Patience sucks

[FishEggs]

There is also this one 36" SOLAR T5 - 6 X 39W With Moonlights. It's not quite as good as the Tek but it has moon lights ooooooo aaaahhhhhh and it might be a little more in your price range.

[cmor1701d]

That unit has individual reflectors but they are flat on the back like a [ vs the parabolic that are W shaped with the bulb in the middle of the ^ part of the reflector. There is a very large difference in the amount of light hitting the tank based on the reflector design.

[fijiwigi]

I really like the Tek version. The price would total about 530dollars shipped There is also this Outer Orbit 1x150 HQI with 2x96w PC for 429.99 https://www82.safesecureweb.com/weba...egory_Code=COO
Big als will sell it to me with a 5% price match totalling like 430.94 shipped over 500dollars for the tek T5 I think is too much $ for me.

So I guess I am between the 6bulb nova t5 for 299.99 (234W of t-5)or

the outer orbit HQI/PC (150wHQI / 192wPC)=342W

This is where I am stuck PC bulbs are just ok, t5 is good, and metal halide is great.
Will the Outer orbit fixture be worth the extra $130.00
Can I have Coral Freedom with one of these?
I need help deciding the pro's and con's of the 2 Particular fixtures

[Kurt_Nelson]

Originally Posted by fijiwigi

This is where I am stuck PC bulbs are just ok, t5 is good, and metal halide is great.

There is a big heat difference between T5 and MH, from my understanding. I have neither, so I can't speak from experience. Just don't forget to factor that in. You don't have a large tank, so you don't have a lot of water to soak up and "spread out" that heat from a MH that other folks' big tanks do. In addition, don't ignore that you live in a warm area and can expect pretty darn warm house temps (unless you're blessed with A/C) for several months of the year, which you haven't encountered yet with your current setup.

Just wanted to point out one of the "cons" on MH.

[m3drver]

Fiji,

I have the Nova Extreme Pro lights, as Cmor said the reflector is one continuous reflector bent around each of the bulbs. it has two power swtiches, one switch powers two bulbs the other powers 4 bulbs. the fans are not too noisy at all either. ( my skimmer makes more noise than the fans do ) . If you have any HOB equipment make sure that the lights will clear them. Otherwise you'll have to move the lights slightly forward which will make the ends of the fixture hang just past the bow of the tank. ( hope that makes sense)

I can't say much on your coral freedom question but I will say this, I have the same tank ,a 46 Gal bow, and i have a few frags mostly LPS and softies with one SPS all of which i recently aquired. So i'm giving it a go with these lights and see how the frags do.

I also have a friend, from whom i got my LPS from, that has many SPS corals in a 75 gal tank with T5HO( not the Nova fixture ) and has been very successful in keeping corals with high lighting needs. just my $.02. HTH

[fijiwigi]

Thanks for the input I appreciate it however I am still up in the air on which to choose. Definately don't want to have to buy a chiller for really hot MH and I definately want the light output of a MH. I like the cheaper T5 bulbs and the fact that it runs cooler but will I get the light output I am after for future SPS corals

[ccCapt]

Originally Posted by fijiwigi

Thanks for the input I appreciate it however I am still up in the air on which to choose. Definately don't want to have to buy a chiller for really hot MH and I definately want the light output of a MH. I like the cheaper T5 bulbs and the fact that it runs cooler but will I get the light output I am after for future SPS corals

T5's being cooler than MH is not entirely true. Without getting into the technical details of how energy=light and light=heat, here is a very indepth discussion on T5's vs MH.

[cmor1701d]

You should be ok with sps high in the tank wiht the T5. The only way to know for sure is to try it. Please report back as the more anectodal evidence we acquire, the better an informed opinion can be formed. My only problem with T5 fixtures is that they are all treated the same when in fact the refelctor used makes a huge difference in the light output that actually penetrates the water.

[pitt420dude]

Figi I was talkin about this thread last night with an employee at my LFS (I finally got my male krib a girlfriend, lol). Anyway he is VERY into corals, more than fish even, and he said that he has had great luck with T5 lighting. He said there isn't anything he hasn't been able to grow with them.

Still, (to make your decision harder) he said that he prefers the look of MH lighting. I think, though have no idea why, that MH just mimics sunlight better. Maybe the hotter temperature has something to do with this. I dunno really.

Still I'd tell you to go with T5s, JMO and what I've heard.

[fijiwigi]

Originally Posted by cmor1701d

You should be ok with sps high in the tank wiht the T5.

What about a clam in the sand 21" below my fixture?
Or an anemone mid level inbetween 2 rocks partly shaded? I guess I don't want to guess. Then I am concerned about having too much light from what I understand some things too much light can lead to coraline bleaching. There are so many variables that make choosing a light fixture for a reef extremely complex. The Last light fixture I purchased I only looked for the cheapest one BIG MISTAKE Now I am only trying not to break the bank since I now have another overly expensive beast of a dog.