Freshwater Aquaculturist......noob here

Chincaca · Jan 9, 2020

Hello everyone R2R noob here. I've been in the aquaculture field for 20 years. Mainly freshwater. At some points of my life some varieties of those fish in the big and small pet stores have gone through my hands. I had 2 reef tanks many many years ago. Looking to get back into it. WOW!!!!! These prices for gear are ridiculous!! I'm a farmer. I just farm fish. So, my point is, we have to be frugal work with what we got and do it cheaply to produce the 1 mil fish annually that we do. Tanks aren't bad price till you get huge. But lights. Jeez. I mean really $800? I like t5 btw. First, can someone explain the difference between an brs t5 fixture and a $200 greenhouse fixture. I'd like more technical than opinions. I just see many things I can do filtration wise and water movement wise a lot cheaper. Anyway, thanks for any info. Gonna go with the "grow" lights and get good bulbs. Can't see me paying that much.

Redfoxtang · Jan 9, 2020

Welcome to R2R!! Glad you could join us!!

RocketEngineer · Jan 10, 2020

T5s are tried and true IMO. They just work. The main difference between the aquarium fixture and a commercial fixture is probably the reflectors. A commercial light is likely to skip any type of reflector where as an aquarium light will have a reflector on each bulb to maximize the light going into the tank. If your handy, you might be able to build a fixture using a retrofit kit for less than a finished unit. It won’t have all the bells and whistles but I never needed those anyways. Buy decent bulbs and you should be good to go. HTH

Peace River · Jan 10, 2020

#WelcometoR2R!!! Yes, there are a lot of pieces of equipment that you can DIY. As you implied the bulbs for growing plants are different than for growing corals but the fixtures may be able to be used for both. This hobby uses many things from the hydroponic industry. Good luck and let us know how it goes! We’re cheering for you!

Reefnman2 · Jan 10, 2020

Welcome to R2R!

Bpb · Jan 10, 2020

The ATI fixtures popular on bulk reef supply have active cooling to keep bulbs and ballast temperature in a certain range to stabilize the color of the bulbs and maybe extend their life a bit. Since quality saltwater specific bulbs cost a good bit more (upwards of 10x) than wholesale veg growth bulbs from a horticultural supplier, it’s important to maximize their life.

Otherwise. Most of the decent horticultural t5ho fixtures will be fairly similar to the higher dollar reef ones. Most have individual polished reflectors and adequate ballasts. Really the biggest difference is no horticultural t5 fixtures I’m aware of have cooling fans. Whether that is worth the $500+ price increase, well that is up to you. The most expensive gear in the hobby does not a good tank make. The bulk of that stuff is for the entertainment of the aquarist. Not necessarily solving any ground breaking biological or chemical problem. At the end of the day you need light, clean water, circulation, and some way to remove pollutants. The rest is just automation and such things that serve a purpose but are not absolutely necessary