The T5 Q&a Thread

[zensaiyan]

hi. i was wondering if i could get some feedback on a bulb combo. it is going to be a 6 - 54W ati sunpower fixture. i was thinking of going with:

3 ATI Blue+
1 ATI Aquablue
1 GE 6500K Daylight
1 KZ Fiji Purple

any thoughts? also, what order should the bulbs go in?

 

[zensaiyan]

boris,

one possible suggestion is going with the 8 x 39W icecap very high output bulbs ran on the icecap 660 ballast. just stagger the placement of the lights when you mount them.

 

[The Grim Reefer]

Hi, does anyone run a 4 bulb setup of:

Blue+
Fiji
14k
Blue+ ??

Would this be too blue or bluer than say, an aquablue instead of the 75/25 uvl?

Thanks

You wouldn't want to run the Fiji and a 75/25. Use the Aquablue instead.

 

[The Grim Reefer]

Im looking to setup a 24" T5 fixture on my seahorse and am looking for a color spectrum similar to what a phoenix 14k gives. I've never run T5s before so I have no idea what bulbs to choose from. Any suggestions?

2 ATI Blue Plus, 1 ATI Aquablue and a GE 6500K Daylight should be close.

 

[The Grim Reefer]

I have a 48" wavepoint T5 fixture (individual reflectors) and I'd like to keep SPS and clams in my 24" deep 120 gallon tank. What Giesemann bulbs would you recommend?

-Matt

Hate to break it to you but not all individual reflectors are created equal. The wave point isn't a great fixture for a tall tank. I wouldn't try clams or SPS anywhere but the upper half of the tank. As far as lamps I'll assume you have 6

Front
Actinic Plus
UVL Actinic white or KZ Fiji Purple
Actinic Plus
Midday
Actinic Plus
Actinic Plus

 

[The Grim Reefer]

Hey Grim. Would a 24'' 6 bulb ATI fixture work for a 37 gallon (30'' high by 12'' wide by 17'' high) SPS dominated work for even SPS on the sand bed? If so what would be a good 20k ATI bulb combo?

Thanks!

4 ATI Blue Plus, 1 ATI Aquablue and 1 KZ Fiji Purple or UVL 75/25 will be plenty of light for anything in that tank.

 

[The Grim Reefer]

Grim
I just setup the 4x54 watt ATI Sunpower you recomended for my 55 gal setup
what do you recomend as for the times for my lighting . I want to keep mostly SPS and a few LPS and hopefully a clam
thanks again for everything

I like 10 to 12 hours for dusk dawn then anywhere from 4 to 10 hours for the daylights. Really depends what you have in the tank and how fast you want it to grow.

 

[The Grim Reefer]

i have been thinking of using a t5 retro kit on my 125, it has a canopy that has a top 14" off the top of the water, would this be too high off the water if i plan on using 6 80w bulbs? or would i need to lower the bulbs? what is the optimal height off the water for t5 bulbs?

thanks

I'd try to get the lamps about 6" above the water.

 

[The Grim Reefer]

I am currently stuck looking for the right lighting set up. So my set up is going to be 40"x28"x27". Because the length is in between the 36" and 48" T5 set ups I am some what lost on which way I should go.

Thanks for any help I can get,
-Boris

Get a good 8 lamp 36" fixture.

 

[The Grim Reefer]

I seem to be getting a lot of salt spray on my glass shield. My fixture is about 4 inches above the water line. How high does everyone else have theirs?

You could raise it another couple inches, or clean the shield :rollface:

 

[The Grim Reefer]

hi. i was wondering if i could get some feedback on a bulb combo. it is going to be a 6 - 54W ati sunpower fixture. i was thinking of going with:

3 ATI Blue+
1 ATI Aquablue
1 GE 6500K Daylight
1 KZ Fiji Purple

any thoughts? also, what order should the bulbs go in?

Front
Aquablue
Blue Plus
Fiji Purple
Daylight
Blue Plus
Blue Plus

If you want it to look more blue swap the position of the first and last lamps.

 

[nl146]

Hey Grim, I now have a 48" Nova Extreme T5 fixture with two switches, one for white (1,3,5,7) and the other for blue (2,4,6,8). What do you recommend for popping colors under blue with good combination for white light? Thanks.

 

[MattFrancis]

I ordered a Tek 8 bulb fixture. What Giesemann bulbs should I get. I want to have a nice blue color, actinic lighting, but still good growth.

-Matt

 

[platylover]

Hi Grim,

Setting up a new 120G 4x2x2 with some lighting that I have in storage. I have 2 icecap 430 ballasts and 2 250w SE magnetic MH ballasts. What would you suggest in terms of bulbs? I can use either VHO or T5s on the icecaps. For the MH I was thinking either the 14k phoenix or 15k XM, unless you have another suggestion.

Thanks,

 

[fatrip]

Hello Grim,

You may have already answered this question but I was skimming through some of the thread and couldn't find the answer. I was wondering if there is T-5 bulb that is 460nm or very close to that will looks like the 460nm LED's? Also if you can just do a quick recomendation on a 4 bulb system over a 20L. Thanks for your time.

 

[The Grim Reefer]

Hey Grim, I now have a 48" Nova Extreme T5 fixture with two switches, one for white (1,3,5,7) and the other for blue (2,4,6,8). What do you recommend for popping colors under blue with good combination for white light? Thanks.

Do 3 ATI Blue Plus and a UVL 75/25 on the first set and 1 ATI Blue Plus, 1 ATI Aquablue 1 UVL Actinic White and a GE 6500K Daylight on the second.

 

[The Grim Reefer]

I ordered a Tek 8 bulb fixture. What Giesemann bulbs should I get. I want to have a nice blue color, actinic lighting, but still good growth.

-Matt

5 Actinic Plus, 2 Midday's and a Aquablue

 

[The Grim Reefer]

Hi Grim,

Setting up a new 120G 4x2x2 with some lighting that I have in storage. I have 2 icecap 430 ballasts and 2 250w SE magnetic MH ballasts. What would you suggest in terms of bulbs? I can use either VHO or T5s on the icecaps. For the MH I was thinking either the 14k phoenix or 15k XM, unless you have another suggestion.

Thanks,

I'd do a couple of the Reeflux 12K's for halides with 2 ATI Blue Plus on one 430 and 2 VHO Super Actinic's on the other.

 

[The Grim Reefer]

Hello Grim,

You may have already answered this question but I was skimming through some of the thread and couldn't find the answer. I was wondering if there is T-5 bulb that is 460nm or very close to that will looks like the 460nm LED's? Also if you can just do a quick recomendation on a 4 bulb system over a 20L. Thanks for your time.

ATI Blue Plus
G-Mann Actinic Plus
Aquascience 22K
UVL 454

All blue


As far as 4 lamps

ATI Blue Plus
UVL 75/25 or KZ Fiji Purple
ATI Aquablue
ATI Blue Plus

 

[Aquaman101]

I bought a 6x54 Watt Nova Extreme Pro T5HO setup. It says not to run it over an open tank?

Not sure why. It has a splash guard over the lights.

Does anyone know why it's not recommendation to run over an open tank?

What are some less light intensive sps that can grow in 324 Watts of T5 lighting?

Thanks!