Led T5 Hybrid Mounting height

[NewReefGuy123]

Hello all reefers,
I was wondering how high to mount a t5 led hybrid with primes over a 80 gallon shallow reef 48x24x16 ? Only 16 inches deep?
Thanks in advance,
NewReefer

 

[rkpetersen]

I'd start with around 12" above the water level, and see how coverage and light intensity look. With a shallow tank, you may want to go higher to get more even coverage (at the expense of overall intensity.)

 

[NewReefGuy123]

Hey after a lot of reading I think I am going to build a 13 inch tall over the water. That is the suggested mounting height for primes. Are there any other Ideas?

 

[oreo54]

Hey after a lot of reading I think I am going to build a 13 inch tall over the water. That is the suggested mounting height for primes. Are there any other Ideas?

Ati fixture is 18" wide.

If that 18" was all tubes
rough guess for your 24" wide tank would be optimum height is around 3-6".

13" may put a ton of tube light outside the tank.
Assuming the t5 reflectors are effectively 90 degree " lenses".

How High Should I Hang / Mount My Aquarium Light? - ATI North America

One of the most frequent questions we get is “How high should I hang my light over my aquarium?”. And it’s an important question to answer. Mounting a light at the proper height can make a big impact on your coral. Mounting an aquarium light too low creates shadows and less light gets to the...

www.atinorthamerica.com

.
Personally you should max the t5 height not the leds.

At 13" you may lose up to 1/2 the tube output.

Poll: How high above water is your T5 Fixture?

Wondering how high above the water users of T5's or T5 hybrids keep their fixtures mounted? Let's here where you keep yours.

www.reef2reef.com

~!~!~ How high do you all have your T5's from the water? ~!~!~ - Reef Central Online Community

~!~!~ How high do you all have your T5's from the water? ~!~!~ Lighting, Filtration & Other Equipment

www.reefcentral.com

.As you can see very little concensus.

Now I don't have sufficient understanding of t5 reflector geometry to make more than a stab at this and some of this depends on goals/acceptance. 13" may be fine for you.

Best to understand some of the reasons for the decision.

 

[NewReefGuy123]

Ati fixture is 18" wide.

If that 18" was all tubes
rough guess for your 24" wide tank would be optimum height is around 3-6".

13" may put a ton of tube light outside the tank.
Assuming the t5 reflectors are effectively 90 degree " lenses".

How High Should I Hang / Mount My Aquarium Light? - ATI North America

One of the most frequent questions we get is “How high should I hang my light over my aquarium?”. And it’s an important question to answer. Mounting a light at the proper height can make a big impact on your coral. Mounting an aquarium light too low creates shadows and less light gets to the...

www.atinorthamerica.com

.
Personally you should max the t5 height not the leds.

At 13" you may lose up to 1/2 the tube output.

Poll: How high above water is your T5 Fixture?

Wondering how high above the water users of T5's or T5 hybrids keep their fixtures mounted? Let's here where you keep yours.

www.reef2reef.com

~!~!~ How high do you all have your T5's from the water? ~!~!~ - Reef Central Online Community

~!~!~ How high do you all have your T5's from the water? ~!~!~ Lighting, Filtration & Other Equipment

www.reefcentral.com

.As you can see very little concensus.

Now I don't have sufficient understanding of t5 reflector geometry to make more than a stab at this and some of this depends on goals/acceptance. 13" may be fine for you.

Best to understand some of the reasons for the decision.

Hey Im not using an ATI fixture im going to use this fixture off amazon
I want to do lps, sps but being such a shallow tank im worried about over lighting. I was planning on starting out with one of those 2 bulb fixtures and moving up to 2 if its necessary. Which do you think would be better?