Jellymeat Posted April 9, 2012 Report Share Posted April 9, 2012 I am getting a new tank this week and i am needing to get some new lighting. My tank is going to be a planted 600ltr south american tank. 1500Lx600Wx700H So what do you guys recommend? I am wanting to go t5 preferably. And i also want to set up a sunrise and sunset set up I am considering getting 3 two foot twin bulb t5. I would have them running from front to back Or would it be better to have a four foot light Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jellymeat Posted April 9, 2012 Author Report Share Posted April 9, 2012 Has anyone used these lights for fresh water? http://www.fish-street.com/weipro_led_lighting_led-c?category_id=118 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LYNDYLOO Posted April 9, 2012 Report Share Posted April 9, 2012 Nice looking light, has good reviews so it should be fine Just make sure you get good strong lighting if your going to a planted tank. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jellymeat Posted April 9, 2012 Author Report Share Posted April 9, 2012 I am considering getting 2 of the 120cm full white and two either 40 or 50 cm ones. If anyone could help me with choosing the right amount of wattage it would be much appreciated. The c120 are 19.5 watt each The c40 6.6 watt each the c50 7.5 watt each Or would it be better going with 4 of the c60 which are 9.8 watt? And would it be getting some with some blue leds as i will have a lots of blue on my fish Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ira Posted April 9, 2012 Report Share Posted April 9, 2012 I am considering getting 2 of the 120cm full white and two either 40 or 50 cm ones. If anyone could help me with choosing the right amount of wattage it would be much appreciated. The c120 are 19.5 watt each The c40 6.6 watt each the c50 7.5 watt each Or would it be better going with 4 of the c60 which are 9.8 watt? And would it be getting some with some blue leds as i will have a lots of blue on my fish Why not the FL120? More wattage for your buck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LYNDYLOO Posted April 9, 2012 Report Share Posted April 9, 2012 :thup: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ira Posted April 9, 2012 Report Share Posted April 9, 2012 Haha, Have you had a look at their tests? Test the lux of a T5 at one distance, test an MH at a long distance and then test the LEDs really close. Hey, look, 10w LEDs are equal to a 150 watt MH! Oh come on, if you're testing at the different distances to give each the same coverage area that's fine. But you need to at least mention it. As it is their tests are false advertising. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jellymeat Posted April 10, 2012 Author Report Share Posted April 10, 2012 What do you guys think about this light? http://www.fish-street.com/key_led_freshwater_aquarium_lighting?category_id=118 If they are good i would most likely get two of the 80D model and at least these these ones are have dimming for sunset?sunrise. Or are there better ones for the same price? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jellymeat Posted April 10, 2012 Author Report Share Posted April 10, 2012 I am now considering getting t5s now as i can change the bulbs around. I am considering getting two of these http://www.catalinaaquarium.com/store/product_info.php?cPath=71_190&products_id=1638 Has anyone purchased form this website before? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spoon Posted April 10, 2012 Report Share Posted April 10, 2012 i reckon your gonna need about 6 t5s above where you are gonna have plants its a deep tank and if you have tannin stained water as would be the norm for that biotope it will cut a lot light out. id reccommend at least two 150w MH lamps you can probably pick up cheap second hand ones here for less than the fishstreet ones ( there ballasts arent very reliable ) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jellymeat Posted April 10, 2012 Author Report Share Posted April 10, 2012 i reckon your gonna need about 6 t5s above where you are gonna have plants its a deep tank and if you have tannin stained water as would be the norm for that biotope it will cut a lot light out. id reccommend at least two 150w MH lamps you can probably pick up cheap second hand ones here for less than the fishstreet ones ( there ballasts arent very reliable ) Yeah i do think that i would get 6 to 8 t5s. I personally do not want to go MH lamps. I am still considering going led as well. But now i am just getting confused about which lights to get Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
karina Posted April 10, 2012 Report Share Posted April 10, 2012 Yeah i do think that i would get 6 to 8 t5s. I personally do not want to go MH lamps. I am still considering going led as well. But now i am just getting confused about which lights to get Hey I have a 1200x600x600 tank and the one twin 1200 long T5's (2x 24w) is enough. Some people were telling me that I needed 2 twins but no the one is heaps. Plants growing like crazy. For yours I would say two of those units if you want good growth on plants. I have another tank with large South Americans and I have noticed that they don't like overly bright lights and they also don't respond well to the blue bulb so I don't use it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jellymeat Posted April 10, 2012 Author Report Share Posted April 10, 2012 Hey I have a 1200x600x600 tank and the one twin 1200 long T5's (2x 24w) is enough. Some people were telling me that I needed 2 twins but no the one is heaps. Plants growing like crazy. For yours I would say two of those units if you want good growth on plants. I have another tank with large South Americans and I have noticed that they don't like overly bright lights and they also don't respond well to the blue bulb so I don't use it. The tank i have at the moment is 1200Lx450wx700H and it is the south american i am upgrading and i am running 4x 54watt t5s in it and my plants go crazy. My new tank is 5 foot long but the two of those 4 foot units should be sufficient enough and i'm guessing that it will give the fish some shaded patches at either end of the tank Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stuartk Posted May 4, 2012 Report Share Posted May 4, 2012 T5 lighting is an excellent choice for your size and depth of aquarium. Light through fluids' has differing characteristics to light through atmosphere. This is dependent on the density of the fluid . For example saltwater to freshwater. Here the important rating is Kelvin, Kelvin is the colour range of the T5 . Kelvin can be described as Moon light, sunlight, daylight, full sun etc etc.-You local aquarist should be able to show you the kelvin ratings on the T5 packaging. Unfortunately T5 are not your standard fluo's so the watts to litre rate will mislead you. Anyone purchasing anything other than standard fluo's should not use the rule( it was always contentious in the amounts anyway) lux is basically the given amount of light hitting a surface from a given distance, say a desk in an office from a given fluorescent above. This would result in a reading to give an indication through mathematic calculation for the candela required to maintain a given lux intensity. Hence the size and wattage of light required dependent on its characteristics and other considerations. I my cichlid tanks they are supplied with one "natural light Fluo" only, keeps down the algae in plant less units. I am interested to know how lux is being used to determine tank lighting through aquarium water. Are the readings out of tank and then converted mathematically. So dependent on your requirement their are T5's to suit your need. Dual T5's are usually comfortably efficient for your size of tank. The good thing about T5 units are you can determine the color of lighting you require. Again talk to a trusted aquarium supplier, Do not forget the lifetime of a T5 before choosing it is between 1yr and 18 months for all types. Some aquarist change them out at 9 months. Reef keepers may be in this habit. Persons may disagree with my message, I started over 40-years ago and have seen many solutions, theories and pretentious know it alls. I know I was one. All I can say is this is how I now know it and I hope it helps. Please feel free to disagree I am always learning. Remember the fish have,nt read the books, :sage: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jellymeat Posted May 4, 2012 Author Report Share Posted May 4, 2012 I got my lights last weekend for my new tank which is still in the building stage. I ended up getting two twin T5 bulb Juwel lights. I got these second hand and work mint. They were only $75 each and the bulbs are only 3 months old. the are the 5 foot fittings with the 4 foot bulbs. I was going to get the hagen glo light fittings but they are way over priced. The only thing i need to decide to do is to go CO2 or not or just wait and see how it goes when i get it gets set up in the next couple weeks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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