T5 bulb length, I'm confused

[gobble]

Do all the manufacturers make the same length of 80W T5 bulb? I'm looking at two hybrid fixtures, Giesemann and Aquatic Life. Giesemann advertises a 59" fixture and Aquatic Life 61". How is that possible when the bulbs are 60"?

It's difficult to find exact specs on bulbs, but the Giesemann bulb says 57.5" at Marine Depot.

So with all that, does the Giesemann fixture need to use Giesemann bulbs which are shorter than the normal 60"?

 

[Daniel Waters]

The 80 watt T5 bulbs aren't quite 5 feet long, maybe 58" each. This is standard. The fixture lengths may be slightly larger depending on how the fixture is built, but the actual area for the bulbs will be the same for the various fixtures. The length of the fixture shouldn't come into play unless you needed to hang one in a tight fitting area where you might need one fixture whose length is slightly less than another brand. So, bottom line, a standard 80 watt T5 bulb will work in any standard 80 watt T5 fixture.

 

[gobble]

That’s helpful thanks.

 

[JBKReef]

I was wondering this same thing when I saw the 24" fixtures were really only 23.38".

I am glad this was a standard everyone adopted.