LED or T5?

[KeyloBeatz]

I have a 110 softie dominate tank and I’m running x2 aqua illumination 32 LED and let me tell you they work way better then any T5 ever could 100%

 

[slojim]

I have a 110 softie dominate tank and I’m running x2 aqua illumination 32 LED and let me tell you they work way better then any T5 ever could 100%

Hey Keylo. I also have a 110. It has cheap temporary lights i bought to get started, but it is getting time to put in something more appropriate. I'll have mostly soft coral. Might like a clam one day Your pics look like you have good growth at the bottom with just 2 ai 32's and it sounds like you are happy with them. I thought I would need more power to get 30" deep and was thinking about 2 reefi, 2 hydra 64, or Steve's sps, but looking at your tank, I wonder if that is overkill.
If you were building a second similar tank, would you choose the 32's again?

 

[KeyloBeatz]

Hey Keylo. I also have a 110. It has cheap temporary lights i bought to get started, but it is getting time to put in something more appropriate. I'll have mostly soft coral. Might like a clam one day Your pics look like you have good growth at the bottom with just 2 ai 32's and it sounds like you are happy with them. I thought I would need more power to get 30" deep and was thinking about 2 reefi, 2 hydra 64, or Steve's sps, but looking at your tank, I wonder if that is overkill.
If you were building a second similar tank, would you choose the 32's again?

Actually I am building another tank I’m currently setting up a 75 gallon rimless that’s plumbed into my sump for my 110. It’s not hooked up yet still waiting on a few pieces of equipment before I start to cycle it but I plan on doing another hydra 32 LED over it. Although I went to to a shop today that was running mostly kessiles and I gotta say seeing them they look really nice and the coral in the shop was loving it having said that I really do love my hydras. I’m getting excellent growth on my soft corals even the stuff at the bottom is growing great I would say 2 hydra 64 is prob overkill but if you can afford overkill he’ll why not. Feel free to ask any questions you might have

 

[X-37B]

Lol that’s absurd. With a properly cooled fixture you can get 18 months with only about 20% par reduction and negligible amounts of spectral shift. 6 bulbs is too much for that tank. The outer two would be pointed directly at the floor

At roughly $23 per tube you’re looking at about $100 every 1.5-2 years. Negligible. unless you buy yourself a pair of $900 top shelf led panels, you’ll likely sell your black boxes out of boredom if they don’t die first, before you’d even get through your first bulb change. That or get sick or the unusable dimensions of a 55 gallon and upgrade the tank entirely

4 bulb ati would rock that tank.
I change my bulbs at 9 months only because the unit is old and the fans are loud and one does not work so I run no fans or a shield 4" off the water.
Also I always have to laugh at the forever cost of bulbs!
Really 20+ dollars a month for 4 months is nothing in this hobby and is less than a frag costs per month imo.

 

[slojim]

Thanks KeyloBeatz. Im not interested in overspending. If i could put in 2 32s and had the option to add a third later, I'd be confident. But my tank has a pretty wide brace so i feel like a third fixture won't work well. Seeing your results on 2 32s helps. Guess i hijacked this thread though, so maybe I'll check if you have a build thread if i have any more questions about your experience.

 

[Bruce Burnett]

"research" nowadays is offered and mainly published by people and companies that will sell or promote products. The facts and results through experience will tell much better than any paper published or youtube video to make some money IMO. Again, everyone will have a different "experience" and follow different "gurus". All is fine!

Even BRS new video shows that spectrum from T5 can't be beat. Many of the new Leds can come close. Caustics is the only thing missing from T5 and T5 do not have a bunch of shadowing. Why are so many people adding T5 hybrids to their led setups. I have been trying to decide lighting for new build on a 48 x 24 tank I am leaning toward ATI dimmable T5 8 tube then I can grow anything. Could not do that with a single Radion.

 

[Bruce Burnett]

Here' a look at three T5 lamps I did years ago:

Product Review: T5 Fluorescent Lamps: UV Lighting’s ‘Super Actinic,’ ‘Actinic White,’ and ‘Aquasun’ High Output T5 Lamps

This month we'll begin an examination of T5 fluorescent lamps in general and then scrutinize several lamps manufactured by UV Lighting Company.

www.advancedaquarist.com

Does not come up

 

[KeyloBeatz]

Thanks KeyloBeatz. Im not interested in overspending. If i could put in 2 32s and had the option to add a third later, I'd be confident. But my tank has a pretty wide brace so i feel like a third fixture won't work well. Seeing your results on 2 32s helps. Guess i hijacked this thread though, so maybe I'll check if you have a build thread if i have any more questions about your experience.

I havnt started a build thread yet but I’ve been taking pictures and videos of the process of my new setup so I most likely will be putting together somthing on the build page at some point here. I’m still waiting on some gate valves from BRS

 

[FLSharkvictim]

I have a standard 55 and was wondering if T5 or LED would be better for my system. I want to keep mostly lps like acans. Maybe some softies too. If you have any suggestions feel free. I was looking for a lower budget light.
thanks.

@24/7ReeFTime -You know what they say, Different strokes for different folks but I prefer LED's any day of the week! I went with the a pair of the @Orphek Atlantik Compact V4 (Gen 2) LED fixtures for my SCA 150 and i absolutely love them and in my personal option they are better then my old Ecotech Marine Radions or even my old Hydras!

 

[hoju74]

I decided to go with T5 retrofit supplemented with reefbrite strips since I have a. I kind of like the 'set it and forget it' nature of T5's. Years ago I had AI Sol's and when they died, I went T5 and loved the color I got from the T5 fixture.