- Location
- westchester ny
After researching different lighting options for my new project, set to start this friday, I've settled on t5's. Great... no more worries or debate about retrofits, hanging kits, balast options, canopies, and all the crap I had to sort through. I believe that I made a wise choice in going with the t5's, but only time will tell. One of the deciding factors was the wide variety of bulb colors to choose from along with their low replacement cost and long life. So now that the choice of fixture has been made I am faced witha new dilema: with so many choices, how do i decide on what color bulbs will give me the visual appeal and growth potential that im looking for.
So Ill start with all the choices and break it down from there. There are several different companies that produce t5 ho bulbs and lots of studies have been done on which are the highest quality. Geissman, Current, Wave Point, Hagen, and Coralife all make t5's and im sure there are plenty of others. I'm not gonna go through the differences between companies because for the most part theyre pretty similiar. However, Wave point did stand out from the rest in two ways: they had the highest PAR rating and theyre the cheapest.
And now for the meat and potatoes. Wave Point makes 6 different color t5 bulbs: A 460 actinic (blue wave), a 420 actinic (reef wave), a "coral accelerator" bulb sort of a dual actinic (coral wave), a "super coral generator" multi spec bulb (Red Wave), a "super daylight" 12,000k (sun wave), and a 6500k (tropical wave). The bulb spec sheet is a virtual rainbow of colors, very pretty to look at but whats the point?
For years the standard reef set up has consisted of a very white bulb (usually 10,000k) that provided better light penetration than a 6500-6700k range although for tanks under 20" high 6700k provides the best growth for both lps and sps, and an actinic (either 460nm or 420nm). This configuration provided both the light needed at greater depths for coral growth and the visual appeal of a blueish-purple oceany color.
So in a four bulb configuration where at least one bulb is 12,000k and one is actinic, is it worth using the red wave (basically a filtered full spec), and coral wave (a dual actinic with spikes in red and yellow as well). Or should i double up on 12,000k and use one 460 and one 420?
Visually speaking I have always been a fan of the more purple looking 420 actinics (i know most people probably prefer a bluer looking tank), but i am more concerned about coral growth and adequate light penetration than the hue of the lights.
So what do you guys think? Anyone have experience with the red waves or fiji pinks? lay it on me.
So Ill start with all the choices and break it down from there. There are several different companies that produce t5 ho bulbs and lots of studies have been done on which are the highest quality. Geissman, Current, Wave Point, Hagen, and Coralife all make t5's and im sure there are plenty of others. I'm not gonna go through the differences between companies because for the most part theyre pretty similiar. However, Wave point did stand out from the rest in two ways: they had the highest PAR rating and theyre the cheapest.
And now for the meat and potatoes. Wave Point makes 6 different color t5 bulbs: A 460 actinic (blue wave), a 420 actinic (reef wave), a "coral accelerator" bulb sort of a dual actinic (coral wave), a "super coral generator" multi spec bulb (Red Wave), a "super daylight" 12,000k (sun wave), and a 6500k (tropical wave). The bulb spec sheet is a virtual rainbow of colors, very pretty to look at but whats the point?
For years the standard reef set up has consisted of a very white bulb (usually 10,000k) that provided better light penetration than a 6500-6700k range although for tanks under 20" high 6700k provides the best growth for both lps and sps, and an actinic (either 460nm or 420nm). This configuration provided both the light needed at greater depths for coral growth and the visual appeal of a blueish-purple oceany color.
So in a four bulb configuration where at least one bulb is 12,000k and one is actinic, is it worth using the red wave (basically a filtered full spec), and coral wave (a dual actinic with spikes in red and yellow as well). Or should i double up on 12,000k and use one 460 and one 420?
Visually speaking I have always been a fan of the more purple looking 420 actinics (i know most people probably prefer a bluer looking tank), but i am more concerned about coral growth and adequate light penetration than the hue of the lights.
So what do you guys think? Anyone have experience with the red waves or fiji pinks? lay it on me.
