The T5 Q&a Thread - split

[TropTrea]

4 bulb fixture - would this combo and order be good?

GE 6500K
blue+
Coral +
Blue +

or should I use a Purple+ in place of the coral plus? Thoughts?

In a four bulb fixture I woulkd not recommend the GE as it will be too White and you cannot get it blanced. The above will work but move the GE closer to the center.

Look at the color in you own eye. Everyones eye and presonal preference is slightly different. If it looks to yellow or green to you then a purple plus in place of either the coral plus or blue plus will cut that yellowness, It it is to orange in your eye then another blue plus in place of the Coral Plus will work by reducing the red.

My thoughts of ideal with the 4 bulb fixture would be using all coral plus and blue plus bulbs with the ratio between them being personal preference the more coral plus the whiter and brighter it will look and the more blue plus you use the bluer it will look. One GE will brighten it up more than 3 coral plus bulbs would.

 

[Michigan Mike]

For a 6 bulb fixture I would put the two purple lus bulbs with the GE. Actualy any time the GE is used I would put in two of the purle plus bulbs to cut the yellow or ivory tint that most see in this bulb compared to what we thingk is ideal reef lighting. Then I would use Blue Plus bulbs for the remaining bulbs.

IMO this is too much red for a 6 bulb combo, I'll make this combo later tonight and take a pic. I've done 4 blue, 1 GE, 1 purple but never thought about using 2 purples, ill try when I get home.

 

[Sandman6983]

I'm using marineland glass covers on my tank...are there any downsides to doing so with T5s? Any benefits to running egg crate or open water instead? I have a couple jumpy species (Firefish, Long Nosed Hawkfish) so a cover is probably a must, I'd rather keep them from leaping to their death...

Also, the Coralife 4 bulb fixture I have has a thin clear plastic cover under the bulbs, so not too worried about water splashing on the bulbs...

 

[Pfisherman]

hi, i bet you guys get a lot of first time posters on this particular thread. anyway, i have a 4 bulb T5 fixture over a 75. i know that it is not optimal, but it is what i have for now.

what do you think would be the best combination for a balance of par and coloration.

right now i have only a few different polyps, some gsp, and a toadstool.

 

[Tripwyr]

I am currently planning a rather complex DIY LED + T5 build. My plan is to use LED for the white/blue spectrums and 2xT5 to supplement the purple range surrounding the 430nm marker. Knowing that the entire blue-red spectrum is covered down to 450nm, what bulb/bulbs would you recommend for maximum output in the 410-450nm range?

 

[Flood504]

Just ordered 4 blue+, 1 purple +, and a KZ New Gen for my 6 bulb tek fixture. What order should I place my bulbs in? And should I switch out one of the blue plus for something else?

 

[TropTrea]

I am currently planning a rather complex DIY LED + T5 build. My plan is to use LED for the white/blue spectrums and 2xT5 to supplement the purple range surrounding the 430nm marker. Knowing that the entire blue-red spectrum is covered down to 450nm, what bulb/bulbs would you recommend for maximum output in the 410-450nm range?

When working with LED's I have found that the blue plus bulbs are the best suplement T-5's. I just built one for a friend using this same principle. If you go to thread I will list below I will walk you through your build there. This thread is more on strict T-5 builds and that one I started for combination builds with LED's and T-5's.

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2275561

 

[TropTrea]

Just ordered 4 blue+, 1 purple +, and a KZ New Gen for my 6 bulb tek fixture. What order should I place my bulbs in? And should I switch out one of the blue plus for something else?

Front
Blue Plus
Blue Plus
ZK
Blue Plus
Purple Plus
Blue Plus
Rear

 

[TropTrea]

I'm using marineland glass covers on my tank...are there any downsides to doing so with T5s? Any benefits to running egg crate or open water instead? I have a couple jumpy species (Firefish, Long Nosed Hawkfish) so a cover is probably a must, I'd rather keep them from leaping to their death...

Also, the Coralife 4 bulb fixture I have has a thin clear plastic cover under the bulbs, so not too worried about water splashing on the bulbs...

Keep in mind that glass does reduce the short wave lenght light considerably more so than plexiglass does. So I would use plexiglass rather than glass for the cover. From past experience on tank covers plexiglass likes to warp when it is used as a tank cover so you will need to make a frame around it.

 

[TropTrea]

hi, i bet you guys get a lot of first time posters on this particular thread. anyway, i have a 4 bulb T5 fixture over a 75. i know that it is not optimal, but it is what i have for now.

what do you think would be the best combination for a balance of par and coloration.

right now i have only a few different polyps, some gsp, and a toadstool.

If it were mine I go with

Blue Plus
AquaBlue Special
Purple Plus
Blue Plus

I'm running this combo on a 40 breeder tank myself.

 

[Barrier Grief]

What color (K) do these combos (front to back) look like:

B+
P+
B+
C+
B+
B+

B+
C+
B+
B+
C+
B+

90 gal, 24" deep

Thanks,
Grief

 

[Flood504]

Front
Blue Plus
Blue Plus
ZK
Blue Plus
Purple Plus
Blue Plus
Rear

Thanks!

 

[Monkeyfish]

I'm currently running a 6 bulb tek light on a 75 sps reef. Right now I'm usingthe following bulbs

Front
Blue +
Purple+
Blue +
GE 6500
Aquablue Special
Blue +

What do you think of the Lagoon Blue and Coral + bulbs?

I'd like to add a little more "pop" to the color without turning the tank into a Windex display. Any suggestions as to which bulbs to change would be appreciated.

Would replacing the 2nd (from the front) Blue + with an actinic bring out the colors more? Maybe replace the Special with a Coral + ?

 

[Michigan Mike]

What color (K) do these combos (front to back) look like:

B+
P+
B+
C+
B+
B+

B+
C+
B+
B+
C+
B+

90 gal, 24" deep

Thanks,
Grief

Both are pretty blue, the combo with the purple is a little less blue.
They are close to 18k or so.

 

[Michigan Mike]

I'm currently running a 6 bulb tek light on a 75 sps reef. Right now I'm usingthe following bulbs

Front
Blue +
Purple+
Blue +
GE 6500
Aquablue Special
Blue +

What do you think of the Lagoon Blue and Coral + bulbs?

I'd like to add a little more "pop" to the color without turning the tank into a Windex display. Any suggestions as to which bulbs to change would be appreciated.

Would replacing the 2nd (from the front) Blue + with an actinic bring out the colors more? Maybe replace the Special with a Coral + ?

Try removing the ge6500 and trying a new bulb like the coral plus or lagoon blue. I've never seen the lagoon bulb so I'm kinda interested in what others say about it.

 

[smaione618]

im sorry i cant stop trying to figure out what i want to do. right now i have something wrong i know it just dont know what this is what i have

blue+
aquablue
actinic
blue+

what i want to do is get great growth. i have a friend who has 14000k metal halides and his stuff out grows mine about 3 fold. no joke.

this is what i was thinking

1#

blue+
blue+
coral+
blue+

2#
blue+ all

3#
blue+
purple+
coral+
blue+

thanks in advance

 

[Michigan Mike]

im sorry i cant stop trying to figure out what i want to do. right now i have something wrong i know it just dont know what this is what i have

blue+
aquablue
actinic
blue+

what i want to do is get great growth. i have a friend who has 14000k metal halides and his stuff out grows mine about 3 fold. no joke.

this is what i was thinking

1#

blue+
blue+
coral+
blue+

2#
blue+ all

3#
blue+
purple+
coral+
blue+

thanks in advance

Are you cooling the bulbs label ends properly? What fixture do you have?
Growth would be faster if you got rid of the actinic for another blue plus or coral plus, but that doesn't mean lighting is your limiting factor.

Flow, dosing, kalk, more salt changes, feeding etc. all matters.

 

[smaione618]

Are you cooling the bulbs label ends properly? What fixture do you have?
Growth would be faster if you got rid of the actinic for another blue plus or coral plus, but that doesn't mean lighting is your limiting factor.

Flow, dosing, kalk, more salt changes, feeding etc. all matters.

i have an ati sunpower and neither of use dose anything which setup would be best for growth or after i get rid of the actinic would it just be about the look

 

[Michigan Mike]

i have an ati sunpower and neither of use dose anything which setup would be best for growth or after i get rid of the actinic would it just be about the look

I would just go for color personally but the blue plus, aquablue, coral plus are the higher PAR growth bulbs.

Adding a blue plus instead of actinic will give you good growth.
For color I would use coral plus instead of aquablue but it may start getting more blue than you are wanting.

 

[smaione618]

Thank u that is what i have been thinking I herd that using an actinic bulbs with blue plus will basically be like just running the blue plus because it will actually wash out the actinic is this right or just urban legend