Aquaticlife t5 4x54w

greg1786 · 07/09/2013, 09:13 PM

I posted this in the reef discussion forum hoping to get a good bit of responses but only recieved one. Im hoping i can get a few more experienced opinions here....

Hey guys, thanks to a fellow reefer here in baltimore, I was given a very gently used aquaticlife 48" 4x54watt t5 ho fixture. It has three cooling fans and an lcd display timer to control daylights, actinics, and LEDs. I was in desperate need of a second fixture since I upgraded from a 55 gallon to a 125 gallon tank and was still using my 48" 4x54 watt nova extreme fixture supplemented by a 2x65 watt pc lamp with just coral life actinics(no par value really).

My tank is a mixed reef with a good bit of coral, mainly sps. I have been forced to keep all sps in the upper 1/3 of the 125 due to lack of light. All of my corals have been very healthy and grow relatively well, but I was lacking that intense color from them. I was also hancuffed to where I could place things which limited me being able to purchase too many new corals as of late. Now that ive got the new light, ive removed the PC fixture and gave it to a close friend who desperately wanted a new fixture as he was running a basic t8 light. I have both the aquaticlife fixture and the nova extreme set up above the 125 and they literally fill up the entire width of the tank. The tank is 18" deep front to back.

Now that you have the background info, Id like to get some feedback on a few questions I have. Do you guys think 8 bullbs is the right amount over a standard 125 gallon mixed reef with the majority being sps? If not do you think I should run only 2 of the bulbs in the nova giving me 6 bulbs instead? Do I have enough light now to be able to freely move my more light demanding corals lower in the tank? Lastly, what is your general opinion on the aquaticlife fixture and how does it compare to ther t5 ho lights? Would you say its up there with ATI and geisemann or is it more middle of the road in terms of light output? Btw Im running 4 geisemann, 2ATI, and 2UVL bulbs. Sorry for the long post but I wanted to give everyone as much detail as possible. Im certainly not new to this hobby, but I value the opinion of the RC community greatly and this topic is very important to me so I figured what better of a place to come ask. Thanks in advance.-Greg. P.S. thanks a million to MSaba here on RC for the new light and other goodies

Drae · 07/10/2013, 12:24 AM

The fixtures are ran parallel? One directly in front of the other? If so you have plenty of light directly under the fixtures all the way down to the sand and about 6" to the left and 6"to the right. The ends of your tank will be pretty dull though. Two 4x54 watt fixtures will be good for about 60x24x24 LxWxH.

Drae · 07/10/2013, 12:29 AM

The aquaticlife fixtures are decent with good bulbs. The same guy who built your current light now builds aquaticlife. The aquatic being higher quality though by far. Ati is king in t5. Nothing but LET retro fits (if cooled properly) compare. But your aquaticlife is a capable fixture.

greg1786 · 07/10/2013, 05:10 PM

Yes they are run one in front of the other. I was originally thinking about getting a 72" fixture but not only are they incredibly expensive but the lower lit areas on both sides give me places to put my lps that like lower light. I appreciate the response you answered every question I had. I was most curious how deep I could put my sps and hearing that they can go to the sandbed offers me a lot of flexibility I didnt previously have

redwingrob40 · 07/10/2013, 05:17 PM

Yes you should be fine keeping sps on your sandbed. I agree the aquaticlife fixture while not top of the line like ATI, is still a good fixture. When you replace your bulbs I would recommend all ATI bulbs. I am running the 4 bulb aquaticlife with all ATI bulbs over my 55, and have been able to keep 2 Maximas on my sandbed happy. Sounds like you got just the upgrade you needed!!!

greg1786 · 07/11/2013, 09:09 PM

Sounds good. I really like the 15k bulb from geisemann, the pink bulb from geisemann, and the red bulb from uvl, other than that I think i will go with all ati when its time to replace them. And yes this is exactly the upgrade i needed I couldnt be more stoked. Right now my bulb combo consists of 2 giesemann actinic plus, one geisemann pink plus, one geisman 15 k blue plus, one uvl red bulb, one uvl 10000k, one ati blue plus, and one ati aquablue special. They are not in the fixtures in that specific order but that combo really gives me a broad color spectrum and allows me to simulate sunrise to sunset and everything in between. What do you guys think of that combo??

07/09/2013, 09:13 PM	#1
greg1786 Registered Member Join Date: Jul 2012 Location: Baltimore md Posts: 1,241	Aquaticlife t5 4x54w I posted this in the reef discussion forum hoping to get a good bit of responses but only recieved one. Im hoping i can get a few more experienced opinions here.... Hey guys, thanks to a fellow reefer here in baltimore, I was given a very gently used aquaticlife 48" 4x54watt t5 ho fixture. It has three cooling fans and an lcd display timer to control daylights, actinics, and LEDs. I was in desperate need of a second fixture since I upgraded from a 55 gallon to a 125 gallon tank and was still using my 48" 4x54 watt nova extreme fixture supplemented by a 2x65 watt pc lamp with just coral life actinics(no par value really). My tank is a mixed reef with a good bit of coral, mainly sps. I have been forced to keep all sps in the upper 1/3 of the 125 due to lack of light. All of my corals have been very healthy and grow relatively well, but I was lacking that intense color from them. I was also hancuffed to where I could place things which limited me being able to purchase too many new corals as of late. Now that ive got the new light, ive removed the PC fixture and gave it to a close friend who desperately wanted a new fixture as he was running a basic t8 light. I have both the aquaticlife fixture and the nova extreme set up above the 125 and they literally fill up the entire width of the tank. The tank is 18" deep front to back. Now that you have the background info, Id like to get some feedback on a few questions I have. Do you guys think 8 bullbs is the right amount over a standard 125 gallon mixed reef with the majority being sps? If not do you think I should run only 2 of the bulbs in the nova giving me 6 bulbs instead? Do I have enough light now to be able to freely move my more light demanding corals lower in the tank? Lastly, what is your general opinion on the aquaticlife fixture and how does it compare to ther t5 ho lights? Would you say its up there with ATI and geisemann or is it more middle of the road in terms of light output? Btw Im running 4 geisemann, 2ATI, and 2UVL bulbs. Sorry for the long post but I wanted to give everyone as much detail as possible. Im certainly not new to this hobby, but I value the opinion of the RC community greatly and this topic is very important to me so I figured what better of a place to come ask. Thanks in advance.-Greg. P.S. thanks a million to MSaba here on RC for the new light and other goodies

07/10/2013, 12:24 AM	#2
Drae RAIDER NATION! Join Date: Jun 2011 Location: City of sin... Posts: 3,476	The fixtures are ran parallel? One directly in front of the other? If so you have plenty of light directly under the fixtures all the way down to the sand and about 6" to the left and 6"to the right. The ends of your tank will be pretty dull though. Two 4x54 watt fixtures will be good for about 60x24x24 LxWxH.

07/10/2013, 12:29 AM	#3
Drae RAIDER NATION! Join Date: Jun 2011 Location: City of sin... Posts: 3,476	The aquaticlife fixtures are decent with good bulbs. The same guy who built your current light now builds aquaticlife. The aquatic being higher quality though by far. Ati is king in t5. Nothing but LET retro fits (if cooled properly) compare. But your aquaticlife is a capable fixture.

07/10/2013, 05:10 PM	#4
greg1786 Registered Member Join Date: Jul 2012 Location: Baltimore md Posts: 1,241	Yes they are run one in front of the other. I was originally thinking about getting a 72" fixture but not only are they incredibly expensive but the lower lit areas on both sides give me places to put my lps that like lower light. I appreciate the response you answered every question I had. I was most curious how deep I could put my sps and hearing that they can go to the sandbed offers me a lot of flexibility I didnt previously have

07/10/2013, 05:17 PM	#5
redwingrob40 Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2010 Location: Round Rock, TX Posts: 264	Yes you should be fine keeping sps on your sandbed. I agree the aquaticlife fixture while not top of the line like ATI, is still a good fixture. When you replace your bulbs I would recommend all ATI bulbs. I am running the 4 bulb aquaticlife with all ATI bulbs over my 55, and have been able to keep 2 Maximas on my sandbed happy. Sounds like you got just the upgrade you needed!!!

07/11/2013, 09:09 PM	#6
greg1786 Registered Member Join Date: Jul 2012 Location: Baltimore md Posts: 1,241	Sounds good. I really like the 15k bulb from geisemann, the pink bulb from geisemann, and the red bulb from uvl, other than that I think i will go with all ati when its time to replace them. And yes this is exactly the upgrade i needed I couldnt be more stoked. Right now my bulb combo consists of 2 giesemann actinic plus, one geisemann pink plus, one geisman 15 k blue plus, one uvl red bulb, one uvl 10000k, one ati blue plus, and one ati aquablue special. They are not in the fixtures in that specific order but that combo really gives me a broad color spectrum and allows me to simulate sunrise to sunset and everything in between. What do you guys think of that combo??