The T5 Q&a Thread

[naterealbig]

Thanks so much Grimm!

 

[uf_gators]

Thanks for your help!

Your Welcome !

 

[revobreaker]

Go with the LET. It will perform better than the Tek stuff.

For 6 bulbs go with 4 ATI Blue Plus, 1 ATI Purple Plus and 1 GE6500k. For the fans you will want all the label ends of the bulbs on one side and have a fan blowing directly at that spot. Then have another fan pulling air out of the canopy.

Thank you.

At the moment the back of the canopy is open. Would it be better to just have two fans blowing down the bulbs?

And is it ok to have the bulbs sit directly over open water, or does there need to be a cover or lens made from acrylic?

 

[doctorgori]

if anyone can field this question I'd be appreciative:

How does a 4 bulb 49" powermodule stack up against a 6 bulb Tek? ...I've noticed the 4 bulb powermodules have come down in price and I'm wondering if its because the
Dimmable SunPower are now available/....

my choices are then:
$313 for the 48" 6 bulb Tek
$499 for the 48" 4 bulb powermodule
$659 for the 6 bulb dimmable Sunpower

I can purchase the Tek straight away but spending $800 requires more manuevering ...I got a Apex and saw somewhere the Sunpower won't like it...anyone got more info?

Thanks

 

[The Grim Reefer]

Thank you.

At the moment the back of the canopy is open. Would it be better to just have two fans blowing down the bulbs?

And is it ok to have the bulbs sit directly over open water, or does there need to be a cover or lens made from acrylic?

You just need a fan blowing in from the back down one row of endcaps to cool the end of the lamps.

As long as it's more and about 3 inches above the water you don't need a shield.

 

[The Grim Reefer]

if anyone can field this question I'd be appreciative:

How does a 4 bulb 49" powermodule stack up against a 6 bulb Tek? ...I've noticed the 4 bulb powermodules have come down in price and I'm wondering if its because the
Dimmable SunPower are now available/....

my choices are then:
$313 for the 48" 6 bulb Tek
$499 for the 48" 4 bulb powermodule
$659 for the 6 bulb dimmable Sunpower

I can purchase the Tek straight away but spending $800 requires more manuevering ...I got a Apex and saw somewhere the Sunpower won't like it...anyone got more info?

Thanks

Denpends on the size of the tank and what you want to raise. The ATI will have higher peak PAR but the Tek will cover a larger area.

 

[TropTrea]

I have an 8 bulb HO T-5 system and I prefer it because of ability to fine tune the light spectrum.

One circuit is using 3 Atinic bulbs and 1 ATI Blue Plus. for 12 hours

The other Circuit is using 1 ATI Blue Plus, one White Plus, and two 10,000K bulbs for 8 hours.

As time went by I changed my lights considerbly. When I used a 6,600K bulb I had issues with algea growth that was hard to control.

I'm also using white moon lights that I actualy hate. I';m looking at building a LED strip to add blue moonlighting but I'm not sure which LEDS would look the best without upsetting the light cycle.

 

[The Grim Reefer]

I have an 8 bulb HO T-5 system and I prefer it because of ability to fine tune the light spectrum.

One circuit is using 3 Atinic bulbs and 1 ATI Blue Plus. for 12 hours

The other Circuit is using 1 ATI Blue Plus, one White Plus, and two 10,000K bulbs for 8 hours.

As time went by I changed my lights considerbly. When I used a 6,600K bulb I had issues with algea growth that was hard to control.

I'm also using white moon lights that I actualy hate. I';m looking at building a LED strip to add blue moonlighting but I'm not sure which LEDS would look the best without upsetting the light cycle.

If you want blue change the Actinics for Blue Plus. With everything on you'll get just as much pop and a ton more PAR.

 

[revobreaker]

You just need a fan blowing in from the back down one row of endcaps to cool the end of the lamps.

Let me make sure Im understanding that right. If each line represents two bulbs, I would have the fan (represented by the [ ]) blowing perpendicular to the endcaps (or up^ on the screen here)? In this case why wouldn't I want a fan for each set of endcaps?
___________________________________
___________________________________
___________________________________
[^]

Because my Nova extreme ( not a great example I know) has two fans blowing down the parallel length of the bulbs
_________________________________
[>]_________________________________
[>]_________________________________

:deadhorse1: Sorry if this info is already out there, I am not always good at searching:hmm3:

 

[doctorgori]

Denpends on the size of the tank and what you want to raise. The ATI will have higher peak PAR but the Tek will cover a larger area.

TY Grim...Its a 48" 90G... there will be some SPS & Clams ... 10% coupons anyone?

 

[The Grim Reefer]

Let me make sure Im understanding that right. If each line represents two bulbs, I would have the fan (represented by the [ ]) blowing perpendicular to the endcaps (or up^ on the screen here)? In this case why wouldn't I want a fan for each set of endcaps?
___________________________________
___________________________________
___________________________________
[^]

Because my Nova extreme ( not a great example I know) has two fans blowing down the parallel length of the bulbs
_________________________________
[>]_________________________________
[>]_________________________________

:deadhorse1: Sorry if this info is already out there, I am not always good at searching:hmm3:

The Nova isn't a great fixture either. Just on fan cooling one end of the lamps should be fine, trust me.

 

[The Grim Reefer]

TY Grim...Its a 48" 90G... there will be some SPS & Clams ... 10% coupons anyone?

Clams = 6 lamp Sunpower at a minimum. A 6 lamp tek MIGHT be enough. 4 lamps wont get you enough light on the sand to keep clams happy as a..... Well you know.

 

[doctorgori]

I did some shopping around; the ATI fixtures aren't looking like all that bad of a deal... its more upfront $$$ but I don't have to buy cooling fans, splash shield, et plus the new Sunpowers are dimmable (if they would have only made em Apex compatible, he he)

2nd dumb question, but I saw somewhere on a build thread where someone used lil "lazer" thingies to spot thier ceiling hangers...I got a lazer level but these things looked like the tip of a pool cue stick and you simpy sat them on the light fixture (where the hangers would go) and the shot a beam on the ceiling exactly where you would put your hooks....

whew...anyone know what I'm talking about? or alternativley how does everyone generally hang the fixtures so its all "perpendicular" and straight?

 

[mikearoni]

Hi all, Im in need of some advice. Im getting rid of my halides in favor of t5's for my 90g. I am getting 6 36" t5's but unsure of what bulb combination to use. Im looking to grow sps and lps. My lighting is about 12" above the water. I have looked around the boards and was thinking about this setup:

uvl 454
purple plus
ati blue plus
kz
ati blue plus
uvl 454

I havent seen many people talk about the 454's but they look nice. any help will be appreciated
thanks

 

[TropTrea]

has any one done a spectrum plot on the various T-6 bulbs out there . When I used MJ I always liked to refer to Sanjay's plots on the MH bulbs. These lots would be great for the numerious T-6's out there today.

 

[rtparty]

Hi all, Im in need of some advice. Im getting rid of my halides in favor of t5's for my 90g. I am getting 6 36" t5's but unsure of what bulb combination to use. Im looking to grow sps and lps. My lighting is about 12" above the water. I have looked around the boards and was thinking about this setup:

uvl 454
purple plus
ati blue plus
kz
ati blue plus
uvl 454

I havent seen many people talk about the 454's but they look nice. any help will be appreciated
thanks

What fixture or retro are you using? It should be a good setup if you are going to run shorter bulbs over your tank.

I would get the lights closer to the tank too if you want SPS. 12" is a long ways for almost any T5 setup. ATI is about the only fixture that I have seen that can really throw out good numbers when that far away from the tank.

The UVL 454's look nice but they PAR sucks.

For 6 bulbs
ATI Blue Plus
ATI Purple Plus
ATI Blue Plus
GE 6500k
ATI BLue Plus
ATI Blue Plus

You will want all the PAR you can get.

 

[rtparty]

has any one done a spectrum plot on the various T-6 bulbs out there . When I used MJ I always liked to refer to Sanjay's plots on the MH bulbs. These lots would be great for the numerious T-6's out there today.

Almost every T5 bulb has a spectral plot available. Don't know about T6 bulbs because no one really uses them or carries them.

 

[mikearoni]

What fixture or retro are you using? It should be a good setup if you are going to run shorter bulbs over your tank.

I would get the lights closer to the tank too if you want SPS. 12" is a long ways for almost any T5 setup. ATI is about the only fixture that I have seen that can really throw out good numbers when that far away from the tank.

The UVL 454's look nice but they PAR sucks.

For 6 bulbs
ATI Blue Plus
ATI Purple Plus
ATI Blue Plus
GE 6500k
ATI BLue Plus
ATI Blue Plus

You will want all the PAR you can get.

now that i remeasured it, its less than 12" its about 8" above the water. im looking for a setup that will match up to the 20k radiums i had.

 

[The Grim Reefer]

I did some shopping around; the ATI fixtures aren't looking like all that bad of a deal... its more upfront $$$ but I don't have to buy cooling fans, splash shield, et plus the new Sunpowers are dimmable (if they would have only made em Apex compatible, he he)

2nd dumb question, but I saw somewhere on a build thread where someone used lil "lazer" thingies to spot thier ceiling hangers...I got a lazer level but these things looked like the tip of a pool cue stick and you simpy sat them on the light fixture (where the hangers would go) and the shot a beam on the ceiling exactly where you would put your hooks....

whew...anyone know what I'm talking about? or alternativley how does everyone generally hang the fixtures so its all "perpendicular" and straight?

Not sure but you might be able to do the same thing with a laser pointer.

 

[rtparty]

now that i remeasured it, its less than 12" its about 8" above the water. im looking for a setup that will match up to the 20k radiums i had.

Just make sure it is a good setup for the SPS.

I would change the GE 6500k to an ATI Purple Plus then. So 4 Blue and 2 Purple Plus bulbs. Grab an extra Blue Plus to play with.