Thinking of ditching led in favor of t5...

infinite0180 · Nov 19, 2020

So i rented a par meter this week. Interesting results. I have decent par numbers in the middle of the tank but the sides are pretty low. I just dont think the coverage is enough for the 30” tank with 1 Radion and two small Reefbrite strips. Honestly, the Reefbrites put out some surprising par by themselves! So heres my option. Buy a 6 bulb Sunpower (sell my current lighting, probably break even or make a few back), buy a 4 bulb hybrid (sell the Reefbrite kit, take a small hit), or try that new sleek ATI Straton (sell my current lighting, take a large hit). That Straton seems to be a perfect solution to a 30” tank, pricing is just rough. What do you guys think? Im leaning towards the Sunpower. Especially if they do a deal next week on bulbs when you buy the unit! Is the dimmable model really worth the extra $?

ScottB · Nov 19, 2020

infinite0180 said:
So i rented a par meter this week. Interesting results. I have decent par numbers in the middle of the tank but the sides are pretty low. I just dont think the coverage is enough for the 30” tank with 1 Radion and two small Reefbrite strips. Honestly, the Reefbrites put out some surprising par by themselves! So heres my option. Buy a 6 bulb Sunpower (sell my current lighting, probably break even or make a few back), buy a 4 bulb hybrid (sell the Reefbrite kit, take a small hit), or try that new sleek ATI Straton (sell my current lighting, take a large hit). That Straton seems to be a perfect solution to a 30” tank, pricing is just rough. What do you guys think? Im leaning towards the Sunpower. Especially if they do a deal next week on bulbs when you buy the unit! Is the dimmable model really worth the extra $?

Your corals will dig the Sunpower. I was trying to solve for shadowing issues when I switched from the Hydra LEDs. My 2-Part consumption really took off (8X80 watt). It was shocking.

However I do actually miss the shimmer and pop that comes with LED. I think I should've dropped down to the 6 bulb and run some Reefbrites for pop. Again, this is just a personal visual preference.

No thank you on the dimmable. Again, that is where the reefbrites could come in handy for ramping. With the dimmable, you have to "burn in" the bulbs each time you change them. Read up on that. It sounded like a ridiculous process. IIRC it was 100hrs continuous at 100%. How is that going to work over your tank? So my "ramp" schedule is just running the actinic channel 90 minutes morning and evening.

The Straton is the sexiest thing on the market, hands down. @ReefEngineer did an excellent review on them if you haven't seen that thread. It is tempting from an aesthetic point of view, but T5s just grow corals.

infinite0180 · Nov 19, 2020

ScottB said:
Your corals will dig the Sunpower. I was trying to solve for shadowing issues when I switched from the Hydra LEDs. My 2-Part consumption really took off (8X80 watt). It was shocking.

However I do actually miss the shimmer and pop that comes with LED. I think I should've dropped down to the 6 bulb and run some Reefbrites for pop. Again, this is just a personal visual preference.

No thank you on the dimmable. Again, that is where the reefbrites could come in handy for ramping. With the dimmable, you have to "burn in" the bulbs each time you change them. Read up on that. It sounded like a ridiculous process. IIRC it was 100hrs continuous at 100%. How is that going to work over your tank? So my "ramp" schedule is just running the actinic channel 90 minutes morning and evening.

The Straton is the sexiest thing on the market, hands down. @ReefEngineer did an excellent review on them if you haven't seen that thread. It is tempting from an aesthetic point of view, but T5s just grow corals.

Thanks for the input! So you run the non dimmable, what bulbs do you keep in the actinic channel? i really do like a dusk and dawn. i also dont want to put true actinic in those channels because i need all 6 bulbs to light the tank. And yes i read that entire thread on the Straton. Man that thing is tempting.

ScottB · Nov 19, 2020

infinite0180 said:
Thanks for the input! So you run the non dimmable, what bulbs do you keep in the actinic channel? i really do like a dusk and dawn. i also dont want to put true actinic in those channels because i need all 6 bulbs to light the tank. And yes i read that entire thread on the Straton. Man that thing is tempting.

I run the ATI actinics on that channel, but the Blue+ would work fine as well.

Are you thinking of running the 6 bulb plus the reefbrites? Or just T5?

infinite0180 · Nov 19, 2020

ScottB said:
I run the ATI actinics on that channel, but the Blue+ would work fine as well.

Are you thinking of running the 6 bulb plus the reefbrites? Or just T5?

i was going to go just t5 only to start and see how it goes. Ultimately im fairy sure i would add them eventually, especially after seeing how they perform on my current tank. They really are a nice supplemental lighting solution. i was looking at the par alone from the two 15" inch strips i have and it was pretty decent. Plus the coral look amazing under them as well.

infinite0180 · Nov 20, 2020

Oh man i cant make up my mind! AquaticLife hybrid or a 6 bulb Sunpower!!!

Midrats · Nov 20, 2020

I love the dimmable. The 50 hour burn in is a non-issue. I just raise the fixture a few inches, which is a piece of cake if you have it hung with the included hardware, and run it for a week at 100% without ramping. Cheap T5HO fixtures can be had if one wants to season bulbs away from the tank, but there's really no need. Having one cord and a built in timer makes it worth it even if you don't use the dimming. I don't use the channels separately for a bluer dawn and dusk. I run three C+ and three B+ and they all ramp up and down together for an hour with six hours at 100%.

infinite0180 · Nov 20, 2020

Im leaning towards the hybrid. Both the sunpower and hybrid are on sale right now so i need to choose. Its a tough decision

Midrats · Nov 20, 2020

Lets us know what you end up doing, looking forward to seeing some pics from a fellow 50 EXT!

MONTANTK · Nov 20, 2020

I loved my T5s when I had them. Wouldn’t hesitate to go back. The true colors of my coral felt much more natural. Only downside was changing the bulbs and remembering the configuration. I had a tek light but I’ve heard great things about the ATI’s. For what it’s worth, I wouldn’t hesitate to go back if my tank was large enough. I’d definitely do a T5 LED combo though

infinite0180 · Nov 20, 2020

Lets break this down. Lets say i can $500 for my Radion with diffuser and $100 for the Reefbrite kit if i sell them on here. Give or take a few.

Sunpower $400 + 6 bulbs 120$ = about $520 invested minus $600 for resale of current lights leaves me up about $50

AL Hybrid $230 + 4 bulbs $80 = about $310 invested minus $100 from resale of Reefbrites leaves me about down about $210

soo, thats whats really making this difficult... what would you guys do in my shoes.

Potatohead · Nov 20, 2020

If it's a mixed tank/LPS tank I would keep the radion and go with the the hybrid. If it is acro dominated I would go with the Sunpower and the Reefbrite.

Additionally if the tank has an internal overflow and/or is a mixed tank, the six bulb would be fine. If it has an external overflow and/or is acro dominated, I would probably go with eight. I have an eight bulb over a 32x24" tank with an internal overflow and the rear most bulb is basically just over the overflow.

Your tank being only 16" tall if you go Sunpower I would start by hanging it about 14" high. It will put out a lot of par for that height.

infinite0180 · Nov 20, 2020

Potatohead said:
If it's a mixed tank/LPS tank I would keep the radion and go with the the hybrid. If it is acro dominated I would go with the Sunpower and the Reefbrite.

Additionally if the tank has an internal overflow and/or is a mixed tank, the six bulb would be fine. If it has an external overflow and/or is acro dominated, I would probably go with eight. I have an eight bulb over a 32x24" tank with an internal overflow and the rear most bulb is basically just over the overflow.

Your tank being only 16" tall if you go Sunpower I would start by hanging it about 14" high. It will put out a lot of par for that height.

I guess you could say my plans are for a acro dominated mixed tank. I have a torch and want a few more and i like the occasional goni and acan. Sticks are, however, the goal and will be across all the rock work. Any lps would be on the bottom with some encrusters. Tank has an external overflow, so the entire 24” minus glass is available.

ScottB · Nov 20, 2020

You can't really lose either way, but for acro dominant I'd go with the Sunpower. You cannot beat that blanket of light it produces.

However, I would keep the reefbrites for a while in case you start missing the pop and shimmer.

ocboat · Nov 20, 2020

I use a single Radion gen 3 pro with wide angle lenses along with an Aquaticlife T5 hybrid fixture on my IM 50 Lagoon AIO. I use 2 blue plus, 1 coral plus and an actinic and I run the AB+ schedule on the Radion at 70% brightness which is around 50% overall intensity if I remember correctly. This combo gives me over 300 par 6 inches below waterline, 250 mid tank and 150-200 on most of the bottom. The fixture is hung 9.5" above the rim of the tank. I could increase the par everywhere if I wanted but my corals did not react well to intensity levels over 50%. I like the brightness that the T5's add to the tank and it still enables me to use the ramp up and down with the leds. I'm very happy with this setup right now and I'm sure it would be even better with a newer generation of Radion like you have. That being said, if money was no object I would love to try the Straton since it looks so nice and the coverage is perfect for this size of tank.

infinite0180 · Nov 20, 2020

ocboat said:
I use a single Radion gen 3 pro with wide angle lenses along with an Aquaticlife T5 hybrid fixture on my IM 50 Lagoon AIO. I use 2 blue plus, 1 coral plus and an actinic and I run the AB+ schedule on the Radion at 70% brightness which is around 50% overall intensity if I remember correctly. This combo gives me over 300 par 6 inches below waterline, 250 mid tank and 150-200 on most of the bottom. The fixture is hung 9.5" above the rim of the tank. I could increase the par everywhere if I wanted but my corals did not react well to intensity levels over 50%. I like the brightness that the T5's add to the tank and it still enables me to use the ramp up and down with the leds. I'm very happy with this setup right now and I'm sure it would be even better with a newer generation of Radion like you have. That being said, if money was no object I would love to try the Straton since it looks so nice and the coverage is perfect for this size of tank.

Thanks you for your input! I was hoping the straton would be available and on sale but that does not appear to be the case. I think im going to keep my Radion and go with the hybrid. I look at the Sunpower as a way to save a few coins and honestly i like the look of the Sunpower over the hybrid but im afraid ill just miss the pop from the Radion i get and then ill need the Reefbrites anyway. At that point i would be equal to the cost of the hybrid set up but id be stuck having to sell my Radion. This way i keep my Radion and add the juice and coverage of the t5. Seems like a win...

Midrats · Nov 20, 2020

Get the six bulb and be done with it. It looks really clean floating above the tank and it's more than enough light. Every inch of the tank is getting blasted, and I mean blasted with light. If you feel the need to add Reefbrites, the six bulb will accomodate that perfectly over the 50 EXT footprint. I personally don't think additional light is needed. My tank is in my living room so I prefer the sleek look of only the Sunpower.