t5 suggestions for lighting 60'' tank

[Mel-E-Mel]

I know this has been asked Millions of times already but Can anyone suggest good t5's to light 60''x24''x24'' tank? looking at teks but they dont have 60'' fixtures. any fixtures you guys can recommend? also open to retro fits but im not too familiar with them. my original plan was to have an open top but if it comes down to it i will use a canopy.

[hahnmeister]

Why not just get a 4' system? The 6" at each end wont be noticable.

Or, you can DIY a retrofit using two Icecap 660 ballasts. Each one will light 3 5' bulbs at 100 watts each.

[blmeier7]

My brother just got the 4-54w TEK T5 (48") for his 100g which is 60". He doesn't have his rock or any corals yet but from what I can tell it looks like he has plenty of light for any low to medium light corals. I think his 100g is only 18" wide so you might look at the 6 bulb fixture/retro if you are covering 24". The 6" of tank at each end without light does not seem to be noticeable or show any shadows. What corals are you wanting to keep?

[luke33]

The aquacintics have some nice fixtures...i'd take them over the tek's anytime.

[Mel-E-Mel]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9745815#post9745815 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by hahnmeister
Why not just get a 4' system? The 6" at each end wont be noticable.

Or, you can DIY a retrofit using two Icecap 660 ballasts. Each one will light 3 5' bulbs at 100 watts each.

My original plan was the 4' fixture but i was worried about shadowing on the 6'' on each corner. but i guess with the 6 or 8 bulb set it should be enough light.

i got alot of recomendations for the icecap retro fits so if i decide to utilize a canopy i will go for that. How hard is it to wire those lights? im not much of an electrician so i wouldnt want to screw anything up...even worse electricute myself.:D

[Mel-E-Mel]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9746762#post9746762 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by blmeier7
My brother just got the 4-54w TEK T5 (48") for his 100g which is 60". He doesn't have his rock or any corals yet but from what I can tell it looks like he has plenty of light for any low to medium light corals. I think his 100g is only 18" wide so you might look at the 6 bulb fixture/retro if you are covering 24". The 6" of tank at each end without light does not seem to be noticeable or show any shadows. What corals are you wanting to keep?

I was thinkning of going with the 8 bulb. my stocking list would be lps and eventually if lights are sufficient go sps. thinking of keeping and island of sps in the center and lower light corals on each end.

[Mel-E-Mel]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9746913#post9746913 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by luke33
The aquacintics have some nice fixtures...i'd take them over the tek's anytime.

have to look into aquactinics. can i ask why you would take them over teks? not trying to question your opinion, just curiuos what makes certain lights better than others.

Thank you all for the help!

[wtac]

Aquarium Obsessed has 60" FaunaMarin T5HOs in 4 and 6 bulb configurations.

HTH

[hahnmeister]

yeah, those fauna-marin and ATI 5' units are on hold though... there is a ballast supply problem.

As for the wiring of a retrofit into a hood... piece of cake.

[chris4869]

Check out reefgeek.com if you're looking for a 60" retrofit setup.

http://www.reefgeek.com/lighting/T5_Fluorescent/IceCap/Retrofit_Kits/

[jwccwj]

Im looking at a blue series tank thats 60" long and I was considering the sfilgoli stealth t5 that aquarium obsessed has it looks so cool!Go to the AO forum and take a look its awsome.

[plc001]

I have a 5' tank with 6 48" t5s. What I did was stagger the bulbs by 4 inches:


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Just make sure you do not put a light loving coral at the ends.