T5's

[Demm]

Well i'm thinking about getting some T5's on my 55g tank. not sure which i'm gonna go with yet, but more then likely it'll be a nova extreme.

i have 2 choices:

4 x 54 watts (216 watts; 3.92 watts per gallon)
8 x 54 watts (432 watts; 7.85 watts per gallon)

now my question is if i got the 8 bulb setup do you guys think it would really heat my tank up? would i have to get a chiller? (right now my tank sits at 78 degrees)

second question, if i get this light would i be able to do SPS with the 8 bulb fixture? how about the 4 bulb fixture?

http/www.drsfostersmith.com/Product/Prod...p;N=2004+113175

 

[pengy666]

These lights will most definately heat up the tank!

If you dont cool them down!!

Check out my tank I am running 4x55w T5's and in the summer(uk) Without my fan to cool the bulbs and top of tank inside the lid my tank warmed up by an extra 4 deg!!

It was ok as it was empty and cycling!! I then got my cooling fans which cured it!

 

[Tommy Gun]

These lights will most definately heat up the tank!

Of any bulb that can bring this amount of useable light, T5's have to be the the least likely to heat up water. I have used an 8 bulb HO T5 light system over my tank since the beginning of the year and have never once required the use of a chiller, nor any additional fans other than the two that are built it.

Of course, if you are in need of glass tops or something that is going to going to heat from any and all sources to some degree (no pun intended), then yes, you may have to make some accomodations for that....but otherwise, T5 bulbs put off an ounce of the heat that a Mh would. Additionally, pengy666 probably cannot attribute all four degrees of increased water temp to the lights alone...at least not during the summer...which would be the same for everyone I am sure.

 

[Demm]

ahh ok. so if i decide to go with the 4 bulb setup how much would that limit me as far as corals go? would that be able to support sps and more light demanding corals and all that if i decide to take that route in the future?

how about the 8 bulb one? should i jsut shell out the money for the 8 bulb one now and call it done, or would it be ok to go with the 4 bulb one?

 

[Tommy Gun]

ahh ok. so if i decide to go with the 4 bulb setup how much would that limit me as far as corals go?

This can be a somewhat tricky answer to come up with because it can depend on a couple variants - which basically amount to finding the ideal placement for the coral (e.g. higher in the tank for the more 'light greedy' corals, lower in the tank for less greedy versions). However, this is only a generalization and of course, some corals may not thrive in any spot in your tank unless you add more lighting (perhaps some, if not all acropora is a good example)

So, depending on what light system you choose (four or eight bulb), I would say that you can keep most of the corals which are commonly listed as requiring a 'medium' amount of light...and I base that off my own experience since I have kept a few corals under a 4 bulb T5 system - including a plate coral in a 32 or 34 inch deep tank (from top to bottom) - but later upgraded to the 8 bulb system and couldnt be much happier with it. My best suggestion to you is that, unless spending the money will hurt you financially or in other areas of life, go with the 8 bulb since this might open up a few more options for you.

 

[Demm]

alright, 8 bulb setup it is, thanks alot for the insight!

 

[Adrinal]

I got a get some sleep, so im gonna just throw out a quick ramble.

tek hood 4 bulbs for a 55 g tank. reefgeek.com. (or wherever) you wont be dissapointed.

retrofit with icecap reflectors even better. dont bother with an icecap ballast though, thats really overpowering it.

The nova is a waist of money.

the reflectors are the key. a good reflector will put out 300% more light than a naked bulb. A lousy reflector might put out mmm 50% more?

a great reflector can put out 30% more light than a good relector.

If it doesn't say parabolic reflector, it isnt worth looking at.

Short answer, sorry, thats all I got in me tonight.

PS

I highly suggest the acrylic splash guard... but if you have access to a table saw, get some 1/8" extruded acrylic from the hardware store for about 5 bucks (window section) you will need to make it into 2 pieces to reach the lenght... but that doesn't matter

 

[Demm]

how about if i get the nova and retrofit the icecap reflectors on there? wouldnt that give me the same result?

or would the tek light look alot better then the nova even if they both had icecap reflectors?

also if i go wih the tek light which are the best type of bulbs to get?