The T5 Q&a Thread

[pong]

if the lights in the tank are

1 6500k 40w
2 actinic 40w

1 pro color
2 11000k 54w t5ho
1 blue 54w t5 ho

i have space for 2 more t5's
(currently blank slots)
what would you put?


what could i grow in there?

lps? clams? soft corals?

btw, tank is 60 x 24 x 24

 

[Guyerson]

Tek Light Question

Tek Light Question

Hey Grim - quick question..

I have a 48" 75g and I am upgrading my lighting from a JBJ PC fixture to a 6 bulb Tek Light. Currently all I have are a bunch of Mushrooms, but would like to start with some softies and LPS and eventually maybe some SPS and clams. What is the best bulb combo if I want to achieve more of a blue-ish tint?

Thanks!

 

[P-DUBS]

Nova Extreme Pro 6x39w

Nova Extreme Pro 6x39w

Hey Grim,

I am new to the forum and need some help choosing bulbs for my fixture, I was told you are the guy to see!

I have a Nova Extreme Pro 6x39w over a 40 breeder with the stock bulbs. I am looking to keep a wide range of corals, and maybe get a SPS frag or two as the tank becomes established, It will mainly be Acans, Zoos, LPS and Ricordea maybe one clam if I can..... and fish.

What bulbs do you reccomend for this fixture.

THANKS ALOT!

 

[aaron7405]

60" on IceCap

60" on IceCap

Hi Master Grim

Last week I bought 2 ICECAP 660 for a friend setup to run 7x 60" T5 bulbs on a 3-4 configuration for a 180G tank. one of the ballast did not fire the bulbs (3 bulbs) it started and shout down in les then a second & one did (4 bulbs). I switch them to see if was a wiring conection problem but I had the same result. After I test it both ballast on my system (I have 2 IC660 too) I get the same result.

After I talked to ICECAP deparment they told me to send the ballast back (kind of desapoint to have to spend money on shipping if the ballast were just out of the box)

Here is the Q:
They say too than IC660 cannot hold 4x60" bulb configuration, like I say one of the ballast fire them and was OK.

What do you think?

Thank you Grim or reefer on this treadh

Aaron

 

[The Grim Reefer]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13191552#post13191552 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by GrantMeThePower
Hi...

I have 4 x 96W PC bulbs on a retrofit kit from hamilton tech.

The bulbs have been dying every couple weeks...something is wrong with the wiring (i bought the set up used). They lose connection and fizzle. I dont know if its actually the wiring or the ballast or what.

That being said, i am thinking of switching to T-5. Its mostly going to be softies, LPS, and fish....no SPS corals.

The tank is 48" long.

I have a wood canopy over top of the tank.

What is the best way for me to go about adding T-5?

Looking at DRS foster and smith I see a lot of fixtures that dont look like they would fit under my hood and the only retro kit they sell has a ballast that is only for up to 4 bulbs and from what i've read you need more than that with T5

any advice at all would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you
Grant

Reefgeek has Ice Cap retrofit kits with standard T5 ballasts. Get a 4x54 watt one

Front
ATI Blue Plus
UVL Super Actinic
UVL Aquasun
ATI Blue Pus

 

[pillpusher]

I use t-5 on all of our set ups now and have found that if you use one pure actinic to two or three actinic plus and a KZ figi purple we get a good color pop. If this is a little to blue for you (quite frankly blue is what the ocean at coral depth is anyway), you can always add a UVI aquasun 72.25. ,but I stay away from the 10000k because they wash out the blue so bad.

 

[The Grim Reefer]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13191968#post13191968 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by pong
if the lights in the tank are

1 6500k 40w
2 actinic 40w

1 pro color
2 11000k 54w t5ho
1 blue 54w t5 ho

i have space for 2 more t5's
(currently blank slots)
what would you put?


what could i grow in there?

lps? clams? soft corals?

btw, tank is 60 x 24 x 24

UVL Aquasun and ATI Blue Plus


Low light clams on the sand, SPS in the upper half of the tank.

 

[The Grim Reefer]

Re: Tek Light Question

Re: Tek Light Question

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13192087#post13192087 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Guyerson
Hey Grim - quick question..

I have a 48" 75g and I am upgrading my lighting from a JBJ PC fixture to a 6 bulb Tek Light. Currently all I have are a bunch of Mushrooms, but would like to start with some softies and LPS and eventually maybe some SPS and clams. What is the best bulb combo if I want to achieve more of a blue-ish tint?

Thanks!

Front
ATI Blue Plus
ATI Aquablue
UVL Aquasun
ATI Blue Plus
ATI Aquablue
ATI Blue Plus

 

[The Grim Reefer]

Re: Nova Extreme Pro 6x39w

Re: Nova Extreme Pro 6x39w

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13193699#post13193699 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by P-DUBS
Hey Grim,

I am new to the forum and need some help choosing bulbs for my fixture, I was told you are the guy to see!

I have a Nova Extreme Pro 6x39w over a 40 breeder with the stock bulbs. I am looking to keep a wide range of corals, and maybe get a SPS frag or two as the tank becomes established, It will mainly be Acans, Zoos, LPS and Ricordea maybe one clam if I can..... and fish.

What bulbs do you reccomend for this fixture.

THANKS ALOT!

Front
ATI Blue Plus
GE 6500K Daylight or Giesemann Midday
ATI Blue Plus
UVL Aquasun
ATI Blue Plus
ATI Aquablue

 

[The Grim Reefer]

Re: 60" on IceCap

Re: 60" on IceCap

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13194591#post13194591 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by aaron7405
Hi Master Grim

Last week I bought 2 ICECAP 660 for a friend setup to run 7x 60" T5 bulbs on a 3-4 configuration for a 180G tank. one of the ballast did not fire the bulbs (3 bulbs) it started and shout down in les then a second & one did (4 bulbs). I switch them to see if was a wiring conection problem but I had the same result. After I test it both ballast on my system (I have 2 IC660 too) I get the same result.

After I talked to ICECAP deparment they told me to send the ballast back (kind of desapoint to have to spend money on shipping if the ballast were just out of the box)

Here is the Q:
They say too than IC660 cannot hold 4x60" bulb configuration, like I say one of the ballast fire them and was OK.

What do you think?

Thank you Grim or reefer on this treadh

Aaron

The reason the 660 can't do 4 lamps is it will overheat the ballast.

If neither ballast will fire the 3 lamp set IT IS OBVIOUSLY NOT A BALLAST ISSUE. You might have damaged the ballast trying to start it too many times but you should just see if both with fire up the 4 lamp set you know works.

To trouble shoot the 3 lamp set watch the lamps as you turn on the ballast. The lamps should flash at the ends. If one lamp doesn't flash either the lamp is bad or their is a problem with the wiring. First step would be to swap in a different lamp you know works. If that doesn't solve the problem then you need to check all the wiring. Make sure you have double checked all the wiring and SWITCH THE 4 LAMP SET TO 3 LAMPS SO YOU DON'T KILL THE BALLAST.

 

[Everyones Hero]

Here's a link that gives a little break down about the bulbs:
http://www.specialty-lights.com/aquarium-lights-faq2.html

Still not 100% which would be best for growth (I'm assuming the bluer lights since they have a higher Kelvin output.)

 

[The Grim Reefer]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13196367#post13196367 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Everyones Hero
Here's a link that gives a little break down about the bulbs:
http://www.specialty-lights.com/aquarium-lights-faq2.html

Still not 100% which would be best for growth (I'm assuming the bluer lights since they have a higher Kelvin output.)

PAR output is what really matters. Aquasun, GE Daylight and the Aquablues have the most PAR. The Blue Pluses even have a decent amount of PAR. Google PUR for an explanation of what spectrum is best utilized for growth. It'doesn't make a huge difference.

 

[Everyones Hero]

Photosynthetically Active Radiation
Wiki Link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Photosynthetically_active_radiation

Not ready to shell out the $150 for a meter yet.

Thanks for the help. It's nice to have at least a few keywords to look for vs searching in the dark. (No pun intended.)

Has most of this been covered in the thread? I looked for the beginning awhile back, but there are so many splits I couldn't figure out if I was at the beginning or not.

 

[AU Tiger Reefer]

Hey Grim,

I have a 220 gal (72x24x28) tank and I would like to be able to grow SPS, Clams,...pretty much everything. I am thinking about gojng with (2) 36" 8 lamp ATI Powermodules. Will this be enough light for what I am looking to do or do I need to get the 10 lamp version? Thanks for your help!!!

 

[Ty1e]

hey Grim, is there a T-5 bulb that last's longer then others?
and what about the KZ bulbs like the fiji purple and 14k bulbs, do they last longer and burn brighter then ATi or somthing equal too?.

 

[The Grim Reefer]

Lets just say that the yellow/orange spectrum isn't used as effectively as blue/green. Most of the 10,000K lamps have a good amount of Blue Green in them but also enought of the yellow and orange to give you good color rendering. According to Sanjay Joshi the difference isn't all that great as far as how well the corals use the light. Dana Riddle has a article in advanst aquarist about how the different spectrums cause coloration in corals.

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13196812#post13196812 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Everyones Hero
Photosynthetically Active Radiation
Wiki Link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Photosynthetically_active_radiation

Not ready to shell out the $150 for a meter yet.

Thanks for the help. It's nice to have at least a few keywords to look for vs searching in the dark. (No pun intended.)

Has most of this been covered in the thread? I looked for the beginning awhile back, but there are so many splits I couldn't figure out if I was at the beginning or not.

 

[The Grim Reefer]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13198015#post13198015 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by AU Tiger Reefer
Hey Grim,

I have a 220 gal (72x24x28) tank and I would like to be able to grow SPS, Clams,...pretty much everything. I am thinking about gojng with (2) 36" 8 lamp ATI Powermodules. Will this be enough light for what I am looking to do or do I need to get the 10 lamp version? Thanks for your help!!!

The 8 lamp units should work, just keep them as close to the water surface as you can.

 

[The Grim Reefer]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13198124#post13198124 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Ty1e
hey Grim, is there a T-5 bulb that last's longer then others?
and what about the KZ bulbs like the fiji purple and 14k bulbs, do they last longer and burn brighter then ATi or somthing equal too?.

The KZ lamps aren't as bright as ATI and Giesemanns, As far as longevity the ATI, Giesemann, Aquascience, GE, KZ all seem to be pretty much ion the same ball park.

 

[GrantMeThePower]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13195750#post13195750 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by The Grim Reefer
Reefgeek has Ice Cap retrofit kits with standard T5 ballasts. Get a 4x54 watt one

Front
ATI Blue Plus
UVL Super Actinic
UVL Aquasun
ATI Blue Pus

Thanks for the help, Grim....

Here's my follow up question tho- how is 4x54W enough to replace my 4x96W PC bulbs? Is that really enough light?

 

[The Grim Reefer]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13198628#post13198628 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by GrantMeThePower
Thanks for the help, Grim....

Here's my follow up question tho- how is 4x54W enough to replace my 4x96W PC bulbs? Is that really enough light?

The T5's are more efficient and the reflectors make a huge difference. If your tank is much over 20 inches tall and if you want clams and anemones etc. you should get an overdriven T5 setup.