a 38g tank.

Thanks..(now back to our regularly scheduled topic)

No problem!
Basically the more bulbs over your tank the better.
You need to keep in mind that reflectors are really important and a great part of the deal too.
That's why the more expensive fixtures will give you the best you can get:
* Reflectors
* Cooling of the fixture
* Design of the fixture
Those 3 points will give you:
* Better light spread
* Longer bulb life
* Light efficiency.

So if you can get an ATI or at least one of those TEKlight fixtures would be great. You can have less bulbs per square inch with better reflectors and take advantage of the extra percentage of light per bulb.
Still I would suggest to get the more bulbs you can with those good fixtures.
I have a 6 bulb ATI PM over my 75gal and an 8bulb ATI PM over my 125gal.

Grandis.

 

[A. Grandis]

One inch, no reflector. Grim's numbers were for bulb comparison only

Yep. Bulb comparison only!

Grandis.

 

[A. Grandis]

The amount of bulbs is relevant if you have a deeper tank.
I have read an article stating you should have 1 bulb per 3" of tank depth( from front to back). In other words, if a tank is 24" deep, considering this rule, an 8 bulb fixture should cover it well. However, in practice, by raising the fixture a bit, you can achieve the coverage with less bulbs. My 6 bulb fixture covers my 24" deep tank very well. Many reefers have had success with a four bulb fixture in 18" deep tanks, however, remember that the more you raise the fixture up to cover the less bulbs, the more the tank bottom will lose in PAR. A 4 bulb fixture in a 38 gal should be plenty IMO

Actually it would be more towards the coverage, and the position of the corals and arrangement of rocks counts lots too.

Grandis.

 

[ReefCowboy]

Hey Grandis, thank you too.
Just wanted to ask bc i saw a zoa only tank that ran his lights for 6 hrs per day in stages like 2 hrs in the am just blues, next 2 hrs just actinics, and the last two lower k, and his zoas looked not only bigger, but colorwise insane.... Probably the best looking zoa tank ive ever seen. Im trying to find it, and will post it here. He stated that he believes his zoas achieve bigger size due to lower time exposed to actinic during the day, therefore their need to morph into bigger size to capture more light?

 

[A. Grandis]

Just fyi........# of bulbs only will affect width not depth. More bulbs does not = more par or depth penetration.

If each bulb is 300, 4 bulbs is 300 as well & 6 bulbs are also 300. 6 bulbs will have a wider coverage and hit a coral from wider angles so it may help it grow/color better as it's covering more area of the coral......especially corals that would fall outside the range of a 4 bulb set up versus a six bulb set up.

6 bulbs will look brighter than 4 bulbs because coverage and overlap is better, but it doesn't create more par.

I agree!

Grandis.

 

[A. Grandis]

Dude, read my post again.
I said FRONT TO BACK... Some say width as length deep as width. I wrote front to back, how can you see that as top to bottom...if you want i can also post the credible article that has stated the bulb rule fyi

I also misunderstood your post. I'm sorry.
The T5s won't work like MHs for deeper tanks (top to bottom).
That's all we need to keep in mind, simply speaking.

Please post the article.
It's always welcome!
Thanks very much!

By the way, if there is anyone with good articles please share...

Grandis.

 

[A. Grandis]

Hey Grandis, thank you too.
Just wanted to ask bc i saw a zoa only tank that ran his lights for 6 hrs per day in stages like 2 hrs in the am just blues, next 2 hrs just actinics, and the last two lower k, and his zoas looked not only bigger, but colorwise insane.... Probably the best looking zoa tank ive ever seen. Im trying to find it, and will post it here. He stated that he believes his zoas achieve bigger size due to lower time exposed to actinic during the day, therefore their need to morph into bigger size to capture more light?

Morph is normally a term used to talk about the colors of the zoas. Of course the shape and size of the disc could be referred also as morph, as well as long/short skirts, but...
The zoas will bring those protective pigments when the lower spectrum is present. That's also "morphing". Bigger discs will be related to other issues also, not only light. I don't think the presence of actinics would have any negative effect on them, because the zooxanthellae would be happy for the presence of the higher Ks all day.
The PAR from blue plus is a very positive way to lit the zoas for all the time lights are on IME. And yes, the presence of lower spectrum for a period of time daily is very important.

There is a great difference between actinic bulbs and blue plus and that's the PAR, mainly. I personally found that the actinics should be substituted by the Blue Plus bulbs any time. Like Grimm said once: " there is plenty actinic in the Blue Plus".

I don't believe the "less hours a day" would make some difference, but the "right amount of light" is the key for success and growth/reproduction rates. He must found a very good way to lit his system and other things are related to what happened, not only light. I wonder if he target/broadcast fed his tank too.

Yes, please give us the link for the thread. That's very interesting. Thanks!!

I had many types of set ups with zoas in the last 18+ years.
Once, long ago, I had a 55 gal with 2 X 250 6500K Iwakis only for mid day (about 3 or 4 hours a day). The rest of the time, about 10 hours a day) the same tank was lit by 4 regular florescent bulbs (T12s with Corallife ballasts). That was when we didn't even had T5s yet. The zoas were crazy growing and the colors were amazing!! There are many types of choices to keep a nice tank running. The combination of light, adaptation of organisms and careful adjustments are really important. The response from the organisms are different to many types of set ups, so...

Please keep in mind that nowadays we have also many different ways to make a tank to look good with photoshop too, so... Not to judge anyone, but to remind us of the fact.

I'll be waiting for the link though...

Thanks again!
Grandis.

 

[Firegrant]

Nobody uses Aquablue Special Anymore?

I remember that it used to be that everyone used Aquablue Special and Blue Plus Bulbs only. What happened?

I too am still running Aquablue specials on my 4 bulb T5 fixtures. I was just about to purchase new light and saw this thread.

I am running on my 150g SPS/LPS tank:
Blue plus
Aquablue Special
Blue plus
Aquablue Special

What would be the best combo for me to run now with the new light?

 

[Big E]

Dude, read my post again.
I said FRONT TO BACK... Some say width as length deep as width. I wrote front to back, how can you see that as top to bottom...if you want i can also post the credible article that has stated the bulb rule fyi

Usually "width" is the common term for front to back so I read it that way.

You were stating "depth" which is common for vertial depth..........just a misunderstanding. I'm just trying to share info as you are.......it's all good.

 

[ReefCowboy]

Usually "width" is the common term for front to back so I read it that way.

You were stating "depth" which is common for vertial depth..........just a misunderstanding. I'm just trying to share info as you are.......it's all good.

Agreed, we are all on the same page. All good here

 

[ReeferBatman]

Just fyi........# of bulbs only will affect width not depth. More bulbs does not = more par or depth penetration.

If each bulb is 300, 4 bulbs is 300 as well & 6 bulbs are also 300. 6 bulbs will have a wider coverage and hit a coral from wider angles so it may help it grow/color better as it's covering more area of the coral......especially corals that would fall outside the range of a 4 bulb set up versus a six bulb set up.

6 bulbs will look brighter than 4 bulbs because coverage and overlap is better, but it doesn't create more par.

True... unless you add a different bulb...

Red doesn't fade out in the depths of our aquarium (the first to fade out in depths the sea).

No way will T5 light be phased out enough by the depths of our tanks to negate different a bulb.

Now we use few certain phosphors to create all colors from our T5 bulbs... and PAR, photosynthetically active radiation, will only increase with the increase of different nm - as the varied requirements for particular coral's photosynthetic needs span a great range of nm (~340-670). If you give a coral 450nm and ONLY 450nm, it won't color up very well (or do to well given the range needed for fluorescence). Most fluorescent proteins need a somewhat varied assortment of light exposure (~30-50nm at very least) to fully thrive.

So what I'm saying... is that adding another Blue bulb in your 6 t5 setup won't increase PAR (although it will increase INTENSITY of those nm), HOWEVER a different color bulb will increase PAR inherently, as you are adding additional nm to the equation...and the hundreds of photosynthetic species in our coral need that variety (depending on the corals you keep)!

Anyways, my setup right now is...

Back to front...

ATI Blue Plus
ATI Coral Plus
LED 450nm LEDs
ATI Actinic
ATI Actinic
AquaticLife 10K
ATI Blue Plus

The lights are setup on 4 timers for a step up-step down increase/decrease in light/intensity. The 10k/Blue Plus up front are only on for 3 hours of the 9 hour 'day'.


ATI has great colors, and their bulbs are top notch in quality and intensity but my experiments with the Aqua Blue Special have left me convinced that the extra yellows in the 10k's are needed by certain corals... it's weird, unless you have the coral that needs that nm spectrum, you won't notice... most of my corals went unchanged except 3 particular corals that had fluorescent yellow proteins that had significantly diminished in fluorescence...

The PAR graphs of 10K bulbs are similar to that of the GE6700 bulb... both do well to give much variety of [higher nm] light for a T5.



Then balance that with your 'viewing pleasure' = bluer is prettier = I find it takes 3 actinic/blue bulbs to 'blue down' the looks of a 10k bulb....

 

[A. Grandis]

There is more to light than just PAR.
Basically speaking, PAR and intensity work together with the coral's abilities and needs.
The photosynthesis, fluorescence, reflection and heat released that occur in the cells from absorbed light is greatly responsible for the production/changes of protective pigments. Every particular coral, zoa and anemones will have their own needs. That's why is good to "play" with the T5 bulbs and find something close to a common denominator.

I do see the need of different bulbs besides the "blues", so called "whites".
In many cases, I believe the presence of a 6000K - 10000K bulb should be part of the combination in any T5 fixture.

Please keep posting your opinions...

Grandis.

 

[A. Grandis]

I too am still running Aquablue specials on my 4 bulb T5 fixtures. I was just about to purchase new light and saw this thread.

I am running on my 150g SPS/LPS tank:
Blue plus
Aquablue Special
Blue plus
Aquablue Special

What would be the best combo for me to run now with the new light?

That is a billion dollar question!
LOL!!!
You'll have so many people telling you what to do... LOL!! :mixed:

I think you should open a brand new thread just for you.
Just kidding!! :thumbsup:

It's really up to you.
I would suggest to keep reading and see what people are posting.
There are so many ways to make a tank look great and still have wonderful colors and healthy organisms, so...

Grandis.

 

[Sever]

My Ati lamp.
My tank has two sides so front is were you look
Ati B+, ABS, B+,C+ LED 3x75W Purple, B+ ABS, B+





From one side

 

[Firegrant]

That is a billion dollar question!
LOL!!!
You'll have so many people telling you what to do... LOL!! :mixed:

I think you should open a brand new thread just for you.
Just kidding!! :thumbsup:

It's really up to you.
I would suggest to keep reading and see what people are posting.
There are so many ways to make a tank look great and still have wonderful colors and healthy organisms, so...

Grandis.

Yep, I am now seeing the problem with having just 4 bulbs! lol

 

[ReeferBatman]

There is more to light than just PAR.
Basically speaking, PAR and intensity work together with the coral's abilities and needs.
The photosynthesis, fluorescence, reflection and heat released that occur in the cells from absorbed light is greatly responsible for the production/changes of protective pigments. Every particular coral, zoa and anemones will have their own needs. That's why is good to "play" with the T5 bulbs and find something close to a common denominator.

Grandis.

We're on the same page.

Except, although the Blue Plus does offer some actinic light, it offers very little intensity. I choose to supplement those lower (more likely to be utilized photosynythetically) nm with Actinic AND Blue Plus.

To help the discussion, here are some par graphs.


Here is Par of Natural sunlight (around Hawaii I think it was)

And how it relates/drops nm @ depths

And here is my own personal tank's mixed PAR graph resulting from the my arrangement of bulbs listed before. You can vizualize how removing those actinics would effect the intensity of the nm offered...

Now for bulb listings... I used to have a ton more but they got lost when my comp crashed. Anyways here's what I still have.

ATi Purple Plus

vs other Brand Purple Bulbs

ATI Blue Plus

AquaticLife 420/460

Coralife Actinic