Are T5 lights still superior to LED?

[rtparty]

I was hearing bulbs are not going to be avl since 2013 ……. I love my ati fixture 6 bulb t5 , EVERY coral seems to love it no matter what coral it is (hard) (easy) they all seem very pleased , sold all my radions and got this fixture and man let me tell you after watching coral euphoria on YouTube , THIS HAS BEEN THE BEST LIGHT FOR ME!

Difference between 2013 and today is the EU actually banned the production and sell of all mercury lamps going forward. Ban goes into effect September this year and is a 2 year rollout.

Specialty lamps like aquarium bulbs may be exempt from the ban but the manufacturers don’t produce enough specialty bulbs to keep factories open. So unless Philips and Sylvania move all production out of Europe, bulbs are quickly disappearing.

A source close to the whole thing informed me the last run of bulbs has happened at multiple factories already. Time will tell when we officially stop seeing them but it’s closer than most realize.

 

[X-37B]

I was hearing bulbs are not going to be avl since 2013 ……. I love my ati fixture 6 bulb t5 , EVERY coral seems to love it no matter what coral it is (hard) (easy) they all seem very pleased , sold all my radions and got this fixture and man let me tell you after watching coral euphoria on YouTube , THIS HAS BEEN THE BEST LIGHT FOR ME!

Great go with them as yes they grow anything well as you know.
I recently went from halides to all leds and did not skip a beat.
The radions will grow anything as will most of the current leds.
Just run what you like its all good.

 

[Cichlid Dad]

I was hearing bulbs are not going to be avl since 2013 ……. I love my ati fixture 6 bulb t5 , EVERY coral seems to love it no matter what coral it is (hard) (easy) they all seem very pleased , sold all my radions and got this fixture and man let me tell you after watching coral euphoria on YouTube , THIS HAS BEEN THE BEST LIGHT FOR ME!

Attention, end users: Europe is banning fluorescent lighting

The phase-out is now in full swing, heading toward an August finale. LED vendor Glamox is among those calling for facility managers to wake up before it’s too late.

www.ledsmagazine.com

Yes people have been crying wolf for a while now. But today it has become reality. Germany is the main source of reef t5 bulbs. Read the above article

 

[shakacuz]

old school reefers will swear by T5. new school reefers will use anything, as T5/LED/Halides will grow anything. the real matter is: how much of whatever light you need to grow what you want.

in my opinion, T5 are on their way out to be "outdated", "unsupported" equipment, due to the wave of LED technology continuously advancing.

 

[oreo54]

Someone is selling a 48” aquatic life 6 bulb fixture for $125. Currently running 2 Maxspect 65w lights and I love them. Grows coral well and great color.

But it got me thinking. For the price (fixture and 6 bulbs) would it better to go to T5 and just resell my lights? Are T5s still the king of the lighting world?

Let's put it in power terms.
324w of t5's vs your current 130w and probably not driving all diodes 100%.

Led and t5 have roughly equivalent watt efficiency though there are exceptions. Hi Led have more efficient delivery.


T5's generally have better spread to the point of even coverage but a flat display.

LEDs generally have less even coverage ( shadows) but a more 3d look and generally some " shimmer".

There are 1/2 doz reasons to pick one over the other. Depends on your needs/wants.

Now a cost analysis...$125 plus eventually if not immediately ( prob. best choice)
6 x $20 for bulbs = $245.
.
3rd jump (guess) is $280.

Jump 65W LED Light - Regular

One System, Multiple Spectrums, Zero Compromise Operates at 95-100% efficiency between all color profiles Syna-G Cloud Smart Control App Remote control your LED from around the world Moonlight with automated lunar cycle Acclimation schedule to allow corals to adapt to lighting changes Profile...

www.bulkreefsupply.com

But still only 195w to work with.

Considering you are looking at a 4 ft light and I assume it is not like 6" deep either choice will be a sig. increase in photons.

Of course you probably don't actually need to use all 6 bulbs....

Consider this just a different perspective to add to the others.


.

 

[jda]

You are just going to have to try it and see for yourself.

It is true that many lights can grow "coral." Some do a better job than other depending on what corals you keep - both individual and species. Some could not care less at all and I even have a few "corals" growing in my FOWLR under a LED Shop light from SAMs club.

The last that I heard, ATI is committed to making bulbs in Germany for the future. Who knows when this might change. Heck, if UVL still makes T12 VHO bulbs, then there is enough of a market for a few to make T5 bulbs for specialty reasons too.

 

[FrugalReefer]

I can’t give you a definite answer. What I do know though is that coral growth in my previous mixed reef exploded after I switched from an all LED setup to a T5 with ReefBrite strips setup.

 

[BigMonkeyBrain]

I run both for full coverage. What we need is an good affordable PAR meter.


Probably happens !

 

[Cichlid Dad]

I run both for full coverage. What we need is an good affordable PAR meter.


Probably happens !

PARwise USB Light Meter

All the Metrics Needed to Make Informed Decisions about your Aquarium Light Compatible with any light source Can be used wet or dry Works with Windows PC, macOS*, and Android devices Measures multiple lighting metrics: PAR (PPFD – Photosynthetic Photon Flux Density µMol/m2/S) Kelvin (Color...

www.bulkreefsupply.com

 

[Midrats]

How many T5 fixtures does it take to light a tank? One.

 

[Troylee]

All depends who you ask…. Hybrids would be the best option then you can’t argue I run metal halides and leds myself.

 

[jda]

Just a bit of advice, even though nobody really asked. It can take many months after a switch to notice anything. If you notice in a week or two, then you probably messed something up like had some new panels turned up too high to begin or the lights you were moving away from were just total horseshyte.

Many folks got rid of their T5s or Halides and everything looked great. Then, 9-12 months later, they were not so happy. This is the same with some folks who dropped their LEDs and got some T5s that liked them initially, but later missed the dusk/dawn or not being able to blue-it-up, or something.

 

[Troylee]

Just a bit of advice, even though nobody really asked. It can take many months after a switch to notice anything. If you notice in a week or two, then you probably messed something up like had some new panels turned up too high to begin or the lights you were moving away from were just total horseshyte.

Many folks got rid of their T5s or Halides and everything looked great. Then, 9-12 months later, they were not so happy. This is the same with some folks who dropped their LEDs and got some T5s that liked them initially, but later missed the dusk/dawn or not being able to blue-it-up, or something.

I’m running my own experiment right now. I’ve always heard and owned all different lighting but never compared side by side.. I got a maricultured Colony I cut a couple chunks off that sit in the sump under a hydra and the other part is in my display under halides.. it came brown and they’re both coloring up about the same right now so I’m not seeing much of a difference… I wanna give it 6 months and come to a conclusion which grew faster and colored better since it’s the same system just 2 different lights..

 

[Cichlid Dad]

Just a bit of advice, even though nobody really asked. It can take many months after a switch to notice anything. If you notice in a week or two, then you probably messed something up like had some new panels turned up too high to begin or the lights you were moving away from were just total horseshyte.

Many folks got rid of their T5s or Halides and everything looked great. Then, 9-12 months later, they were not so happy. This is the same with some folks who dropped their LEDs and got some T5s that liked them initially, but later missed the dusk/dawn or not being able to blue-it-up, or something.

I run a 2 channel 6 bulb t5 and have the outer bulbs ATI blue plus and actinic. I just turn the center 4 off and wala dusk to Dawn

 

[BigMonkeyBrain]

PARwise USB Light Meter

All the Metrics Needed to Make Informed Decisions about your Aquarium Light Compatible with any light source Can be used wet or dry Works with Windows PC, macOS*, and Android devices Measures multiple lighting metrics: PAR (PPFD – Photosynthetic Photon Flux Density µMol/m2/S) Kelvin (Color...

www.bulkreefsupply.com

For a tool that I would use just a couple times a year - I'll wait for $ 99.00 or under Android unit that shows on my phone or tablet like my microscope.

Probably happens !

 

[BZOFIQ]

T5 is on its way out. Bulbs will become not available in the future.

This statement, which I have heard in past 10+ years will eventually become true, in a decade or two.

For now, it's all good.

 

[Cichlid Dad]

For a tool that I would use just a couple times a year - I'll wait for $ 99.00 or under Android unit that shows on my phone or tablet like my microscope.

Probably happens !

This is the tool that uses your tablet and android. Just not 99.00. this also measures in real time with display light spectrum which is a really cool feature. I do hope the price comes down for everyone. I do plan on helping others in my area set lights up for there tanks using this meter hopefully being able to network and gain knowledge experience and connections from those reefers at the same time.

 

[Cichlid Dad]

This statement, which I have heard in past 10+ years will eventually become true, in a decade or two.

For now, it's all good.

Attention, end users: Europe is banning fluorescent lighting

The phase-out is now in full swing, heading toward an August finale. LED vendor Glamox is among those calling for facility managers to wake up before it’s too late.

www.ledsmagazine.com

 

[jda]

Thank you for linking a trade magazine article which is not biased at all.

ATI is in Germany, but they speak English. How hard is it for anybody who wants to argue this ridiculous topic to ask them? They will tell you what what many others have - the ban is for general purpose light and they have no plans to stop making specialty bulbs.

edit: many other manufacturers already have their bulbs made in China. China is not going anywhere as long as they can make money making stuff.

 

[Reefer Matt]

Someone is selling a 48” aquatic life 6 bulb fixture for $125. Currently running 2 Maxspect 65w lights and I love them. Grows coral well and great color.

But it got me thinking. For the price (fixture and 6 bulbs) would it better to go to T5 and just resell my lights? Are T5s still the king of the lighting world?

Not sure they were ever king of anything. More like a lack of choices before led. Done properly, any type of lighting fixture these days can grow healthy, colorful coral. It's a Coke vs. Pepsi kind of conversation, imo. There are fanboys on all sides.