The T5 Q&a Thread

[The Grim Reefer]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13348719#post13348719 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by xhappyx
just received a 125gal tank. and it came with a 72" nova extreme pro. what can i do to make this fixture somewhat decent(change ballasts?) and what bulb combo would you use to get good growth while not losing the colors in sps?

Just using good lamps.

Front
ATI Blue Plus
UVL Aquasun
ATI Blue Plus
GE 6500K Daylight
ATI Blue Plus
ATI Aquablue

 

[JJFly]

I hybrid my lighting... just for softies on a 150gal (30" front to back) Softies certainly don't need this much light but my Ritteri Anemone LOVES IT! I've thought of switching my VHO to T5 bulbs now that UVL makes the Super Actinic in T5, just don't see the need to spend the $$ for new end caps yet.
Front:
T5 UVL Actinic White
T5 Geisemann Midday
VHO UVL Super Actinic
VHO UVL Super Actinic
T5 UVL Actinic White
T5 Geisemann Midday
T5 UVL Actinic White
VHO UVL Super Actinic
VHO UVL Super Actinic
T5 Geisemann Midday
T5 UVL Actinic White

 

[JJFly]

I did notice some bleaching of my monitpora digitata when placed up high. Once I lowered to the bottom 1/3 of the tank, it colored up beautifully.

 

[Nyxe]

I have an 80 gallon bow front aquarium almost ready for a leak test. Now that my plumbing is mostly complete, I'm considering lighting options. I'm planning to remove the hinging part of the canopy and suspend the fixture from the ceiling. The open space I have to work with is approximately 48"x11".

The tank will be SPS and clam dominated.

My two choices are the Aquactinics Tx5 or the 4x54W Tek light fixture. I'm leaning towards the Tx5. (For the extra bulb plus it gives me more wiggle room.) Will either provide enough light for what I want to accomplish?

(I admit to only skimming through this thread - too much to read, too little time!)

Thank you in advance for the help!

~ Nyxe.

 

[JerseyWendy]

I'm so sorry for the late response, Jen, been a busy weekend so far.

I'm using the following from front to back:
Giesemann Actinic
ATI Blue Plus
ATI Aquablue Spezial
Giesemann Aquablue
GE 6,500
ATI Aquablue Spezial
ATI Blue Plus
ATI Blue Plus

---
Wendy

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13334894#post13334894 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by jennmac415
Wendy!!! That looks super great!!!!! What bulb combo are you using. It is about time to change my bulbs and I want to try to get a combo that I like alot better than what I had this past year.

 

[gsxunv04]

will an 8 bulb tek fixture fit on a 90g RR tank?

 

[The Grim Reefer]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13349433#post13349433 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by JJFly
I hybrid my lighting... just for softies on a 150gal (30" front to back) Softies certainly don't need this much light but my Ritteri Anemone LOVES IT! I've thought of switching my VHO to T5 bulbs now that UVL makes the Super Actinic in T5, just don't see the need to spend the $$ for new end caps yet.
Front:
T5 UVL Actinic White
T5 Geisemann Midday
VHO UVL Super Actinic
VHO UVL Super Actinic
T5 UVL Actinic White
T5 Geisemann Midday
T5 UVL Actinic White
VHO UVL Super Actinic
VHO UVL Super Actinic
T5 Geisemann Midday
T5 UVL Actinic White

You should work in a couple of Blue Plus T5's at least. Gives spectrum the actinics dont

 

[The Grim Reefer]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13349759#post13349759 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Nyxe
I have an 80 gallon bow front aquarium almost ready for a leak test. Now that my plumbing is mostly complete, I'm considering lighting options. I'm planning to remove the hinging part of the canopy and suspend the fixture from the ceiling. The open space I have to work with is approximately 48"x11".

The tank will be SPS and clam dominated.

My two choices are the Aquactinics Tx5 or the 4x54W Tek light fixture. I'm leaning towards the Tx5. (For the extra bulb plus it gives me more wiggle room.) Will either provide enough light for what I want to accomplish?

(I admit to only skimming through this thread - too much to read, too little time!)

Thank you in advance for the help!

~ Nyxe.

TX 5 but even with that stick with a high PAR mix of lamps

Front
ATI Aquablue
ATI Blue Plus
UVL Aquasun
ATI Blue Plus
GE 6500K Daylight

 

[The Grim Reefer]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13351802#post13351802 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by gsxunv04
will an 8 bulb tek fixture fit on a 90g RR tank?

The fixture itself would overhang but the lighting is about 16" front to back so it shouldn't be an issue

 

[seaspy]

Hey Grim,
Got the new lights in for granny's tank...you're the man! The only thing is, they sent me a 3000k bulb instead of the 6500k that I ordered. It looks good, but will it make a difference if I have them send me the right one? I don't want the 3k to stimulate algae growth or anything.

Also, my dad is ready for new bulbs too. He has a 72g bowfront corner tank with

Front
36"
36"
36"
24"
24"
Rear

What would you recommend for bulbs on this?

Thanks again!

 

[Raibaru]

In the finalizing stages for my 70g tank upgrade's parts list and the lighting fixture really has me stumped.

I read through a lot of this thread and it seemed few had a tank similar in dimensions to the one I was planning (Oceanic 70g Tech 36x18x25).

Do you think the Aquatinics TX5 fixture would give me the power needed to keep clams on the sand bed and maybe even an anemone in the lower part of the tank? SPS too? The 6bulb Power Module really looks out of my price range.

Going threw the thread I've seen you suggest several different bulb combos for people's TX5 fixtures (5 bulbs) and curious what the difference in appearance and reasoning was behind them?

1.)
ATI Blue Plus
UVL Super Actinic
UVL Aquasun
ATI Blue Plus
GE 6500K

2.)
ATI Blue Plus
UVL 75/25
GE 6500K Daylight
ATI Blue Plus
ATI Aquablue

3.)
ATI Aquablue
ATI Blue Plus
UVL Aquasun
ATI Blue Plus
GE 6500K Daylight


Which would you suggest to meet my needs if you think the TX5 fixture would work?

Thanks in advance!

 

[h2con]

I have a 48" 2x250w halide with 4x65w pc bulbs fixture. I would like to mod it and put in some 48" 54w t5ho bulbs instead of the pc. Could I power those t5ho bulbs from the stock pc ballasts or do I need to upgrade those too? I saw some ballasts called workhorse can they work if the stock pc ballast wont? Should I upgrade the stock reflector for a t5 one as I'm only going to be running actinics in there for the color pop. What is the actual length of a 48" t5 bulb?

 

[The Grim Reefer]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13352588#post13352588 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by seaspy
Hey Grim,
Got the new lights in for granny's tank...you're the man! The only thing is, they sent me a 3000k bulb instead of the 6500k that I ordered. It looks good, but will it make a difference if I have them send me the right one? I don't want the 3k to stimulate algae growth or anything.

Also, my dad is ready for new bulbs too. He has a 72g bowfront corner tank with

Front
36"
36"
36"
24"
24"
Rear

What would you recommend for bulbs on this?

Thanks again!

The 3000K is just more orange/red. If you like the color run with it. If you get an uncontrollable algae outbreak then pull it. I ran one for a few months in my smaller tank and don't recall any issues.

Corner tank

Front
ATI Blue Plus
UVL Aquasun
ATI Blue Plus
GE 6500K
ATI Blue Plus

 

[The Grim Reefer]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13353811#post13353811 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Raibaru
In the finalizing stages for my 70g tank upgrade's parts list and the lighting fixture really has me stumped.

I read through a lot of this thread and it seemed few had a tank similar in dimensions to the one I was planning (Oceanic 70g Tech 36x18x25).

Do you think the Aquatinics TX5 fixture would give me the power needed to keep clams on the sand bed and maybe even an anemone in the lower part of the tank? SPS too? The 6bulb Power Module really looks out of my price range.

Going threw the thread I've seen you suggest several different bulb combos for people's TX5 fixtures (5 bulbs) and curious what the difference in appearance and reasoning was behind them?

1.)
ATI Blue Plus
UVL Super Actinic
UVL Aquasun
ATI Blue Plus
GE 6500K

2.)
ATI Blue Plus
UVL 75/25
GE 6500K Daylight
ATI Blue Plus
ATI Aquablue

3.)
ATI Aquablue
ATI Blue Plus
UVL Aquasun
ATI Blue Plus
GE 6500K Daylight


Which would you suggest to meet my needs if you think the TX5 fixture would work?

Thanks in advance!

Setup 3 will be your best bet. Keep that fixture right on the tank and I would probably change the lamps around 10 months. You are really pushing it on a 25" tall tank but I think it will work for everything you want.

 

[Raibaru]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13355551#post13355551 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by The Grim Reefer
Setup 3 will be your best bet. Keep that fixture right on the tank and I would probably change the lamps around 10 months. You are really pushing it on a 25" tall tank but I think it will work for everything you want.

Hmm, would you suggest another fixture?

And what would the lighting for the above set look like? A nice crisp blue with good fluorescence for the corals?

 

[kmacartney]

Can anyone tell where the best deals for retrofit kits are right now?

 

[xhappyx]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13349095#post13349095 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by The Grim Reefer
Just using good lamps.

Front
ATI Blue Plus
UVL Aquasun
ATI Blue Plus
GE 6500K Daylight
ATI Blue Plus
ATI Aquablue

will that be more of a whitish color or a little bit blue?

 

[seaspy]

Thanks Grim, can't wait to see the improvement on this one!

 

[The Grim Reefer]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13355601#post13355601 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Raibaru
Hmm, would you suggest another fixture?

And what would the lighting for the above set look like? A nice crisp blue with good fluorescence for the corals?

It would look fine. Slightly blue and good fluorescence for a more white look.

Only other option in a fixture would be the ATI 6 lamp unit, A 6 lamp Tek would work IF you run a fan to cool the fixture but I am not sure it would be any more intense than the Tx5

 

[The Grim Reefer]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13355730#post13355730 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by kmacartney
Can anyone tell where the best deals for retrofit kits are right now?

Typically reefgeek. Also check Aquarium Specialy and DIYreef.