Ati t5 or led
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Spiderguardnano
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Ati 6-8 bulbs with reef Brits combo
Dtackett
Valuable Member
when you look at initial cost, long term cost, cost to run, color, growth, durability, longevity (while staying in the proper spectrum), and heat production... LED has T5 beat in every category IMO. Hit up @SB Reef Lights and see what he suggests for ya. https://sbreeflights.com/
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BryanS4
Well-Known Member
ATI all day long. I switched from Led's to a Sunpower unit about two months ago and the difference in color and growth is night and day difference.
Do they put off a good amount of heat and do you have to replace bulbs every eight months, without a doubt, but those trade offs are worth it to me.
Do they put off a good amount of heat and do you have to replace bulbs every eight months, without a doubt, but those trade offs are worth it to me.
I'm in the same boat as BryanS4. LEDs put off light that made my coral pop witch was nice. The AtI fixture has changed the color of my corals in amazing ways. At this point in time I'm not going back to LEDs. I might add some in the future.
LostInTheDark
Active Member
I have LEDs now that I am not happy with. Everyone talks about savings and longevity, but that hasn't been my case. I use the Ocean Revive S026 and they don't last over a year without losing par and burning out. It seems to be an issue with most "Chinese" boxes. I've lost a ton of corals because of them. If you do go LED, pay for the good stuff. At least they seem to last. I do plan to add a 6x80 with my existing LEDs over my 225.
Except in a large tank where you need a zillion LEDs to equal an 8 bulb sunpower and the amount you spent on LED fixtures will surpass what you would spend in bulbs and electricity for 5 years. And at the end of the day your corals still won't look as good as if they were under T5.
matt_97055
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6 or 8 bulb dimmable ati t5!! I just switched form led back to t5 and couldn't be happier! all of my corals are happier too.
Anthony kolodziej
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If an led has trouble its expensive T5 bulbs are cheap and reliable
erk
Valuable Member
I've used just LEDs(DIY Rapid LED kit) and currently just T5s. Both worked well. The LEDs required fiddling to get the light output correct. The T5s are pretty much set and forget. I did need to adjust the light period for the T5s.
erk
Valuable Member
I would say do a hybrid between LED and T5, similar to what BRS showed in their lighting segment of the 52 weeks of reefing. Together, I think you can find a nearly complete spectrum. This is my plan for my next build. LED will be the "sun" and the T5s will be the "sky."
Dtackett
Valuable Member
to a point except the longer the tubes, the more expensive they are, the more expensive the units are, the more electricity you use whereas with leds, most have either a 24x24 foot print or a 30x30 foot print and you only need 1 per 2 feet on average. for a 6 foot tank you would need 3 which can cost you anywhere from 210-1800 depending on what brand and style you go with. ive used the 70 dollar mars aqua with great success and reliability and will soon be using the SB Reef Lights. ive grown sps under the mars aqua in a 30 inch deep tank with a 20*18 footprint. even after dropping my light in the tank (dumb mistake) it only cost 10 bucks for a new driver and it worked flawlessly without any future issues.
I like tanks with t5ho bulbs. I gotta say it seems easier to get brilliant colors with t5 without getting that dreaded blue wash compared to leds, but that isn't enough for me to justify the overall cost of that style light. but that's just my preference.
Except I said light a tank properly. All the manufacturers that say their tiny lights cover 24x24 are full of crap. You need a minimum of 3 radion xr30 placed with the pucks front to back to light a 4 ft tank properly. A 6ft tank will need 4 minimum and 5 optimal.
The price difference between a 8x24 and 8x48 sunpower is not much. The bulbs are $2 more. Even taking into account the extra electricity the ATI will be cheaper over a 5 year usage and that's counting 5 years worth of bulbs at yearly replacement schedule.
If you want to buy cheap Chinese black boxes go ahead but you will need to buy the fixtures again in 2.5 years as the LEDs used are utter crap along with the cooling.
Dtackett
Valuable Member
well there is a group comprised of a thousand or more people who would disagree with everything you've said here. heck, my mars aqua worked great on my 29 without shadows and it lasted years before i sold the setup. and it still works. on my 75 i had 2 mars aqua that worked great and provided great coverage. on my 47 gallon column tank a single mars aqua was enough to grow every coral i put in it. pretty sad you need 3 radions to do the same as 2 mars aqua.
Latinreefer
Active Member
ATI T'5 led combo (ATI HYBRID) best of both worlds. I originally had just T5's and added XHO reef brites and it looked great and great color. When I upgraded tanks I did the ATI Hybrid t5 LED combo and it was the best decision. The cost of the better XHO reef brites, which would be approx.$400 just add that to the fixture for the ATI hybrid and the hybrid is a better buy in the long run.
Dtackett
Valuable Member
these are some of my favorites. all costs aside, i love a nice combo unit.
