6 bulb T5 placement

[drcole]

What is your placement and lighting schedule. I heard alot of great stuff about actinics, but I dont see too many people using them.

 

[Crabs McJones]

ATI shared this a couple days ago, I hope this helps
And as far as schedule, it's going to vary by your corals needs, most run an 8 to 12 hour with 10 being one of the most popular time frames
https://www.atinorthamerica.com/t5-bulb-layout/

 

[jda]

Actinics have gotten a bad rep lately because they do not register very high on a PAR meter. It is not that they are truly lower output, but that the PAR meter is not good at capturing the spectrum that they emit. Most people do not know this, so they don't use them. If you like the looks of Actinic bulbs, then use them with confidence.

 

[rockskimmerflow]

Actinics have gotten a bad rep lately because they do not register very high on a PAR meter. It is not that they are truly lower output, but that the PAR meter is not good at capturing the spectrum that they emit. Most people do not know this, so they don't use them. If you like the looks of Actinic bulbs, then use them with confidence.

Agreed. Actinics are a lot more potent than a PAR meter would indicate. I use 2 per 6-bulb combo and 3 or sometimes even 4 in an 8-bulb combo. Never felt lacking for PAR in those setups either.

 

[WWIII]

Mine is 8 bulb. I run 4 middle bulbs 6 hours. Then 2 more for 8 hours. Then the actinics for 11 hours. I also run kessils though for 12 hours. I like actinic, but not sure I would run them if I had 6 bulb fixture only?