The T5 Q&a Thread

[hahnmeister]

The life of any phosphor based bulb is more depending on how cool you can keep the bulb. If there was a way to keep the bulbs in freezing temps, our T5s would last us 2x as long. If you use effective enough cooling, there is no doubt that the overdriven T5 can last just as long as a regular driven one...the question is if enough cooling is possible, since you cant actually blow air across the inside of the bulb where heat might build up faster than the outside surface.

Just use fans and you should be fine.

 

[mech]

Hey guys, what blub combination should I start out with for my tank

its a 33L and im using a 2x54w

I was going to try the the new UV atinic and 12k blubs, would the 12k drown out the blue?

the UV are getting hard to find so on the Geismann side should I try the Atinic + and the Aquablue or the Pure Atininc and Aquablue?

 

[R33f3r]

mech, I personally would go with a SA and AB or AB and a Blue +.

 

[mech]

AB and a Blue + on the way, thanks...

 

[rtgordon]

I have a 72g rr bowfront, and I got my 4x54w sls tek fixture set up running on the empty tank that I am going to transfer my reef into... Thanks reefgeek!

I know that for mine, the two most popular seem to be either 2 AB/2 B+ or 1 AB, 1 GE, and 2 B+.

My main question is, with an anemone in my tank, should I keep the GE in there or can I run with 2AB/2B+? It has been thriving for 2+ yrs in my 45 high with 2x96w pc.

 

[The Grim Reefer]

You wont lose a huge amount of PAR swapping a GE for and Aquablue.

 

[somethinfishier]

How well would zoos and ricorda do under 4x39 watts and a icecap 660. I have 4 VHOs and I just do not like the color. Would the T5s out perform the VHOs? From the pics I have seen I am pretty sure that I would like the color better, which wouldnt take much. What do you guys think? It is a 58 gallon tank.

 

[The Grim Reefer]

4x39 on an Ice Cap would be a huge increase in light. I think I would run 1 daylight, 2 blueplus and 1 actinic.

 

[mission man]

Im looking to up grade to a 120g 48x24x24 and wanting to go with t5. Should I go with 4x54 icecap and 2x54 tek. Any suggestions. How many fans in the canopy?

 

[Pufferpunk]

Since I will be mounting mine into a canopy, how can I keep salt from spraying on the bulbs & reflectors?

 

[The Grim Reefer]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7656573#post7656573 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by mission man
Im looking to up grade to a 120g 48x24x24 and wanting to go with t5. Should I go with 4x54 icecap and 2x54 tek. Any suggestions. How many fans in the canopy?

That would be a good setup, Id run a couple fans blowing across the lamps.

 

[The Grim Reefer]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7656581#post7656581 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Pufferpunk
Since I will be mounting mine into a canopy, how can I keep salt from spraying on the bulbs & reflectors?

Keep the lamps at least 4" above the water and there shouldn't be an issue.

 

[mission man]

I forgot to mention that I have a 660 icecap ballest already. If I got the 4x54 tek instead of the icecap would I need a different wireing harness of some sort. Thanks for the help Grim:smokin:

 

[xsiborg]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7656596#post7656596 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by The Grim Reefer
That would be a good setup, Id run a couple fans blowing across the lamps.

I am also looking into the same upgrade as Mission Man (120G 48X24X24). But I will be going pure SPS/Clams. I was thinking of an Icecap 8x54 T5 Retro. Would that be enough for clams and SPS? What would be a good bulb combination. I would really like a look of something like a 14k. Thanks for the help Grim!

 

[The Grim Reefer]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7656607#post7656607 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by mission man
I forgot to mention that I have a 660 icecap ballest already. If I got the 4x54 tek instead of the icecap would I need a different wireing harness of some sort. Thanks for the help Grim:smokin:

You would use the IC wiring harness into the T5 endcaps. If you still don't have the IC harness you can buy new ones. Reefgeek should sell them. I would stick with IC reflectors, even if you order a Tek retro Geek will upgrade you to IC reflectors cheap.

 

[The Grim Reefer]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7656812#post7656812 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by xsiborg
I am also looking into the same upgrade as Mission Man (120G 48X24X24). But I will be going pure SPS/Clams. I was thinking of an Icecap 8x54 T5 Retro. Would that be enough for clams and SPS? What would be a good bulb combination. I would really like a look of something like a 14k. Thanks for the help Grim!

That will be plenty of light. I would run 1 GE 6500K Daylight, 1 ATI Sun, 2 aquablues, 1 Actinic and 3 Blue Pluses. Order the GE as a spare lamp cause they are cheap. Include a 3rd Aquablue in the lamps you get with the fixture. If you lose a blue or day lamp they are a decent replacement for either and you need to have a spare lamp on hand.

 

[ChiaJunkie]

Okay, so I've just read through this entire thing. It was incredibly informative, and I really appreciate all of your contributions. That being said, I feel like I have absorbed very little of it, maybe from reading it all at once.

Regardless, I have a couple of questions I would love to have answered. I'm planning a light upgrade for my new 40 gallon (36x15x16) acrylic. I'd like to use t5's for energy efficiency/ not wanting to buy a chiller concerns.

Ideally, I'd like a mixed reef focused primarily on LPS and softies. I'm considering an aqualux deal using a workhorse 5 to power a few 39 watt bulbs. How many bulbs should I use to avoid frying lps and softies? What bulb colors will give me a 15k overall appearance and good coral growth?

Thanks in advance.

 

[The Grim Reefer]

I think Aqualux is history. You can get the stuff to throw a 3x39 system together. I'd run 1 Aquablue and 2 Blueplus lamps. You should have more than enough PAR and a sweet blue color to the light but not too blue.

If you could find them Helios has come out with a new line of T5 strip lights. They each have a 4 1/2" wide reflector which would be perfect for your tank. 2 Superblues and a daylight would be fine.

 

[ChiaJunkie]

Thanks for the insanely fast reply. Would you know where I could get a cheap Helios retro kit?

 

[NiTr0x911]

Paging Grim Reefer : I know Im being lazy and can't read the 2 days worth of posts here but If you were me (and trust me you wouldnt want that ! ) and were setting up a 125 with a mix of lps,some softies,and a possible clam or 2 what size bulbs,what brand bulbs and color mix and what type of ballast would YOU use? Thanks in advance !