T5 Power Compact Lightbulbs

[stegoodall]

Hi
I have DIY'ed two 36watt power compacts and now all i need is the bulbs (PL-L), which do you recommend in the UK? And are there any cheap ones that work? Will a normal T8 reflector work for them?
thanks in advance
Stephen

 

[stegoodall]

I've found these:
Tubes
would any of these be suitable?

 

[George Farmer]

Should be ok. I'd go for the Day lights personally.

 

[Amerce]

Hi Stegoodall, do you know how much the carriage costs are, have you used them ?

 

[stegoodall]

No sorry Amerce. I've never used them before.

gf do you mean the day lights from the link or the interpet daylight tubes?

stephen

 

[zig]

I use the Interpet daylight power compacts 6500k they give a very natural light and i just use ordinary T8 arcadia reflectors and they work fine.

 

[George Farmer]

No sorry Amerce. I've never used them before.

gf do you mean the day lights from the link or the interpet daylight tubes?

stephen

I meant the Daylights in the link but the Interpets are good too. I'm not sure if they're the same fitting though, T5 PC is one area that I have no practical experience in.

 

[DaveW]

I use the Interpet daylight power compacts 6500k they give a very natural light and i just use ordinary T8 arcadia reflectors and they work fine.

So, you find T8 reflector is big enough for the tube. I'm about to upgrade my light with Interpet T5 compact.

Sorry for jumping in, but I'm about a week away from upgrade, and was having a problem finding a reflector.

 

[zig]

I use the Interpet daylight power compacts 6500k they give a very natural light and i just use ordinary T8 arcadia reflectors and they work fine.

So, you find T8 reflector is big enough for the tube. I'm about to upgrade my light with Interpet T5 compact.

Sorry for jumping in, but I'm about a week away from upgrade, and was having a problem finding a reflector.

DaveW have a read through this thread below it explains how i did it, i used oversized Arcadia reflectors and a cable tie to keep one end of the light secured, it works really well i havent had a problem since i installed them, one thing i would say is that you probably need glass covers for your tank as would not be convinced that the Interpet fittings are entirely waterproof, but you can easily rig something up to keep the condensation away from the lights, also if your tank is quite small heat may be an issue, again i didnt have a problem with this as my hood is custom made but others have had issues with heat build up this is why i mention it.

Anyway look through this thread and you will see pretty clearly how its done.

Fitting Interpet power compacts

 

[DaveW]

Many thanks zig, I'll get the bit and have a think before installing them.

 

[stegoodall]

zig - i've had a look on the thread you posted, very helpful i should be able to find some old reflectors lying around somewhere.

I think I will wait until I've got CO2 to set these up. Need to find a regulator because i think i'm going to go pressurised. No idea how t set it up though lol.

stephen