T8 Or T5 Electronic Or Magnetic Ballast/starter

[Uriel]

Ok wasn't sure whether this should be here or hardware section. But been as I'm a begginner thought i would post it here.

I have a 8 ft tank which i used to have 2 T8 starters running 2 48" bulbs for lighting it. Now one of the starters and the attached bulb has been transferred to another tank i'm running. So i was looking to buy a Double t8 starter and a pair of bulbs to go on the tank. And was going to buy a single night light to use with the old starter.

Now it seems since i bought my last starter things have got a bit more complicated. So my question is what are the differences between T8 and T5 bulbs is one preferable over the other and whats the difference between electronic and magnetic ballasts, are magnetic for t8 and electronic for t5 or can you get both for both. I've found it all a bit complicated and can't find any real direct answers on the internet.

 

[Aqua Tom]

T5 lighting & T8 Lighting

Electronic vs Magnetic Ballasts


Verdict? You want Electronic ballasts operating a T5 system as it takes up less room & is more efficient.

 

[SparkyDave]

Hi Uriel

Flourescent tubes come in T12, T8 and T5 this equates to the diameter of the glass in 8ths of inches.
So T8 is 1" diameter T12 is 1 & 1/2 inch diameter and T5 is 5/8ths of 1 inch.
Also T8/T12 and T5 are slightly different lenths.
You can also get HO (high output lamps)
In theory the smaller the diameter the better the efficency, but theres not alot between the T8s and T5s but both are better than the older T12s.
As far as ballasts are concerned I would reccomend the electronic HF (High freqency) type these will give better lamp life and faster or instant start time, that said the older magnetic ballasts (chokes) are being phased out, and are cheaper to buy.

I hope this helps.

SD.

EDIT: Tom beat me to it, curse these slow sausage like fingers

 

[Aqua Tom]

lol, 2 sparks on one fishkeeping site?

Thats gota be a first.

 

[Uriel]

Is 2 54w(46") t5's going to be overkill light wise on this tank though I used 2 run 2 38w(48") t8's and it seemed like ample light.

 

[Aqua Tom]

Did u run the T8's with reflectors?

 

[Uriel]

The bulb where interpet reflector which has the reflector built into the bulb if that makes sense so no seperate reflector.

 

[waterdrop]

Always good to have electical experts around! So let me ask a couple of questions!

1) Is electronic fluorescent startup directly associated with electronic ballast vs. magnetic ballast? My feeling is that electronic ballast systems would always be instant on with no mechanical operation required whereas the older magnetic ballasts might sometimes require that the pushbutton be depressed until the unit has flickered on and then released such that it stays on. Is that sort of consideration a different feature and the older magnetic ballast units might have previously needed that then then didn't need it later?

The reason I mention it is that its very useful if the fluorescent strip can be controlled by a timer and not all beginners realize that when first purchasing their lighting.

2) Do you happen to remember the "watts per foot" for each of the different tube types mentioned? (This may be one of those topics that carries the danger of continental differences.) I remember that OM47 mentioned a "watts per foot" number here some time back but I can't remember if it varies between T5, T8, T12 and HO/CF? (In USA, Compact Fluroescent (CF) with the tiny tube all bent up to be a light bulb shape is common for household use and straight T5 tubes are becomming more commonplace over tanks but it seems that Europe has a good deal more of the U-shaped T5 tubes that go down and come back.)

The reason I mention this is that the "efficiency" of different fluorescent lighting systems plays in to the "old rules of thumb" that got established for helping aquarists plan the matching of their lights to their tank volume such that they will be left in the correct range for the type of planted system they will run. Most beginners need to fall in the "low light technique" range, but people planning to run "high-tech technique" need to be in a higher range.

~~waterdrop~~

 

[Uriel]

and i thought i was confused before. My current starters are magnetic i believe as they have a choke or starter in them and they run fine on timers. My tank dimensions are 90"length 20"depth and 18"width, I have no idea how to translate this into watts. I tend to keep basic plants and have the aquarium med/low planted as there mainly there for cover and comfort of the fish. I tend to use the brown leaf rule. I buy a load of different plants and whatever lives i buy more of and whatever dies i throw away. Not exactly the most scientific approach i'll agree.

 

[Aqua Tom]

An Electronic ballast will start the lamp (bulbs grow, lamps glow) in one hit, it may not be instantanious like a filiment lamp but it wont flicker.

Magnetic ballasts will always flicker the lamp when starting & will do the same when they start to fail, which, of course, will probably be no good for your fish as they will think they are in a strobelight factory.

Electronic is the way to go.

WD I will go away & have a think about your watts per foot question, once I have read it again a few times. (Just finished a 12 hour day shift so mind is mush).

 

[waterdrop]

No problem Tom, same happens to me quite frequently, beginners with not particularly hard questions but I'm a wreck from work and can't focus at that moment, lol. WD

 

[Uriel]

Having done a bit more research 1 watt per US gallon for T5 bulbs seems to be what they reccomend for low-tech. As my tank is 126 us gallons and 2 56w would be 112 watts i think i should be ok. Any reccomendation on bulbs suitable for low-tech planted aquarium ?

 

[Aqua Tom]

Having done a bit more research 1 watt per US gallon for T5 bulbs seems to be what they reccomend for low-tech. As my tank is 126 us gallons and 2 56w would be 112 watts i think i should be ok. Any reccomendation on bulbs suitable for low-tech planted aquarium ?

My area is more how the elctrical side of things work. The type of light that the lamp/luminaire/tube (its not a bulb grrrrr) gives out & what its benifits are to plants & fish is more down to our fish/plantkeeping experts.

I have a T8 setup with an electronic ballast, simply because it is what came with the tank (the ballast I put in myself as the old one was burnt out). I have 2 t8 tubes from interpet which are "tropical daylight" & give of a pinky type light, I only bought these becuase I have seen them in lfs's & thought they looked cool. I also have two "daylight" tubes which give out a more bluey light so i can swap them around & mix them later to see what gives the best results.

 

[SparkyDave]

Bulbs go in the ground
Lamps go in light fittings

I'm so with you on that one Tom


I don't want to go too off topic but, I wonder if you can have too much light in aquariums? is too much light bad for plants or fish?

Would Metal halide HQI or high pressure sodium SON be a viable option for tank lighting?

With LED technology constantly developing soon maybe LED will be the best option for safety, efficency and low heat.

SD.

 

[Uriel]

Bloody sparky's

I don't think it's so much a matter of having to much light as having to much light for your setup. The more light you supply the plants the more nutrients they require to maintain healthy growth. It's starts with things like carbon suppliments, fertilisers and plant substrates and ends with you running 8 T5 lamps and a CO2 System. Plus more light isn't always a good thing for certain fish and it will also cause a lot of algea problems unless you have everything else in perfect balance. Also there are metal halide aquarium lamp.