The T5 Q&a Thread

[chris88]

Bring the light as close to the water as possible, within reason not to have salt creep getting on the bulbs or sheild. The Par levels increase a lot more the closer the lighing is to the surface.

 

[Anthonius]

Hey Grim,

I got a standard 48" 75G tank and I got a 6 bulb fixture... i was wondering what the best bulb combo would be if i want to hold sps and have a nice pop in color from my zoas i love a blue color i just dont want it "fake blue" if you catch my drift.

 

[The Grim Reefer]

Hi Grim,

I have read just about everything on this forum that you have posted. I have a question for you. I just bought the aquaticlife t5 6 bulb fixture as an upgrade from my nova extreme pro 6 bulb fixture. I have searched everywhere and I cannot find Par ratings for this fixture. I hope I didn't make a bad mistake buying this fixture to replace my nova pro. So far I like the fixture, it is great quality and seems to be slightly brighter, but the human eye is not a good judge of par. Do you know where I can find Par ratings for this fixture. It cost almost double the tek so I am hoping it's at least if not better then the tek and the nova pro.

Sideways move at best. I personally havent tested the AL stuff but a friend here that did said the out put was dismal. Just looking at the design of the fixture I am not sure if they are better or worse than a Nova but it's definitely not in the same league as the good stuff.

 

[The Grim Reefer]

Grim,
One more question for the master. I am having a hard time figuring out how close to have my Sunpower to the water on my 90G Tech. Right now it is a "fist and two fingers" above the top eurobrace

Recent FTS:

I have SPS frags and corals in the upper 3rd of the tank, other LPS in middle and lower part of the tank. I've experimented with different heights of the fixture but was unable to conclude what the optimal height should be. What do you think?

You will just have to keep watching and playing. I can't tell you the best height, only your critters can do that.

 

[The Grim Reefer]

Hey Grim,

I got a standard 48" 75G tank and I got a 6 bulb fixture... i was wondering what the best bulb combo would be if i want to hold sps and have a nice pop in color from my zoas i love a blue color i just dont want it "fake blue" if you catch my drift.

Try 4 ATI Blue Plus, 1 UVL Actinic White and a GE 6500K Daylight.

 

[Justusfish]

60" 8x80 ATI PowerModule over 72 inch 26 inch deep tank

60" 8x80 ATI PowerModule over 72 inch 26 inch deep tank

Will this fixture be suitable over a 72 inch tank? I don't really have any rock on the six inches on either side of the tank. I want a mixed tank so trying to figure out if this will work and if so, what bulbs can I get in the 60" length that work best for a mixed tank. I am trying to avoid a tank that's too blue.

 

[The Grim Reefer]

Will this fixture be suitable over a 72 inch tank? I don't really have any rock on the six inches on either side of the tank. I want a mixed tank so trying to figure out if this will work and if so, what bulbs can I get in the 60" length that work best for a mixed tank. I am trying to avoid a tank that's too blue.

Be fine

4 ATI Blue Plus, 2 ATI Aquablue and 2 KZ Fiji Purple would be good.

 

[Joel A]

he grim-- How do the Sfiligoi stealth fixtures compare to the ATI powermodule fixtures? Have you tested them or heard anything about them? I would guess that based on the price/quality of materials used that they would perform just as well if not better than the ATI.. but that's just speculation.

I'm looking at the 36" version with 8 t5 bulbs and 2x150 watt HQI's, i figure that'd be a great setup for a 120 gallon SPS tank.

 

[rtparty]

he grim-- How do the Sfiligoi stealth fixtures compare to the ATI powermodule fixtures? Have you tested them or heard anything about them? I would guess that based on the price/quality of materials used that they would perform just as well if not better than the ATI.. but that's just speculation.

I'm looking at the 36" version with 8 t5 bulbs and 2x150 watt HQI's, i figure that'd be a great setup for a 120 gallon SPS tank.

Somewhere in the last 10 pages Grim answered this question to other reefers.

The Sfiligoi Grim tested was a BIG disappointment. The numbers were terrible for the price and the fixture had no active cooling. He even tried mounting an external fan but it did nothing for the performance.

As for the new fixtures, I haven't seen any numbers. With what people spend on these fixtures they should be able to get a PAR meter to test them but no one ever has to my knowledge. That in itself is disappointing to me.

They have supposedly added active cooling now and made some improvements to the fixtures. That is a good thing because there is a guy here on RC that had a TERRIBLE experience with Sfiligoi. He spent months trying to get them to fix their problem. I don't think he ever got any help from the company. Spending that kind of money and not getting help is a huge turn away for me. I heard they have a distributor here in the States that is good to deal with but I still would never use them. ATI has been hands down one of the best companies to deal with. They honor their warranty as a company and you also have Reefgeek to work with.

If you are set on using both MH and T5 then this probably is the best fixture I have found. The Aqua Photon stuff is the price of a small car and looks pretty bad to me. No active cooling on the T5's from what I have been told.

For the price, an 8 bulb ATI Powermodule is the bang for your buck between the Sfiligoi and ATI. But again it all comes down to personal preference.

Hope that helps, that is just my opinion on the subject.

 

[Joel A]

Somewhere in the last 10 pages Grim answered this question to other reefers.

The Sfiligoi Grim tested was a BIG disappointment. The numbers were terrible for the price and the fixture had no active cooling. He even tried mounting an external fan but it did nothing for the performance.

As for the new fixtures, I haven't seen any numbers. With what people spend on these fixtures they should be able to get a PAR meter to test them but no one ever has to my knowledge. That in itself is disappointing to me.

They have supposedly added active cooling now and made some improvements to the fixtures. That is a good thing because there is a guy here on RC that had a TERRIBLE experience with Sfiligoi. He spent months trying to get them to fix their problem. I don't think he ever got any help from the company. Spending that kind of money and not getting help is a huge turn away for me. I heard they have a distributor here in the States that is good to deal with but I still would never use them. ATI has been hands down one of the best companies to deal with. They honor their warranty as a company and you also have Reefgeek to work with.

If you are set on using both MH and T5 then this probably is the best fixture I have found. The Aqua Photon stuff is the price of a small car and looks pretty bad to me. No active cooling on the T5's from what I have been told.

For the price, an 8 bulb ATI Powermodule is the bang for your buck between the Sfiligoi and ATI. But again it all comes down to personal preference.

Hope that helps, that is just my opinion on the subject.

Thanks for the input. My understanding is that Sfiligoi has gone a long ways to address the active cooling issue, adding 1 fan for every 2 t5 bulbs, making the cooling the same as the ATI PM. IT also has the sort of "mesh" like fixture material, that i would assume also helps cool the fixture.

My understanding is that with a real US distributor now that the customer service all comes straight from aquatics elite, and it's much easier/more hassle free to get warranty work or replacement parts for the Sfiligoi fixtures now.

But i'd like to see how a new model tests out before investing that kind of coin in it..

 

[chris88]

Hey Grim,

I hope it's at least somewhat better then that nova pro. Here in Canada that fixture cost me 549.99. I could have purchased an ati or a new tek for that price. I heard some good reviews and I liked the led and the built in timer so i may have jumped in to early. Is it just the reflectors that make a difference or is it the ballast that are driving the bulbs. The Reflectors look pretty good and the fan is doing a great job. I will post some pictures for everyone soon.

 

[The Grim Reefer]

But i'd like to see how a new model tests out before investing that kind of coin in it..

Thats my feelings EXACTLY!!! Too much money for me to drop without knowing for sure. There are enough PAR meters out there now someone should be able to get some numbers.

 

[Joel A]

Thats my feelings EXACTLY!!! Too much money for me to drop without knowing for sure. There are enough PAR meters out there now someone should be able to get some numbers.

looking at it/reading the specs i would think it would perform top notch, but it's hard to say without real data .

Come on someone, post it up!

 

[The Grim Reefer]

Hey Grim,

I hope it's at least somewhat better then that nova pro. Here in Canada that fixture cost me 549.99. I could have purchased an ati or a new tek for that price. I heard some good reviews and I liked the led and the built in timer so i may have jumped in to early. Is it just the reflectors that make a difference or is it the ballast that are driving the bulbs. The Reflectors look pretty good and the fan is doing a great job. I will post some pictures for everyone soon.

Don't know what they are using for ballasts. The 4 lamp reflectors look like a joke to me but who knows, could hang with a Nova.

 

[chris88]

I am using the 6 lamp version, the fixture is slightly different i wonder if they both use the same reflectors.

 

[maroon2]

Hey Grim would it be possible and/or worth it to put the aquactinics reflectors in a nova extreme 8x54. I traded my Oddyssea metal halides for this fixture plus got some cash. I was going to sell the current and see about a tek elite or maybe a sunpower but I wonder how the current would do w/ some good reflectors. I know ea reflector is 2" but I thought w/ a little persuasion I could fit all eight in there. I know Ati or even Tek would be ideal but just exploring other avenues. Do you think this would be a good retro? BTW its for a 75. Also if I went w/ sunpower would the 6 bulb be enough for clams and anemones?

 

[maroon2]

Also Grim I wanted to make a separate post for this.
THANK YOU
You constantly get drilled here every day having to answer the same or similar Qs over and over again and you just keep on answering them. I just wanted to let you know that it is not taken for granted. You are a real asset to this forum.

 

[The Grim Reefer]

I am using the 6 lamp version, the fixture is slightly different i wonder if they both use the same reflectors.

Not based on the design drawings I saw. The 4 lamp reflectors were pretty funkadylic :bounce2:

 

[The Grim Reefer]

Hey Grim would it be possible and/or worth it to put the aquactinics reflectors in a nova extreme 8x54. I traded my Oddyssea metal halides for this fixture plus got some cash. I was going to sell the current and see about a tek elite or maybe a sunpower but I wonder how the current would do w/ some good reflectors. I know ea reflector is 2" but I thought w/ a little persuasion I could fit all eight in there. I know Ati or even Tek would be ideal but just exploring other avenues. Do you think this would be a good retro? BTW its for a 75. Also if I went w/ sunpower would the 6 bulb be enough for clams and anemones?

You might be able to get the stamped Tek reflector to fit in there, not sure what effect persuading them will have on the Aquactinics.

 

[juniorjose]

i got a few question. i have a 29 gallon tank that 30by12by18. right now i have a 130 pc lighting on it. alot of people said i wont be able to keep much in there. in the future i wanted to keep some sps and lps with some softies. what would be a good lighting for the tank? is mh better than T5 in this matter? which one will give more growth?