Lighting Opinion on T5's Needed

[renman303]

I am thinking of getting this particular T5 setup for my new 72" reef tank that I am having made by Glasscages.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=7773565914&ssPageName=MERC_VIC_RSCC_Pr4_PcY_BIN_Stores_IT

Does anyone have any feedback on this setup? Also, here are the bulb choices, what do you suggest since they will mix and match in any combo that I like? I think I'm also going to opt for $39.99 to have the 8 "Moon Lights" added. Shipping and all should be ~$600 even.

"8 Brand new Aquablue or sunlight bulbs included! - Includes 4 aquablue and 4 sun bulbs - we also have 6500k bulbs in stock - if you would like a different mix of bulbs specify in your payment and you will receive.

Each bulb has its own individual parabolic reflector to improve lights output by 300%"

Best Regards,

Dave

[bertoni]

Hard to say. The individual reflectors are good to have, if they're reasonable quality. Looks like a nice unit, but the manufacturer isn't listed, so we could only guess.

[old salty]

And I quote:

"T5 lights with individual reflectors makes beautiful shimmer effect happen in your aqarium."

I can pretty much guarantee that this statement is quite misleading. You can decide for yourself if any other claims are a bit iffy as it is your money.


The lights would most likely work with little or no issues, but just by looking at the shape of their reflectors, they will not pack the same punch as the more popular brands. I have no way to actually verify this, but having done my homework with regards to T5's about 8 months ago, I have learned quite a bit.

[bllfish]

Find out how wide that unit is. I have 4 T5's on my 72 bow. I could never fit 8. Check the dimensions of your tank with the dimensions of the fixture. Also, I agree that individual reflectors are the only way to go but those reflectors do not resemble the ice cap reflectors.
Shimmer Effect - T5's - NO WAY

[hawaiianwargod]

renman303
[welcome]

[Jocko]

I do not think T5 can create a shimmer effect. Flourescent lights put out a more diffuse type of light than an incandescent bulb. So you might have a MH and T5 unit putting exactly the same amount of light into the water, but the MH will shimmer because all of the light waves are travelling parallel to each other.

As far as bulb combo, I would do half blue and half 10k. That is what I run in my T5 unit. It has a nice color. It's not overly blue. Unfortunately, eBay is not accessible at work, but I bought my T5 unit from this company: http://www.aquauniverse.com/

I know they sell on eBay as well, so I was wondering if that might be the manufacturer of the unit you linked too. If so, I can say that I have been happy with the performance and the build quality. They build them in house. It is a very small operation. It can seem a little sketch actually, but in the end you should be quite satisfied. I would buy from them again.

If that is not the same company, then you should probably just ignore my statements. :-)

[juan jose]

Check out reefgeek.com I just bought the 8-t5 teklight for my 90 gallon. They have great deals.

[bllfish]

Great lights too, that is where I got mine.

[TitansFan]

I would have to third reefgeek its where I got my lights. Great customer support. They didint have the T5 lights in stock I wanted and after my wait gave me a 15% discount which i didn't even ask for. Also it seems they have the best T5 selection out there. You are looking at spending $500 on something a few extra bucks for name brands with proven support and a great company to do business with is worth it IMO. No, I don't work for them just a great experience with them and wanted to share.

[thor32766]

reefgeek is a great place!

[lbear]

Those individual reflectors don't look like parabolic, just reflectors. IMO