Which light setup are FOWLR's using?

[jphendren]

I currently have a 48" 4 bulb T5HO fixture with moonlight LED's, but the built in timer does not function, so I am returning it to the seller next week. My tank has a Dogface Puffer, and he does not allow corals in his tank (he ate them, well most of them). So I am looking to buy another fixture to replace this one, which do you fellas/ladies recommend? How about a 48", 2 bulb standard T5 with one 10,000K, and one actinic bulb? I've noticed that those are quite cheap, but do they get hot? Is 56W enough on a 55 gallon tank to keep my coraline, halimeda, and things other than coral going?

Who makes the best 2 bulb fixture, Coralife?

Coralife Saltwater Aqualight T5 48 Inch 56 Watt

I could then add a strip of cheap blue LED's for the moonlight effect.

Jared

 

[cmor1701d]

The halimeda requires moderate lighting. That fixture might cut it, but barely. It also has a single power cord so you will not be able to do a Dawn/dusk effect. It also has no fan.

Why not add external timers to your current fixture for a few bucks?

 

[jphendren]

My current fixture only has one power cord, so you can't turn on the different lights independently without the built in timer. I am also thinking about going metal halide as well, that is probably overkill, but I may do a reef someday, and will need more light at that time.

Jared

 

[mr_X]

what about this brand new one?
48" T5 HO Aquarium Light Hood Marine Cichlid 216W New - eBay (item 300503176958 end time Jan-09-11 07:08:27 PST)
it's not UL listed, but it's CE certified, which is europe's UL cert.
i like the external ballast feature. you can change it out for a better one easily, if the need arises.
you could even use an icecap ballast and overdrive the bulbs to 80 watts a piece if you needed more light (this wears out the bulbs a bit earlier however).

 

[uscamaro]

what about this brand new one?
48" T5 HO Aquarium Light Hood Marine Cichlid 216W New - eBay (item 300503176958 end time Jan-09-11 07:08:27 PST)
it's not UL listed, but it's CE certified, which is europe's UL cert.
i like the external ballast feature. you can change it out for a better one easily, if the need arises.
you could even use an icecap ballast and overdrive the bulbs to 80 watts a piece if you needed more light (this wears out the bulbs a bit earlier however).

That's awesome! Why is that one so dramatically cheaper than the ones on Drs F & S?

 

[mr_X]

because it's made by a little known company, probably in china.

 

[jphendren]

I ended up buying two 60W LED fixtures, they still have yet to arrive, so who knows if they will be good? I'll let you know. The mail is running slow this time of year, so it could be a while.

Jared

 

[mr_X]

post a link to them.

 

[uscamaro]

and pictures!

 

[jphendren]

Here is where I bought the LED fixtures from:

60Watt Aquarium LED Panel: AquariumLEDSolutions.com

They arrived yesterday afternoon, they seem to be quite nice. Nicely constructed, and they are CE certified. They use Bridgelux LED chips, which are made in the USA. There are 30 actinic LED's, and 30 10,000K LED's. The fixtures are quite bright, noticeably brighter than the 4 X 54W T5HO fixture I had. Also, they never even seem to get warm, much less hot. I ran them on my tank for several hours yesterday, and my water temp never budged! With the T5HO's running, the temp would usually rise 2-3º over the course of the day. The two units supposedly put out the same amount of PAR as two 150W metal halides. My LFS's frag tank has two 150W metal halide pendants, and they are indeed as bright. Lastly, my tank now has that cool shimmering effect, that T5's never seem to do.

Jared

 

[cmor1701d]

Congrats on the new lights. Yes, LEDs give you the benefit of MH without the heat or power consumption of bulb change associated with MH.
I'm guessing there is no adjustment for the fixtures, so you can't vary the light color (k value). How do you control the moonlight setting? Is there some built in timer?

 

[jphendren]

No, these fixtures do not have variable intensity. You can turn the actinic bulbs on independently of the 10k bulbs though. Even though moonlight is mentioned in the manufacturers website, they do not have a moonlight setting, I would consider it a dusk/dawn effect, not moonlight. There are two power supplies, with two power cords. You have to use an external timer for each color.

I took some photos with my iPhone, i amat work, but will post them to this thread later.

Jared

 

[mr_X]

i would be interested in PAR numbers. how do you like the look of them? i imagine they look 10k-12k ish? i hope this is enough light for your tank. i would have suggested more than a 150 watt halide if you wanted sps, clams and such.

 

[jphendren]

With both sets of bulbs on the light appears the same as my T5HO fixture, which had 12k bulbs and actinic. It is a brilliant white/blue light, and the water shimmers just like with metal halides, it's quite attractive.

They also sell a 90W unit that equals the PAR of a 200W, as well as a 120W that equals a 250W metal halide. I could of course add a third 60W for 450W equivalent of light, these fixtures are quite small, around 8 x 15". I wanted to go brighter, but the boss (wife) would not approve a PO for more money LOL.

By the way, I have two of these fixtures for a total of 300W of metal halide PAR, I'm not sure if that was apparent.
Jared

 

[mr_X]

well, if that doesn't work out for you, i can get you one stronger than a 250 watt halide for about 275 bucks.
it's these-
Home

 

[uscamaro]

well, if that doesn't work out for you, i can get you one stronger than a 250 watt halide for about 275 bucks.
it's these-
Home

Would those be too bright for a 55gallon?

 

[mr_X]

no. you would be able to keep whatever you wanted. clams, acropora....you name it. you could always raise them up a bit if you wanted to lower the PAR a bit. these don't dim, so you'll have to figure other ways to adjust them to your needs....hence the price.