The Debate Continues MH or T-5?

[kev apsley]

Very True Dave! what bulb you gonna try?

I've run 150W DE Radiums and 250W DE Helios, both are awesome bulbs but began to appear to0 monochromatic to my eye after some time and that was with no supplementation. I recently switched to 250w DE 20K Aqualine Buschke and this bulb has blue, purple, and a nice crisp white that is much less monochromatic to the eye

 

[Michael]

well i voted t5s, im in the trade as well and see what they can do, if they have individual reflectors and are replaced regually i think they are the business, halides are very good as well, most tank of the months have them so they must be worthy, i just think t5s are as good and cheaper to run and cooler imo, and the quality of the t5 lamps these days ensure that all corals can be kept under them.

 

[james3370]

depends on several factors.....for my current tank build (29) i am going w/ t5.

for my dream tank (72x40x24) i'd go MH to get better coverage w/ fewer bulbs since to get full coverage on that size tank i figure it'd take (32) 36" bulbs or (16) 60" bulbs staggered on the ends, but MH w/ good reflectors could do it w/ proabably (3) 400w & a few t5 supplements

 

[Nanook]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=14975749#post14975749 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by kev apsley
Very True Dave! what bulb you gonna try?

I've run 150W DE Radiums and 250W DE Helios, both are awesome bulbs but began to appear to0 monochromatic to my eye after some time and that was with no supplementation. I recently switched to 250w DE 20K Aqualine Buschke and this bulb has blue, purple, and a nice crisp white that is much less monochromatic to the eye

I'm going to try Aquaconnect 250s on Icecap or Galaxy electronic ballast for my four bulbs over the cube tank. This will save me a 1000 watts over the four 400 watt Radiums I currently run. I also have four VHO actinics over the cube which should "help" the ACs.

Radiums are beautiful, but just too power hungry in the 400w variety. I do run four 250w Radiums over my softy/LPS tank and like them, but think I need more natural lighting over the stony tank.

 

[plancton]

A little bit off topic but even though xenias are plague nowadays they give me about $30 a month in frags, I just keep them isolated.

About 6 people have told me their xenias melt or slowly die in their MH tanks, of course it ain´t rule of thumb but it happens a lot.

Even though T5 alone have many benefits, the slow growth is a downer for me, only exeptions are my sky blue stag and yongei acro, although I´m sure the growth is a bit faster on those in MH as well.

 

[Denadai]

I prefer HQI

T5 never will get close to HQI. We can see a lot of T5 tanks, but is to much blue and dark

When I dove in Red Sea, the top of the reef is just like an HQI, a lot of light and clear water

HQI looks more natural than T5, all of us have to agree with that

Two awesome tanks, but the HQI looks natural, while T5 not

 

[Mark426]

For the ultimate...MH/T5 Combo. If I could only have one...T5

 

[Michael]

those tanks are quite fantastic, the top 1 especially

 

[Michael]

whos tank is this

 

[Denadai]

Guys,

This tank is from Italia

See more here :

http://www.reefitaliascience.it/magazine/2007-2/vascamese.html

 

[Ehaze]

I use to have t5, I had good sps growth near the top, and near the bottom, soo... I just did not like the color I was getting, so I switched to MH (for the first time), and could not be happier.

20k radiums are sooooo nice.

 

[kev apsley]

I agree hard to beat 250w Radiums on a Galaxy-e ballast

 

[kev apsley]

Can somebody post some pictures of their tanks with T5/MH mixture?

 

[krowleey]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=14976680#post14976680 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Denadai
I prefer HQI

T5 never will get close to HQI. We can see a lot of T5 tanks, but is to much blue and dark

When I dove in Red Sea, the top of the reef is just like an HQI, a lot of light and clear water

HQI looks more natural than T5, all of us have to agree with that

Two awesome tanks, but the HQI looks natural, while T5 not

beautiful tank. but can't agree with you about the natural opinion. while i like MH and i have had it in the past. i also like t-5. the colors you can get from the different bulb combos are insane.

 

[Floridiot]

I believe a big part of deciding T5 vs MH has to do with the tank dimensions. In my last tank (52 x 26 footprint), it was more efficient to use use T5s. In my current tank (42 x 36 footprint), it is more efficient to use a single MH.

I also really like the look of shimmer lines!