T8, T5,T5HO,LED, RSVP, PDQ?!?! What does it all mean?

[mjenni27]

OK, my title is a little bit of a joke, I know the difference between a t8 and t5 is the connections. But really do not know what I am doing as far as lighting goes.

My wife and I got a 75 gallon tank from her brother about 6 months ago. We have live rock, snails, live sand that are doing well. We have had our issues with fish (had a longnose hawkfish that had to go as he kept eating other fish). I really enjoy the tank and have been learning about choosing fish. We have a yellow tang, three blue reef chromis, two peppermint shrimp, a chocolate chip starfish and two clowns (a maroon and an Ocellaris). So now I am looking at lighting as I would love to have an anemone. And I am lost.

Currently I know we are WAY to low on light. We have a 24 inch Artinic T8 (17w) and a ridiculously small Flourescent to help light up far side of tank. But seriously, I know that we need more lights. So what am I looking for as far as lighting on this. I of course want to not spend a fortune on the lighting but know I need more. Can I conceivably put enough t8 in to get an anemone? What do I need to do if I really do not want to buy a LED at this time?

 

[Taahirs]

T8, T5,T5HO,LED, RSVP, PDQ?!?! What does it all mean?

What's the dimentions of your tank?

Just get a T5HO fixture with high end globes.

 

[billdogg]

For an anemone, you can go T5HO. There are a number of reasonably priced fixtures you can choose from. The downside to T5 is the need to replace bulbs at regular intervals.

 

[Taahirs]

I would only keep a bta.

Wouldn't keep a gig or magnifica unless you've got really high light. This can be done with alot of T5HO

 

[billdogg]

Forgot to add - you Maroon Clown WILL kill the Ocellaris. It is only a question of when. It will also take pieces of your arm when it gets the chance.

 

[mjenni27]

For an anemone, you can go T5HO. There are a number of reasonably priced fixtures you can choose from. The downside to T5 is the need to replace bulbs at regular intervals.

Tank is 48x19x19

So, how many T5 HO bulbs would we need?

And there is no way to add additional t8 to get same level of light I would Assume. I was thinking 3 more t8 (1 actinic and 2 full light).

The maroon is 1/3 the size of the O. Clown. So I need to remove it?

 

[RocketEngineer]

T8 and T5 don't have the same lighting output because the ballast driving the bulb is set differently. A 48" long T8 bulb puts out about 32W while a T5 puts out 39W. While not a big difference, when you have multiple bulbs, it adds up. Plus, T5 fixtures typically have a reflector on each bulb which further increases how much light the tank receives.

For a tank that size, I would look at a 4 bulb fixture that's 48" long. That way all the bulbs are in the same fixture and the colors blend better. I've typically built my lights using T5 retrofit kits while others have purchased fixtures.

For the clowns, you will need to remove one or the other. The maroon is the more troublesome of the two but some folks like them. Unless a tank is huge (300g+) you should only have one species of clown fish per tank.

 

[Bogue Chitto]

I would get an LED light strip, costly at first but will last for a lot of hours without changing bulbs. There are many to choose from , plus they cost less to run. IMO they are cheaper in the long run.

 

[rfurst]

mjenni27, You will need a lot more light for an anemone.

if you are just keeping fish then any lighting you want is fine. Fish do not require anything special.

If you are planning to keep coral and/or the anemone be prepared to spend a lot more in lighting than you think is reasonable.

Just a word about fluorescent bulb sizing. the difference between a T8 and T5 is more than just the connections (pins) they are physically a different size. The bulb diameters are sized in 1/8's. T8 = 8/8" or 1". T5 = 5/8". T12 =12/8 or 1.5",...

T8's that are generally available are not made for aquaria in which you keep photosynthetic life. (yes, some are but very old technology). They have incorrect light spectrum and are weak and inefficient.

My recommendation for anemone's would be at least 6 bulb 48" T5's with high quality individual reflectors. there is quite a selection of bulb choices that produce different wavelengths of light so spend some time learning about what spectrum of light is useful for your live stock and which are mostly for appearance.

That said, having used T5's a lot, If I were setting up a tank for a anemone I'd go with high quality LED.

 

[JamesHolt]

Look online for a Atlas High Bay fixture (6 Bulb)with the reflectors,, they are around $100...

 

[mjenni27]

See, $100 is fine. But at this point I am worried about $500.

 

[JamesHolt]

The fixture is $100, I use one over my frag tank...
Mine has the white metal reflectors, I have mostly low light stuff in it,so the light lost from the white reflector isn't important.. They have them with the polished metal reflectors as well..
The expensive part will be the bulbs...

 

[chimmike]

PDQ = prenatal doctoral quiz

 

[chimmike]

FWIW I like T5's for output, but good bulbs will cost $15/20 each and will need to be replaced like every 8 months.