The T5 Q&a Thread

[The Grim Reefer]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8783487#post8783487 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by destaf3080
Hello, My Tank is a 56g Column (30x18x24) this is my first tank an i'm just trying to get all the equipment up. i'm having trouble with picking lighting for it. i was looking at 24" 6x24w tek t5. but would that be too much lighting for it? i'm going to have LPS,Mushrooms,and maybe some softies in it.

The Tek will be fine. I think current makes a 30" halide fixture that would be sweet as well.

 

[The Grim Reefer]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8782500#post8782500 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by hahnmeister
Ill be starting a thread later this week (still have to take some pics) about how to do a very nice 'ventilation' mod to a Tek light using nothing but a piece of acrylic and a cross flow fan. I have to wait because I finally get my PAR meter tomorrow. I want to use the PAR meter to show the exact output increase.

Hmmmmm.....

Could there be a new mod kit in our futures?

As best I could tell you don't need to blow air directly on the fans. Just causing good air movement around the unit does the trick. On the retrofit kits cooling the ballast did nothing for the output although I am sure it will help make the ballast last longer.

 

[hahnmeister]

Well, I started today as soon as soon as the Apogee QMSW-SS arrived from UPS. I have some interesting results and comparisons done already on different bulb's response to heat (my G-man blue+ bulbs seem almost impervious to heat buildup, FWIW... fan or no fan, they gave almost identical outputs, onlike my aquablues that seemed to really take it in the shorts when the fan was removed).

Anyways, I took pics of the mod earlier, and I still have to take one later of the acrylic sheild that I modded as well, but I can describe it pretty easily.

 

[hahnmeister]

Okay, I was going to start a new thread... but Ill post things here too since I know people will see it... that gives me time to retest some things and clean things up a bit before I present them in a more formal manner...

First, the PAR meter, a QMSW-SS. I attached it via its mounting screw to a piece of 1/2" CPVC, attached to a mounting 'T' like shown. Then I used a Sharpy to mark the inches above the sensor for easy depth readings. I can swivel the sensor to face straight up on the 'T' as well for tests where the light itself prevents me from holding the unit perpendicular to the water.

 

[hahnmeister]

Okay, the Tek fan is very easy to do... no permanent modding, which was important to me since I will most likely sell my Tek in the coming months and go with my own fixture design.

Here's what it looks like from the end...

 

[hahnmeister]

The fan is a Coolermaster cross-flow fan, STF-B01-E1.

http://www.coolermaster.com/index.p...B01-E1&other_title=+STF-B01-E1+Cross+Flow+Fan

It creates up to 45cfm with a slight 'whirr' noise at full speed, but not bad. Also, you dont even need to run it that fast anyways to get results. Its a 12v fan made for computer case cooling. IT costs about $29 though, and is found at the usual modding sites... www.directron.com, www.frozencpu.com, etc. I have looked for more types of these 'cross-flow' fans... or long blower fans, but with little success, so if anyone has an idea, please let me know. I doubt coolermaster will sell these forever after all.

 

[hahnmeister]

The fan draws in air from the top... the 2"x12" open section, and blows it out of the 1/2"x12" slot in between the bulbs and the water.

My hanging method was simple... I cut up and bent up a couple paper-clips to form hooks that slide inside of the slots at the end of the Tek light.

 

[hahnmeister]

The hooks also allow the fan to sit against the side of the Tek light, and with a slight angle upwards into the bulbs. With only the 1/2" slot at the bottom of the fan having air coming out, it can still fit with your bulbs only 1/2" above the tank. The outlet of the fan is also 12" wide... enough to give a 6 bulb unit plenty of airflow across the bulbs evenly.

As for the adapter... RadShack sells these buggers... voltage control built in, and 1000mA (enough for 3 or 4 120mm fans at full speed). I also run a 3LED blue computer light off of it as my moonlight... and the voltage control allows me to adjust the intensity of the light as well. I spent $4 on my moonlight and its brighter than those coralife units for $30.

 

[hahnmeister]

Now, I run the fan at 6v, which still feels like alot of air. The bulbs without cooling are hot enough that you cant keep your hands on them, but with the fan you can... so they are effective... BUT... the fan alone does tend to get one side better than the other....

So how am I going to spread out the airflow?!?!

Well, I did some tests first:

 

[Tonyzoo]

Is this the best fixture?.......I know this thread exists somewhere else, but the search function is disabled and I can't seem to find it on my own.

I've been looking for a new lighting system for my 180g tank. I want to ultimately keep acro's. I am interested in the best system, price is not an issue.

So far I've been comparing T5's, LED's, MH's and T5/MH combo. I've come to the conclusion that a T5/MH would satisfy my needs. I love the shimmer of Halides and I love the idea of having multiple T5 bulbs so I can maximize the light spectrum for growth and color.

Through my research thus far I've found that Sfigoloi (sp?) from aquariumobsessed.com and Photon plus from Captiveoceans.com are the two fixtures that have the most effective combination. My question is...Am I heading in the right direction for getting the best lighting money can buy? I considered LED, but I don't believe it's quite where it needs to be yet. I think in the future that it will be successful. What are my other options?

 

[hahnmeister]

Perhaps the numbers are too blurry so Ill explain. The 360 is the light at the end of the tank just below the water surface. The 120 is what I got when I added my black needlepointer's mesh. Those looking for acclimation... the needlepointer's mesh cut the output by 2/3... not bad.

The light at the center of the tank, just below the waterline was 550. This was about the highest output I could get just under the water (no glass).

The part that interested me was the 475 and 450. I can see that I fudged the numbers already... they should be reverse. Just below the water, I was able to get 475 without a glass cover. Then I slid the 1/4" starphire glass over the sensor, and I got 450. Not bad... I lost a minimal amount of light... pretty good considering all of the waterspots, water, and dust on the glass... not to mention... its still 1/4" glass.

Now some may ask... how do you get such varying results across the surface of the tank? Well... in the above tests, it was because IN each test, even though the sensor and lights were in the same place, from test to test, the sensor would get moved from front to back... and the relative amount of light varies a bunch because the sensor is so close to the bulbs... if Im under the actinic03, the output will be lower than under the blue+.

So anyways, heres the important thing to note... a peak of 550, and my 1/4" starphire only robbed me of about 5% of my output. So I would imagine a 1/8" acrylic sheild, if properly vented behind, would rob me of what... 2% maybe?

So I took a Tek sheild... notched one end of it so I could then bend a 3" flap down at the end where the fan sits. This flap directs the air up and across the bulbs... between the reflector and acrylic. At the other end, because the flap that is bent, you can leave a little 1/2" slot for the air to blow out of as well. Now the output of the fan can blow across the entire length of the fixture evenly. I can easily feel the airflow at the other end of my 3' Tek light that I couludnt feel before.

 

[7thheaven]

Dear Experts~!!

I can not find the thread about TEK par level with/without fan...

I have questions about cooling..

1. I read thread about TEK cooling and the par level is decreased

after time goes on without cooling fixture. That is because the heat is caused the problme in Bulb or Ballast in fixture?

2. If Ballast is away from fixture, Heat problem is not existed?

3. If I use icecap 660 ballast in TEK 6bul fixture, and the 660ballast is far from fixture, it is ok not to install fan in fixture?

Thanks...

 

[hahnmeister]

The PAR readings from each bulb went up with the airflow... some more than others. My setup is from front to back...
-G-man aquablue
-G-man true actinic
-G-man blue+
-G-man blue+
-G-man true actinic
-G-man aquablue

Now, also keep in mind that my bulbs are about 8 months old, and werent being ventilated until a month or so ago... so I have the black-rings of death, and who knows how much light loss. I placed the sensor 1/8" below each type of bulb (bulb only, no reflector)... at the ends, center, with and without the fans.

At 4" from the ends, the bulbs all seem to peak, esp with the fans. the Aquablue peaked at 900 with the fans at the ends, and 750 in the middle. Without the fans though... at the ends, the reading was more like 630!!! Wow... thats a 30% decrease in output due to lack of a fan. Then the actinic03. It peaked at 385 at the end with the fans, and 300 without. In the center, with a fan, it was at 350. The blue+ (now called the actinic+) was the oddball though. It didnt seem to change at all with or without the fan. Im going to keep testing this to see whats going on here, but the results I found were totally odd. It peaked at 900 at the ends, and dipped to 740 in the middle, but without the fan, the ends were still 900!!! I redid the test 3 times and had similar results every time. Perhaps the bulb runs hotter than the rest and a fan simply doesnt do much? Perhaps its phohphors are just better at withstanding the heat? My bulbs are 8 months old now, and the output of my blue+ bulbs now equal the output of my aquablues... something different than the results Grim posted with new bulbs (the aquablues start with what, 10-20% more output). It seems that the aquablues really take it in the shorts when the heat starts to rise.

 

[The Grim Reefer]

Weird. The Aquablue are quite a bit brighter when new and you would think they would hold up better than the blue pluses. You know your gonna have to buy new lamps to see whats up with that

 

[The Grim Reefer]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8788284#post8788284 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Tonyzoo
Is this the best fixture?.......I know this thread exists somewhere else, but the search function is disabled and I can't seem to find it on my own.

I've been looking for a new lighting system for my 180g tank. I want to ultimately keep acro's. I am interested in the best system, price is not an issue.

So far I've been comparing T5's, LED's, MH's and T5/MH combo. I've come to the conclusion that a T5/MH would satisfy my needs. I love the shimmer of Halides and I love the idea of having multiple T5 bulbs so I can maximize the light spectrum for growth and color.

Through my research thus far I've found that Sfigoloi (sp?) from aquariumobsessed.com and Photon plus from Captiveoceans.com are the two fixtures that have the most effective combination. My question is...Am I heading in the right direction for getting the best lighting money can buy? I considered LED, but I don't believe it's quite where it needs to be yet. I think in the future that it will be successful. What are my other options?

I think there are a few companies selling halide fixture with 4 T5's now, 2 lamps for and 2 lamps aft of the halides. That is the direction I would go. I think current is even selling one now.

 

[hahnmeister]

Here are some readings to compare. This pic is from my top tank... a 250wattDE HQI/M80 using a PFO mini-reflector and running an EVC 20,000K bulb. Now, this bulb is not as bright as my pheonix was, but its still the brightest 20,000K. Whats important to note is the distribution of the light. It has a huge peak in the center, but fades very fast towards the sides... and this 40B is only 30" wide (I have an acrylic wall 6" from the right end for an integrated sump).. so this tank is only 30" wide.

Then there is the T5 setup. It doesnt have the strong peak in the center like the halide, but it does have an output in the 550-360 across the entire surface... while the halide only puts out a peak of close to what the T5s have, but only in the center of the tank. This makes sense, as my T5s are about 4" from the water surface, and the halide is about 7" from the surface... so after things spread out a bit with the halide, its intensity is lost.

The outputs near the bottom are nearly identical... and remember, my G-man bulbs are about 8 months old vs. the EVC 20,000K that is almost new (about 240 hours use). So while the EVC may not be quite as bright as the pheonix (which looks identical in spectrum to my T5 setup), its output matches my blue mix of T5s rather well... and my T5s are 8 months old. That line across the bottom of values represents 12" below the water surface. Its interesting that the light values vary along the bottom as you get to the sides... dropping from 200 to 150 about 8" from each end (but it makes sense since at the center you are getting light from the entire length of the bulb, where at the ends, you only get light from one end... or less and less of the bulb as you get to the end), while the output at the top of the tank is pretty constant... around 500... across the entire top of the tank just under the water surface... even though the bulbs seem to be brighter at the ends, and the middle seems to be brighter than the ends at 12" of depth.

All in all... Id say the T5s take out the halide rather well. They dont get that cone in the center where the light field peaks, but they are able to maintain a slightly lower peak across the entire surface of the tank (a more useful peak since I doubt there are many corals that would like the PPF of 680 that the halide makes directly under it, just underneath the water surface)... while the halide drops off to less than 100 at the ends... on a 6" shorter tank.

 

[hahnmeister]

Next, Ill test the power combo of the older GE 6500Ks and ATI blue+ bulbs, vs a pheonix 14,000K on the M80 ballast. I also need to redo the probe holder so I can lower the Tek light over the tank a bit more how it usually sits... not 4" above the water.

 

[PaintGuru]

I apologize if this has been answered (I did try searching) but what length of TEK fixture should I use for a 30" tank (20L). Should I go short with the 24" fixture, or long with the 36" fixture?

 

[coraladdict]

hahnmeister

That's very interesting info. your giving us here at least for the Tek users as I am.I presently have an 8 lamp Tek and I have 3 coceas and 1 maxima at 10" below the bulbs .I can tell you from personal experience that they are thriving.
Here is pic.
http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/1680mini-IMG_2241.JPG

 

[The Grim Reefer]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8789104#post8789104 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by PaintGuru
I apologize if this has been answered (I did try searching) but what length of TEK fixture should I use for a 30" tank (20L). Should I go short with the 24" fixture, or long with the 36" fixture?

You are really stuck with using a 24"fixture.