The Puffer Forum

Hi guys,

It's that time when the T5s are nearing the end of their age and need to be replaced. I have 4 T5 bulbs that fit into a 48" fixture. 2 are actinic and 2 are 10,000K.

I was thinking of playing around a little with that mix to get a broader spectrum of colors. I was thinking one actinic and 14,000K and then just the two 10,000K. Any one have any experience playing around with a mixture like that? I don't want to spend more money than I need....

I have 14k halides running on my tank with no supplement actinic. I'm definitely a fan of 14k lighting.

2 ATI Blue Plus, 1 ATI Aquablue Special, and 1 GE 6500K Daylight

That is the recommend bulbs for a 4 light T5 HO setup by many people, reefcentral's T5 guru and reefgeek.com to name a few. The best color with the most PAR output.

Kelvin is not always accurate, for instance a UVL 12,000k looks very pink and not as bright compared to a ATI 12,000k.

http://www.reefgeek.com/lighting/T5_Flu ... s/54_Watt/

hmm, went and looked to see what my lfs carries.

they have Blue Life brand for $20 each in the following options:

actinic 460 nm
actinic 420 nm
15,000K
6,7000K

and IceCap brand for $30 each:

actinic 460 nm
actinic 420 nm
14,000K
12,000K
10,000K

I'll prolly check the other lfs when I have time. I'm not a fan of ordering bulbs online, too many incidences of breakage for me

I would never do anything but order my bulbs online. If they break, the store should replace them.

I would usually agree about buying online but maybe you can try buying and returning to get exactly what you want.

Check out this thread:

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showt ... r&page=250

'The Grim Reefer' will answer back, he is the T5 guru and has tested most bulbs on the market and will steer you in a good direction.

and here, direct link to PAR tests for T5 bulbs:

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showt ... ght=t5+par

Not sure what the shipping costs might be to HI though...