Sunlight Tek Questions

[Brian DeGolier]

I'm planning to switch out my Current 48" 4-T5 system to a Sunlight Tek because I have heard nothing but good reviews, but I have several questions that I'm sure my wiser fellow hobbiests could answer.
Does the fixture have LED's? At least moon lights, but could not find anything regarding.
If mounted on a 55 gal., would it be difficult to somehow integrate the LED's either a strip or those little mounted ones?
Can the fixture be mounted in a Canopy (if so, I could then add an LED strip).
No cooloing fans? Might be an issue with a canopy.
What is the difference between the Tek and Tek Elite? I only noticed the Elite has fans, and there have been some problems with them.
Thnaks.

[johnnydoe]

from what i hear , the one with the fans will have slightly better par . but thats just what i hear .

[Slim_jim989]

On the reg tek light there are no moonlights, fans or leds. With the elite it has fans and it has better reflectors( so they say). When fans use right it can increase your par. If your going to be using a canopy do a DIY retro-fit kit it will save you tons. Also why enclose a fixture. With a little bit of DIY and work anythings possible. I plan on adding something for moonlights on my tank.

[philosophish]

very quickly,

If you are considering upgrading to a better t5 fixture take a look at the ati sunpower. why?

1. the ati uses t5 spec ballasts which run the bulbs correctly. youll get better performance and longer life out of the bulbs.

2. the ati has active cooling which again will equate to longer bulb life and better performance. the elite does have fans but still uses the "wrong" ballasts.

3. the ati has reflectors that produce a more narrow, focused, beam of light. and on your 55 this is a major bonus. with the tek and elite, the light spread is greater and on your 55 will be reflected away from the tank and be wasted.

there is a price difference. but the extra cost up front may easily be justified when you consider the better performance with the same amount of bulbs (25% over the elite and some have recorded 100% over the tek), longer bulb life (future cost savings), and in your case a more focused spread of light.

good luck

[jmking33]

I have a tek light and love it. But I would personally do a retro fit on a tank with a canopy. jmo. I have friends who have the ati lights and love them. I think they are both good products. I LOVE not hearing any fans and my fixture(just the smaller 24 inch 4 bulb ) stays cool. I dont have a canopy(check my avatar). Hope this helps you make a choice!

[Brian DeGolier]

Thanks Philosophish and jmking. It's hard to believe that some T5 fixtures do not use the correct ballast, I seem to have heard this a lot lately. I've checked into ATI before, I'll give them another look. thanks

[liquidfunk]

All this talk about WH ballasts being "wrong" is total garbage. They are UL listed to run T5 lamps, how can they be wrong? Do you think the gov would give a UL listing on an item that was wrong? All this because Grim Reefer (has anyone actually seen a tank of his???) says so. I would trust the the folks at Fulham long before I would trust some random guy on RC.

People question the instant start vs the programmed start. They each service a purpose, Programmed start ballasts are for use in applications where lamps are turning on and off frequently (less than 3 hours), for applications outside this instant start (WH) is very acceptable.

Do you trust GE? They have instant start ballasts for there own T5s. They probably dont know though, they are only the largest manufacture of T5 lighting in the world....

[moondoggy4]

Contact Todd at Cherry Coral he had a 48'' led light hooked right up to my 48'' 6 light Tek Elite light it hooked right up to drilling ,fit perfect, I bought the light but not the LED fixture.