T5 versus MH

[Charles]

Hi guys, I live in this part of the world where electricity is considered one of the main cost of maintaining a reef tank. I am currently using MH but people here are shifting to T5 lightings to save energy. My concern is T5 comparable to using MH, I mean will my corals be happy if I changed to T5 instead of using MH?

[Wiskey]

What is your tank size? What kind of corals are you keeping? Do you have a pic of your tank?

This will help us help you,
Whiskey

[hng]

There are many people using t-5 lighting for their reef tanks. Like Whiskey said, it depends on what size tank and what corals you want to keep. However, there are many beautiful tanks of sps lit with t-5 only. One of the keys to using t-5 bulbs is to have high quality reflectors for each individual bulb which greatly increases the intensity of the bulbs.

[hng]

Here is a classic link to a wonderful tank using t-5 lamps only.

http://reefcentral.com/forums/showth...hreadid=700454

[REEFSTOCK]

For a single tank, I would do MH. I belive it is easier to get the right lighting for lots of different corals in a mixed reef, mostly because of the single point source. You can have shade easier and you can have the super bright spots too. T-5 you mostly have consistiant lighting through out the tank.

[Geoff]

i really think that MH's are a more efficient light source than T-5's. T-5's are more efficient than incandescent or halogens.

the answers to Whiskey's questions will help out a lot. you might want to use 70w MH's.

G~

[REEFSTOCK]

No way MH is more efficient than T-5.

I don't see MH running 1 Amp to light a 10sq foot area. T-5 No problem.

Everything is situational, but for our general tank t-5 way outshines everything ATM. LED may give it a run for its money though.

[Geoff]

i really have to dissagree with you on that. if T-5's were so efficient than why are street lights not using them?

according to this, flourescents are not even close to HID lighting when it comes to lumens per watt. granted that T-5's are not listed, but still even if you double the lumens, which is all a T-5 is doing they are not anywhere near an HID light. you just can not compete with a point source light.

now if we were talking LED's i will agree, they have the potential to replace HID's for lumens per watt.

G~

[Charles]

as of now I don't have picture of my tank. But my tank size is around 168 gallon. And I am keeping mixed corals, I got LPS, SPS, softies. Please advice if I can use T5 and what wattage I need to keep a mixed reef. Thanks

[Mr.Reef]

I currently run two 400w 20k hamilton bulbs on a pendant system. And have several sps and lps. my tank specs are 48x25x25. Would my corals be fine if I switched to the 48" 4-54 Watt HO T5 Retrofit kit?

http://www.hamiltontechnology.com/sh...+Retrofit+Kits

[REEFSTOCK]

I'll play, but you should play fair and answer my question.

Originally Posted by Geoff

i really have to dissagree with you on that. if T-5's were so efficient than why are street lights not using them?

They damage easy and can't handle the temp drop?

according to this, flourescents are not even close to HID lighting when it comes to lumens per watt. granted that T-5's are not listed, but still even if you double the lumens, which is all a T-5 is doing they are not anywhere near an HID light. you just can not compete with a point source light.

1) lums are not PAR
2) MH do not evenly place light over the tank. I have 2.5'x4' tanks Explain to me how I will light the whole thing with 1 amp or even 2 amps or even 3 amps for an SPS tank of such dimension.
3) Don't forget supplementals or extra wattage for a proper 20k bulb.

lumens is not PAR, and we aren't lighting streets we are lighting aquariums. I have yet to be convinced you can adequately light a tank for less amps with MH than T-5 no matter the biotope you choose. 54 watts per 4' bulb.

[REEFSTOCK]

Originally Posted by Mr.Reef

I currently run two 400w 20k hamilton bulbs on a pendant system. And have several sps and lps. my tank specs are 48x25x25. Would my corals be fine if I switched to the 48" 4-54 Watt HO T5 Retrofit kit?

http://www.hamiltontechnology.com/sh...+Retrofit+Kits

They should be healthy. SPS tend to not have as rich a color as they do under the 20ks. I don't know if this is because of the ones we like are the ones we trade around and most tanks use MH. Or, if T-5 effect all SPS in this way. Greg, from reefgeek says there are some new bulbs coming out that are supposed to have a more balance spectrum. They look pretty ugly to me (saw them at MACNA) but if you just needed a couple 3-4 hours a day to get those rich colors for when your full actinic are on... it may be worth it).
The long and short of it is, you will be able to keep the corals healthy (sps part way up). If your a color snob you might not want to change though.

[REEFSTOCK]

Originally Posted by Charles

as of now I don't have picture of my tank. But my tank size is around 168 gallon. And I am keeping mixed corals, I got LPS, SPS, softies. Please advice if I can use T5 and what wattage I need to keep a mixed reef. Thanks

Wattage wont matter much for LPS softie... infact I have cut back on bulbs and ripped off the reflectors for my LPS tanks, esp challaces. What are your dimentions? What kind of voltage are you running? Are you able to use the same equipment as us?

[Charles]

My tank dimension is Length 70 x Height 24 x Depth 23
voltage here is 220 Volts and I am currently using 2 x 250watts 20,000K MH and 4 x 30watts Actinic blue. How many T5 should I used to keep my SPS healthy? Does the reflector really double the wattage of T5? This will help me cut down on actual wattage used and in turn cut down on electricity. And is operating T5 cooler than MH? If so this will also lessen the operation of my chiller thus again cutting down on electricity bill.

[Geoff]

currect, lumens is not PAR.

we as aquarist do not seem very interested in PAR. most tend to use 20K bulbs. these are horrendous at producing PAR. if you are interested in producing PAR than use an HPS system. once again if T-5's are so good than why are they not used in the horticulture industry? T-5's are not very efficient for anything we are doing.

in order to light a tank deeper than 24" you will really need to pack in those T-5's in order to get the light intensity at the bottom of the tank to keep high light corals. indirect lighting does not penetrate SW very well at all. you will find that you will quickly be using more watts in T-5's than you would be using in MH's.

as far as suplimenting MH's with flourescents, this is all about de-yellowing a spectrum and has nothing to do with PAR supplimentation.

if you are looking for making corals pop, you will need the high K values. these high K values will not help the health of the corals at all. they are just for our pleasure. flourescents are better at producing this poor PAR spectrum. the more pop you have the more wattage you will need to keep the corals alive.

as far as lighting a tank with MH's all you have to do is raise the MH higher above the tank. this will increase the surface area that the MH will cover.

are you trying to cover the most amount of area, or are you trying to cover the most amount of area effectively for the corals health?

T-5's are only used in our industry. this is because we are trying to keep the heat down and aesthetics are important. people do not like the look of high canopies.

can you light a tank with T-5's, absolutely. are they the most efficient way, no. LED's will be shortly, but now it is still the MH. lighting is all about compromises.

G~