The T5 Q&a Thread - split

[The Grim Reefer]

Originally Posted by theitalianczech

Im setting up a 27 cube (20 x18 x20) Im limited to 18 inch bulbs. I have a 4 x 24 settup right now on the tank i am taking down so i want to hopefully use the ballasts to run 18 watt bulbs if possible. Any bulb recommendations to softy tank. I love the ati bulbs i have now but dont think they make 18 inch bulbs.

I don't even know who's building 18 inch lamps now. 3 Blues and a purple would be what I'd use.

[theitalianczech]

Thanks uvl makes them...actinic white, aquasun, super actinic ,454Nm and Indigo sun are the choices

[The Grim Reefer]

3 454's and a Actinic White

[theitalianczech]

Thanks

[Dr. Fish]

Looking for some bulb combo suggestions.

I have a 6x24 Sunpower and I have these bulbs
4 ATI Blue Plus
2 ATI Purple Plus
1 ATI Aquablue Special
1 Korallen Fiji Purple
1 Giesmann Actinic +

I have a Solana that is 20" high and I want to keep SPS towards the top with Zoas near the bottom.

What bulb combo should I try?

[Dr. Fish]

I searched this thread and right now I am running:

Front
Blue plus
Purple plus
Blue Plus
Aquablue special
Blue plus
Blue plus

Any reason I should swap bulbs around or use some of the other brand bulbs I have? How does the Korallen Fiji Purple or the Giesmann Actinic + compare with my current setup?

[The Grim Reefer]

Originally Posted by Dr. Fish

I searched this thread and right now I am running:

Front
Blue plus
Purple plus
Blue Plus
Aquablue special
Blue plus
Blue plus

Any reason I should swap bulbs around or use some of the other brand bulbs I have? How does the Korallen Fiji Purple or the Giesmann Actinic + compare with my current setup?

You could try other lamps in place of the aquablue just for shigiggles but there is no reason to change if you like the current look/

[jhawkor]

Hi, I am new to T5's and would appreciate some feedback on bulb combinations. I would like to achieve a 14k appearance. How would this combo look?

Front
Aquablue
Blue+
Coral+
Actinic
Coral+
Blue+
Back

Thanks.

[The Grim Reefer]

Originally Posted by jhawkor

Hi, I am new to T5's and would appreciate some feedback on bulb combinations. I would like to achieve a 14k appearance. How would this combo look?

Front
Aquablue
Blue+
Coral+
Actinic
Coral+
Blue+
Back

Thanks.

No real point in running actinics with Blue Pluses so drop that actinic and add another blue plus and move the aquablue more towards the center instead of up front.

[jhawkor]

Originally Posted by The Grim Reefer

No real point in running actinics with Blue Pluses so drop that actinic and add another blue plus and move the aquablue more towards the center instead of up front.

Will do. Thanks.

[cayecaulker]

Hello T5 people!

I am in need of some advice...

I seem to change out my 54w bulbs out every 7-9 months. I have been doing this for 3-4 years. Lately I've been thinking about reducing the par over my aquarium. I currently run 12 54w bulbs over a 48 x 30 x 20 rimless. I'm starting to believe this is a bit "overkill". I have a SPS dominate tank and my corals grow well however the coloring is a little on the pastel-ish side. I've been doing the SPS thing for sometime and I know there's more involved than lighting (nutrients, H2o chemistry, etc.) however, I think lowering the intensity might aide in deeper coloration. I know I can raise the light fixture but the amount of light spilling over the sides would be unacceptable (wife).

I currently have this configuration:

Front
ATI Blue +
ATI Blue +
ATI Purple +
ATI Blue +
Middle
ATI Blue +
KZ New Gen
ATI Purple +
ATI Blue +
Back
ATI Blue +
KZ New Gen
ATI Blue +
ATI Blue +

I really like the crisp color of my current combination (14,000K - 18,000K) however, as mentioned above, it really packs a powerful punch. Having said that, bringing the combination closer to 20,000k or more would be alright. I am not worried about growth (other parameters will take care of that) I just want more "depth" in coloration.

What would you recommend changing out? I do prefer ATI bulbs but would consider other options.

Thanks for taking the time to read my long-winded post!

[Gyr]

Re 6 bulb ATI running four blue +, one coral plus, one purple plus

Originally Posted by The Grim Reefer

A little more blue but will look good

Yeah, I have found it to be a little too blue for my taste. I am thinking of swapping out one of the blue +. Would you recommend going with a second coral + ? I am wondering if that would give me enough PAR for my SPS dominant tank.

Thanks,

Kurt

[The Grim Reefer]

Originally Posted by cayecaulker

Hello T5 people!

I am in need of some advice...

I seem to change out my 54w bulbs out every 7-9 months. I have been doing this for 3-4 years. Lately I've been thinking about reducing the par over my aquarium. I currently run 12 54w bulbs over a 48 x 30 x 20 rimless. I'm starting to believe this is a bit "overkill". I have a SPS dominate tank and my corals grow well however the coloring is a little on the pastel-ish side. I've been doing the SPS thing for sometime and I know there's more involved than lighting (nutrients, H2o chemistry, etc.) however, I think lowering the intensity might aide in deeper coloration. I know I can raise the light fixture but the amount of light spilling over the sides would be unacceptable (wife).



I currently have this configuration:

Front
ATI Blue +
ATI Blue +
ATI Purple +
ATI Blue +
Middle
ATI Blue +
KZ New Gen
ATI Purple +
ATI Blue +
Back
ATI Blue +
KZ New Gen
ATI Blue +
ATI Blue +

I really like the crisp color of my current combination (14,000K - 18,000K) however, as mentioned above, it really packs a powerful punch. Having said that, bringing the combination closer to 20,000k or more would be alright. I am not worried about growth (other parameters will take care of that) I just want more "depth" in coloration.

What would you recommend changing out? I do prefer ATI bulbs but would consider other options.

Thanks for taking the time to read my long-winded post!

For the color Try swapping out the center most New Gen for a GE 6500K. For intensity swap out a couple Blue Plus for actinics

[The Grim Reefer]

Originally Posted by Gyr

Re 6 bulb ATI running four blue +, one coral plus, one purple plus

Yeah, I have found it to be a little too blue for my taste. I am thinking of swapping out one of the blue +. Would you recommend going with a second coral + ? I am wondering if that would give me enough PAR for my SPS dominant tank.

Thanks,

Kurt

Be worth a shot

[Gyr]

Thanks, Grim.

[billy71]

Ok here is what I'm doing. Currently have 3 175 mh with PC actinic on my 210. I'm going to be making a canopy and I'm going inter grate my 3 mh into my canopy and I'm going to switch the actinics to 4 48" t5 actinics as they will overlap each other in the middle of the tank. Now do you think the actinics would be good or some aquablues. Also I will be using an icecap 660 that I have laying around. What do you think does this sound good!! Or any suggestion would be great.

[TropTrea]

Originally Posted by billy71

Ok here is what I'm doing. Currently have 3 175 mh with PC actinic on my 210. I'm going to be making a canopy and I'm going inter grate my 3 mh into my canopy and I'm going to switch the actinics to 4 48" t5 actinics as they will overlap each other in the middle of the tank. Now do you think the actinics would be good or some aquablues. Also I will be using an icecap 660 that I have laying around. What do you think does this sound good!! Or any suggestion would be great.

If your going with T-5's then I would use just ATI Blue Plus bulbs.

However if I were suplementing Metal Hides today on a 210 gallon tank I would use home built strips of LED's one in the front angled to the rear and other in the rear angled to the front. With the 6' long tank I would us 6 Royal Blue and 6 Blue LED's on each strip. Run them with 1050 ma driver and you will be getting roughly 42 Watts of lighting out of each strip . The big thing is it would me much more blue concentrated than any of the T-5's bulbs so you will need less wattage. With the MH's they produce some UV light so you realy do not need to suplement any shorter wavelenghts than the Royal Blues do.

[mikesreef]

Having ATI T5 bulbs which are 60 inch on a 72 inch tank. Any problems with light on the 6 inch's on each side of tank. Being they don't make a T5 72 inch bulb want to know if anyone has done this and do they see any degreation of light on the sides. I know you can use 2-36 inch bulbs as an alternative....This is a fish only aquarium.....

[cpandrewschmidt]

Hi all,
I'm looking to supplement 180 gallon w/ my LED's w/ 4, 48in T5 bulbs. I feel I'm missing some of the spectrum. Locally I can get these from a guy. I don't know anything about t5's but are these parts I need? Wondering about the ballasts and if they are large enough for just a supplement? Looks like they are Phillips Advance, but I can't make out the model. Looks like CN-2554-002 ? Thanks

Andrew

[Reefahholic]

Hey Grim, should I get the 6 or 4 blub T5 for my 90/g? Also, what bulb combination would you do for which ever one you pick?

Here is the problem:

The 4 bulb has a 12" width. The 6 bulb has 16" width.

Will the light on the six bulb even penetrate through my overflow box? Or would it illuminate it too much? I don't want the inside of the overflow box lit up. You would be able to see the silicone, elbows, and gutter guard.

I'm thinking maybe the 4 blub due to the space from the overflow to the front glass of the aquarium is 12" exactly. The same size as a 4 blub set up.

Any thoughts? Suggestions.. Check out the pictures.

Also, I plan on doing a mixed reef, but not real heavy with corals. Just enough to be pretty.










Front view..

[lxeroxl]

Have a question on cooling overdriven t5s My canopy has two holes in the center that were there from previous owner. Would it be ok to throw 2 fans up there pulling air out and then place two fans on the back or sides blowing air in on the end caps.

My att 8x80 on my bigger tank has its fans slightly off center on the top so I figured this would also be ok on a retro. I would love to get away with just using the fans in the center due to noise concers The holes are sized for 120mm computer fans.

Any ideas to best cool the overdriven reto would be greatly appreciated.

[Jaysreefworld]

I sure somewhere on here someone is talking about growth. But I'm considering using the ati pm 10x39w + 4x39w over my 3'x3'x2'h tank. This tank will be sps loaded mostly acros. Can anyone tell me the kind of growth rates they are getting.

Thanks in advance

[The Grim Reefer]

Originally Posted by mikesreef

Having ATI T5 bulbs which are 60 inch on a 72 inch tank. Any problems with light on the 6 inch's on each side of tank. Being they don't make a T5 72 inch bulb want to know if anyone has done this and do they see any degreation of light on the sides. I know you can use 2-36 inch bulbs as an alternative....This is a fish only aquarium.....

I've used them on a 125 and the 60" work fine. It's better if you can keep them 5 or 6 inches above the water so the light can spread but even closer works OK.

[The Grim Reefer]

Originally Posted by cpandrewschmidt

Hi all,
I'm looking to supplement 180 gallon w/ my LED's w/ 4, 48in T5 bulbs. I feel I'm missing some of the spectrum. Locally I can get these from a guy. I don't know anything about t5's but are these parts I need? Wondering about the ballasts and if they are large enough for just a supplement? Looks like they are Phillips Advance, but I can't make out the model. Looks like CN-2554-002 ? Thanks

Andrew

Just looking at the pictures they seem right. You have to match the ballast to the lamp so make sure they are 54 watt ballasts.

[The Grim Reefer]

Originally Posted by Reefahholic

Hey Grim, should I get the 6 or 4 blub T5 for my 90/g? Also, what bulb combination would you do for which ever one you pick?

Here is the problem:

The 4 bulb has a 12" width. The 6 bulb has 16" width.

Will the light on the six bulb even penetrate through my overflow box? Or would it illuminate it too much? I don't want the inside of the overflow box lit up. You would be able to see the silicone, elbows, and gutter guard.

I'm thinking maybe the 4 blub due to the space from the overflow to the front glass of the aquarium is 12" exactly. The same size as a 4 blub set up.

Any thoughts? Suggestions.. Check out the pictures.

Also, I plan on doing a mixed reef, but not real heavy with corals. Just enough to be pretty.










Front view..

Nice setup.

One thing to consider is using a 4 lamp fixture over the tank and turning your overflow into a frag station using an extra light or LED strip assuming the plastic is thick enough it wouldn't show through, or you could run the frag lights opposite your tank lights like a refugium.