T5 or metal halide?

Richard60 · May 5, 2016

Sorry wrong bulbs they are blue life so I was wondering if these are good bulb can't find anything on them

Bpb · May 5, 2016

I would avoid any bulbs that are not on the list above. The only exceptions I'll mention are wave point, aquatic life, Hamilton, and UVL. those all may look pleasing and grow coral but it's widely established that they're no easier to obtain, no cheaper, and may not last nearly as long as ATI or Giesemann bulbs. Really you're going to find that 99% of successful T5HO users that grow a lot of coral either use ATI, Giesemann, KZ, or a combination of the 3. The ATI being the cheapest and longest lasting of the 3, but the new giesemann are promising and offer some new phosphor combinations for some fresh spectrums on a light tech that hasn't had many changes in the last decade. They're a few $ more expensive than the ATI bulbs but are getting rave reviews. I intend to try some when it is time for bulb change. I've always been an ATI user

Richard60 · May 5, 2016

Ok will do thanks for the info

coralosity351 · May 6, 2016

So on a side thought I have several extra t8 fixtures I've seen t8 10000k and atnic bulbs would this be a viable alternative to purchasing a whole new t5 fixture?

ksc · May 6, 2016

You can use the t8 fixtures to get started. The 4' t8 bulb is 32 watts compared to 54watts for a t5 ho. Although the bulb selection is limited, a t8 is more efficient than a t5 ho. If you decide to go with the t8's, I'd get the TEK 3" individual reflectors to clip on.

A few years ago I was rummaging through some old boxes and found my first reef light, which was a t8 fixture. Curious, I clipped on 3" reflector and took a par reading. The t8 had about 30% less par than my t5 fixture, but used 40% less electricity.