t5 bulb replacement

an411 · 01/23/2008, 12:08 PM

couple of questions

1) on a dr fosters website they are saying t5 lights last 2 years I thought that it was much less is 2 years really true?

2) what is the difference between 420nm and 460nm?

3) what is kelvins and is personal preference between 10k and 12k?

Vinnie71975 · 01/23/2008, 12:14 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by an411
couple of questions

1) on a dr fosters website they are saying t5 lights last 2 years I thought that it was much less is 2 years really true?

2) what is the difference between 420nm and 460nm?

3) what is kelvins and is personal preference between 10k and 12k?

Avg is 12 to 18 months lifespan

I know there is a difference but i have no clue what it is lol

Kalvin is how light color is rated as long as its at least 10k no worries if its more it depends on the look you like i perfer the 20k bulbs myself

IslandCrow · 01/23/2008, 12:57 PM

I go with switching my lights out yearly, and only half at a time . So, the first set got switched out at about 8 months. I've never seen a significant change in brightness over a year, but I don't have any equipment (yet) to check spectrum shift or exact PAR.

420nm bulbs are more purple than the 460nm. What that really means is you'll get more of a florescent effect out of the 420nm. It looks more purple than VHO actinics to me, though. I've found an equal mix of 420 and 460nm bulbs gives nice results.

What Vinnie said about kelvin. Track down GrimReefer in the equipment forum and talk to him about bulb selection. The guy's a lighting savant. Tell him what kind of look you want (bluish, white and crisp, good florescence, etc.), and he'll be able to suggest a bulb combination that'll give you what you want. I really don't know how he does it.

For what it's worth, though, for my 5 bulb setup, I went with 1x460nm actinic, 1x420nm actinic, 1x6500K and 2x12,000K.

01/23/2008, 12:08 PM	#1
an411 Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Derby CT Posts: 2,861	t5 bulb replacement couple of questions 1) on a dr fosters website they are saying t5 lights last 2 years I thought that it was much less is 2 years really true? 2) what is the difference between 420nm and 460nm? 3) what is kelvins and is personal preference between 10k and 12k?

01/23/2008, 12:57 PM	#3
IslandCrow Reef Monkey Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: Rockledge, Fl Posts: 5,759	I go with switching my lights out yearly, and only half at a time . So, the first set got switched out at about 8 months. I've never seen a significant change in brightness over a year, but I don't have any equipment (yet) to check spectrum shift or exact PAR. 420nm bulbs are more purple than the 460nm. What that really means is you'll get more of a florescent effect out of the 420nm. It looks more purple than VHO actinics to me, though. I've found an equal mix of 420 and 460nm bulbs gives nice results. What Vinnie said about kelvin. Track down GrimReefer in the equipment forum and talk to him about bulb selection. The guy's a lighting savant. Tell him what kind of look you want (bluish, white and crisp, good florescence, etc.), and he'll be able to suggest a bulb combination that'll give you what you want. I really don't know how he does it. For what it's worth, though, for my 5 bulb setup, I went with 1x460nm actinic, 1x420nm actinic, 1x6500K and 2x12,000K. __________________ All opinions in the above message should be taken with 35 ppt salt. -Mike C. Current Tank Info: I have a reef screen saver on my phone, does that count?