Hottest/Coolest item at MACNA XX

[Bowman]

This past weekend I attended MACNA XX in Atlanta and always like the tradeshow to see the newest/latest products. This year the new T5 lamps from UVL formerly URI topped the list. As I was getting a coffee at the hotel Starbucks I ran into a guy carring a couple of T5 lamps and struck up a conversation. He said they were new bulbs just going onto production. The new bulbs have new spectrums AND 180 degree internal reflectors, Yes I said 180 degree internal reflectors. He was on his way to a booth to fire them up and suggested I come by for a look. When I stopped by the booth I was just blown away. Currently the bulbs will be available in Aquasun and a 465 spectrum with the remaining current spectrum bulbs receiving internal reflector upgrades in the very near future. He had the current Aquasun installed next to the new 180 Aquasun and there was a very noticeable difference. We then used a white sheet of paper to further illustrate the difference. The brand new 465 with internal reflector is very close in color to the ATI blue + or the Giesemann Atinic +. With these bulbs the corals are going to need sunscreen:D

I spoke with the gentleman ( who turned out to be the GM for UVL) after MACNA and found out there are 2 more additional spectrum bulbs planned for a total 7. This should allow the aquarist to tailor their lighting to any coloring of choice. He also said that their line of power compacts would also have internal reflectors. I think T5's have finally come of age and are the wave of the future for aquarium lighting. Inital costs of T5 vs VHO are about the same but the savings come in when you factor in longer bulb life and lower power consumption, 54 watts -T5 vs 110 watts VHO. And as we have seen in other threads the PAR values obtained with T5's are comparable with the lower end of the Metal Halide range using a lot less wattage. Regards

[anative]

This is going to sound strange but for me the best item I found at Macna XX was a pair of tongs. You see a few years ago Coralife switched to a new design that leaves a LOT to be desired. Every time I went to use the tongs I would cuss and wish for the old style back.

Well is turns out I wasn't the only one. Our good friends at Tunze went back to the manufacture (Pikstik) and had some made with the old style. In cool Tunze blue to boot.

Like I said a bit strange but when you put a 30" tall tank on a 40" tall stand tongs are something you find yourself using very often.

Jon

[wayne in norway]

How is a T5 with a 180 degree internal reflector a good idea? Can someone explain this

[Steven Pro]

I was most impressed with the Tunze Nano Wavebox.

[Bowman]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13338210#post13338210 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by wayne in norway
How is a T5 with a 180 degree internal reflector a good idea? Can someone explain this
In a non internal reflector bulb the emitted light radiates 360 degrees around the bulb and when it is installed in a fixture light bounces off everything in the fixture including the bulb causing light scatter. Using external reflectors helps direct light emitted and reduces scatter.
Having a internal reflector directs the light ouput out of the non reflector part of the bulb reducing scatter and focusing more light into the tank i.e. increased par output of about 30%. More/higher par values = more light per watt. Hope my explaniton was clear. Cheers

[yeldarbj]

If you already have individual reflectors, is there any benefit? I can see it being a huge benefit in some fixtures that use one reflector for a large number of bulbs.

[Steven Pro]

Internal reflectors are nothing new. URI/UVL has been doing this for decades in their VHO lamps. It is just now being done on their T-5 bulbs.

[eros]

So is the internal reflector bulb more efficient than an individual reflector setup? Do internal reflectors mean you do not need to have any other reflectors? I currently have 4 T5's with individual reflectors and I"m curious if these new bulbs would be beneficial for me?

[Bowman]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13339118#post13339118 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by yeldarbj
If you already have individual reflectors, is there any benefit? I can see it being a huge benefit in some fixtures that use one reflector for a large number of bulbs. Yes there is benefit. When you use a external reflector, even the individual SLR type, some of the light emitted by the bulb is reflected back into the bulb and absorbed which basically means you are using power i e watts to generate light that you are not getting any benefit of. With a internal reflector lamp you are still using about the same number of watts but getting more light output i e higher PAR numbers. Higher PAR numbers = higher light levels. 30% higher output vs their non internal reflector bulbs. As Steve Pro said URI/UVL has been doing this for years with their T12/VHO lamps for years and now it is available in their T5 lamps.

Cheers, HTH

[supersurfer12]

when r these bulbs coming out cause they could be very beneficial for me

[Bowman]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13343152#post13343152 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by supersurfer12
when r these bulbs coming out cause they could be very beneficial for me
I'm sorry thought I said. The first releases should be out mid October 2008 and all 7 spectrums should be available mid January

[eros]

So can you use these bulbs without a reflector? It seems if they have an internal reflector blocking out 180 degrees of light then an external reflector wouldnt be doing much. Could you put these in a cheapo reflector and make it into a nice T5 light setup? I'm trying to figure out a way to sqeeze more lighting into my 75 gallon. I currently have 4 T5's in a retrokit and I dont think I can fit 2 more in this type of configuration because the reflectors take up so much space. If I picked up a cheapo 6 bulb fixture, packed it full of these bulbs I would have not only more bulbs but more yeild per blub?

[supersurfer12]

are the bulbs coming out for 48 in fixture cause i found one of these lights but it was only for 72 in?

[Bowman]

Good questions Yes you could use these lamp without being in reflectors, you can do anything you want:D . However the lamps I saw were installed in an Icecap T5 retrofit setup using the clip on SLR reflectors. I now own a like setup thanks to Icecap and the MACNA XX raffle, Thank You Icecap. I am waiting on the release of the bulbs in October to do some comparisons but my first thought is that yes you would still benifit from using external slr reflectors because the lamp actually sits up in the reflector well past the 180 degree arc of the internal reflector. just as a thought, I measured one of my 75 gallon tanks and I have roughly a 16" wide opening, the Icecap wired retrofit is 10" wide so I could easily get 2 additional lamps even using SLR reflectors across the width of the tank. Also keep in mind the type of ballast you are using to drive the lamps, Icecap ballasts typically overdrive the lamps whereas cheapo balasts may and probably do not. Over driven lamp typically have higher light outputs Cheers HTH

[Bowman]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13344971#post13344971 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by supersurfer12
are the bulbs coming out for 48 in fixture cause i found one of these lights but it was only for 72 in? Yes they are coming out in 48" lenght as this is what I saw. It was my understanding that they would be available across UVL's complete T5 bulb line. I am suprised to hear that you saw/found one in 72" lenght as it was my understanding that they would not be available to the market untill mid October. regards

[supersurfer12]

ok thanks ya i found it on marinedepot heres the link http://www.marinedepot.com/ps_ViewItem~action~view~idProduct~UF3721~idCategory~FILTBUFLVB~category~VHO_-Fluorescent-Bulbs-Lighting-Saltwater_Aquarium_Supplies~vendor~.html

[sjm817]

I'm not so sure I agree. I cant see the integrated reflector being as effective as an SLR. An external reflector will capture the light coming off the bulbs all the way around, and focus all of it down. A reflector on the surface of the bulb (I'm picturing the same design as the VHO, must make the light travel back through the bulb to go down, and what about the light from the sides?

[Bowman]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13345190#post13345190 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by supersurfer12
ok thanks ya i found it on marinedepot heres the link http://www.marinedepot.com/ps_ViewItem~action~view~idProduct~UF3721~idCategory~FILTBUFLVB~category~VHO_-Fluorescent-Bulbs-Lighting-Saltwater_Aquarium_Supplies~vendor~.html

The link you posted is for the currently available VHO/T12 lamp that has been available on the market you years. The bulbs I saw were the smaller diameter T5 format bulbs.

[Bowman]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13345202#post13345202 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by sjm817
I'm not so sure I agree. I cant see the integrated reflector being as effective as an SLR. An external reflector will capture the light coming off the bulbs all the way around, and focus all of it down. A reflector on the surface of the bulb (I'm picturing the same design as the VHO, must make the light travel back through the bulb to go down, and what about the light from the sides? I know the SLR reflectors are very effective in reflecting light from current T5 lamps and what I saw at the show was very impressive. They had a current T5 Aquasun with SLR reflector side by side with a new T5 Aquasun 180 degree internal reflector with SLR reflector and the internal reflector bulb was noticably brighter. I am eagerly awaiting the release in October to do some actual comparisons and get some par numbers to see for myself.

Not sure I understand what you meant about light coming town the sides. I would still use this new lamp with a SLR reflector and not in place off. HTH
Cheers

[sjm817]

Oh...I think I may have misunderstood. The intent is to use these WITH an SLR, not by themselves. Got it.

One challenge that was brought up a while back with making a bulb of this type is there are (were??) two types of endcaps. There is the type that the bulb snaps straight in, and the type where you rotate the bulb 90 degrees. For which type do you make the bulbs?

[Bowman]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13345109#post13345109 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Bowman
Good questions Yes you could use these lamp without being in reflectors, you can do anything you want :D .

Scott if this is what you were referring to about light coming down the sides I guess my intended sarcasium was not conveyed :o I would still use the SLR reflector with the new bulb to maximize the amoumt of light delivered to the tank. HTH

[Bowman]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13345476#post13345476 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by sjm817
Oh...I think I may have misunderstood. The intent is to use these WITH an SLR, not by themselves. Got it.

One challenge that was brought up a while back with making a bulb of this type is there are (were??) two types of endcaps. There is the type that the bulb snaps straight in, and the type where you rotate the bulb 90 degrees. For which type do you make the bulbs? Scott I thought of that afterward and would have to believe thaat the reflector would have to be aligned parallel to the lamp pins so that when the lamp is installed it is in the correct orientation. Oh and just for the record I am NOT a manfacture's rep although I am beginning to sound like one, maybe I should see about a job :D Cheers

[sjm817]

No, that wasn't it. As I already posted, my point was using the bulb alone without an external reflector. I didn't see that you planned on using them when I made that post.

On the orientation, I dont know if both types of endcaps are sill being made. The T5s I had on my 90G were the rotate to insert style. The ones on the 180G are the push straight in type, which I prefer.

[The Grim Reefer]

I am skeptical about having better light produced by an internal reflector. They've done it with VHO's and they just don't have that great of output. I sense some late fall par testing in my future:D Could be a good deal for people without good reflectors though. Can't wait to try the blue lamp. ABOUT DAMN TIME!!!