T5 lighting

[Adrienne]

Okay - well I am going to invest in some new lighting for my 5ft planted discus tank. My plants grow but only slowly. I've read the sticky and am still confused. There seem to be many different brands of T5 lights on the market. What exactly am I looking for, are they all the same as far as lighting goes or the cheaper the lights the lower the lighting or is it the cheaper the lights the shoddier the casings? Does anyone have a brand they recommend or likewise a brand that they would prefer not to use and why.

Thanks for your input into this.

[N1CK]

The thinner tube gives out more light per cm than the thicker lights, then the T5HO gives even more light per cm (high output ) then you get T5VHO....

if you were going to do it properly I would suggest fittings that hold T5HO bulbs, GLO fitting have these but aren't exactly the cheapest fittings. AFAIK they are long lasting and reliable

[phoenix44]

How deep is your tank Adrinne, and how much were you willing to spend on lighting alone?

With T5 HO (I favour the glo ones - made by hagen - fluval) the hoods are to be bought separately from the tubes, but they are a sound investment.

Each 4ft HO tube is 54W and there is 2 of them in each fitting = 108W of power consumption.

I run 2 of the 4ft hoods on my tank, 2 tubes @ 18000K and 2 @ 10000K and the plants and especially the swords are flourishing.

the 18000K tubes are expensive, and are about $60ea.

the other spectra tubes are far cheaper, and I think the 10000K tubes are like $30-40 each.

[Adrienne]

The tank is 60cm deep. I was going to try and go for 4 bulbs. Costwise I am not certain, thats really what I am asking as to what is good value but lasts. By lasting I don't mean so much the bulbs but the fittings they sit in. I don't want to pay out for something that will crack or fall apart after 12 months. I've looked at the T5's in animates, they seem to cost around the $300 mark for a twin fitting but I've seen some advertised on tm that hold 4 bulbs.

[phoenix44]

My 4ft light was $267 for the 4ft hood from animates.

the build quality is good and solid. they are easy to clean and look neat. i dunno what else i can say about them. ive been using them for ages now, and no problems so far.

just make sure the ones on tm are HO.

then again, if you factor cost into the equation - the price of 2 hagen HO units + bulbs opens the avenue of a MH light over your tank. if you have a wooden hood on the tank, don't bother DIY-ing it cause you'll either ruin the hood with modifications and devalue it, and it will be harder to sell if you ever have to.

[Discusguru]

I've got a hagen 4' T5 here spare which you can borrow to see if it makes a difference to your plants before you spend money on them Try before you buy :lol:

ron

[supasi]

Keep an eye out on TM, I scored a twin 4 foot T5HO Glo unit including new bulbs for just over $100 including shipping.

I agree with P44 about the glo branded stuff. Its great quality.

[Adrienne]

Thanks a lot for your help everyone and for your generous offer Ron. I'll be in touch.

Adrienne

[suphew]

As with most light systems, the age of the tube or bulb (that ones for you livingart) is very important when it comes to brightness and colour. To get a true idea of how your borrowed fitting works, I suggest you visit an electrical wholesaler (they will happily sell to the public) and pick up a couple of new tubes. 4 foot T5's are one of the most common, ask for some 865's and they should only cost you round $10 each just tell them what wattage you need and they will get you the right ones. Once you have committed to a path you could look at buying more expensive specialist tubes if you not completely happy with a standard daylight tube (865).