The T5 Q&a Thread - split
- Thread starter eagle9252
- Start date
I'd keep Actinic with the blue=-heavy, longer cycle. The heavier reds are on the shorter cycle because red light promotes more algal growth and may brown corals if there is too much of it. Actinic light is good for growth and great for fluorescent color
Thanks!
DavidinGA
Active member
Led+T5's here
300ish led diodes and four 80w t5 tubes over my 210gal.
ATI retro kits with 2 C+ and 2 B+ bulbs
Here's the thing - I really don't like the look of the T5's (turned the leds off to see what they look like) as they are too blue for my taste. I'm a fan of what I have seen out snorkeling and see the crisp white light on shallow reefs without all this crazy blue everyone seems to love in their tanks these days. Even with my leds I always run my whites way higher than the blues (contrary to most people's setups) because I don't like the blue look.
With that said, what T5's would you recommend for a much whiter look? Will my growth slow without B+ tubes if I went with say 4 C+ tubes? What other suggestions do you have?
Thanks
300ish led diodes and four 80w t5 tubes over my 210gal.
ATI retro kits with 2 C+ and 2 B+ bulbs
Here's the thing - I really don't like the look of the T5's (turned the leds off to see what they look like) as they are too blue for my taste. I'm a fan of what I have seen out snorkeling and see the crisp white light on shallow reefs without all this crazy blue everyone seems to love in their tanks these days. Even with my leds I always run my whites way higher than the blues (contrary to most people's setups) because I don't like the blue look.
With that said, what T5's would you recommend for a much whiter look? Will my growth slow without B+ tubes if I went with say 4 C+ tubes? What other suggestions do you have?
Thanks
mhucasey
Acros & wieners, oh my!
You won't have any problems with growth if you switch to all coral plusLed+T5's here
300ish led diodes and four 80w t5 tubes over my 210gal.
ATI retro kits with 2 C+ and 2 B+ bulbs
Here's the thing - I really don't like the look of the T5's (turned the leds off to see what they look like) as they are too blue for my taste. I'm a fan of what I have seen out snorkeling and see the crisp white light on shallow reefs without all this crazy blue everyone seems to love in their tanks these days. Even with my leds I always run my whites way higher than the blues (contrary to most people's setups) because I don't like the blue look.
With that said, what T5's would you recommend for a much whiter look? Will my growth slow without B+ tubes if I went with say 4 C+ tubes? What other suggestions do you have?
Thanks
If you want whiter bulbs, in my opinion Coral Plus are not exactly it though. They to me they cast a pinkish-lavender color. I guess you could put up two coral plus together and see if you like the look of those alone. If you want whiter, crisp white, you may want to go with either:coral plus and ABS
All KZ new Generation
All Gieseman aquablue Azure.
What you have is good and any of the above bulbs, in any combination will be just fine for growth.
mhucasey
Acros & wieners, oh my!
Its really up to your visual preference, the Actinic blue has some actinic in it, going to straight up actinic will just strip out the blue wavelengths and increase the actinic component a bit more.
DavidinGA
Active member
You won't have any problems with growth if you switch to all coral plus
coral plus and ABS
All KZ new Generation
All Gieseman aquablue Azure.
What you have is good and any of the above bulbs, in any combination will be just fine for growth.
Ok Thanks.
What are you thoughts on the GE 6500 bulb for growth? I hear it is pretty yellow, but seeing as I have plenty of leds I don't think I'd have any color issues and it's definitely not a blue bulb (that I dislike).
I have heard the 6500 is a par monster... True?
What about it promoting nuisance algae growth... Problems?
mhucasey
Acros & wieners, oh my!
I have never used it, but I have heard it is very bright, very good for growth, and is significantly more yellow than the bulbs we normally use. Its cheap though, so you may want to give it a shot.
swk
New member
Geisseman also made a similar bulb with their new line. I can't remember the name of it but some big sps guys use it in their prop systems with good results.
If you are referring to the Tropic T5 I am currently using 1 of those in my 8 bulb setup. It's great for growth and seems to be the brightest bulb in my lamp. Casts a bit of a yellow color but this tends to get washed out in my blue and actinic bulbs.
mhucasey
Acros & wieners, oh my!
I was talking about the GE6500k but I think the Tropic is in the same category spectrum wise.
tropic:
Ge 6500K:
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mhucasey
Acros & wieners, oh my!
Not having experience with them i couldn't say for sure, but the more red and yellow i have in my light mix the faster that stuff grows for sure.
I do have a cyano issue but I think it may have more to do with running the purple tubes 8 hours. Tropic T5 is run only 2 hours so it can't be the source. Have moved the purple tubes to run 2 hours too so will know in a few weeks if issue goes away. I may not get the Tropic next time since I prefer a bluer look. But from a SPS growth standpoint it's crazy. I do have 2 Aquablue Azures too so that's plenty white.
DavidinGA
Active member
What's your setup?
ATI Blue+, Gies Actinic Blue, ATI Actinic, Gies Aquablue Azure, Gies Tropic, ATI Purple+, Gies Aquablue Azure, ATI Blue+
I have not seen the GE so I cannot comment but yes it's yellow.
McPuff
New member
That likely has nothing to do with lights. If it's in there, it's in there and low nutrients will not keep it away. Try the Chemi Clean to get rid of that stuff. I've used it in my reef to great success with no issues. Just make sure to shut off the skimmer (even though it says to keep it on)... it's highly effective that way.
jdraider75
Member
I run 5 blue plus 2 Fiji purple and 1 ge 6500k with a blue reef Brite on front of my sunpower. I haven't had it in that long yet to comment on growth but all my acros are liking it. I won't run it with less than an 8 bulb fixture. I know Grim Reefer also recommended it and to run it with 2 purple plus and the rest blue to tone down the yellow. I like the combo and my corals have nice growth tips so I guess they like it too.
I haven't tried the tropic bulb.
I haven't tried the tropic bulb.
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