lighting upgrade?

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The fixtures seem pretty cheap in price. Would like to know what others think about this fixture as well.
 
That was my first thought but after reading the info on the fixture I had to get other opinons. For the price I think its a food fixture except for not having any fans witch isn't an big deal because my new hood will have built in fans anyway to help with the heat
 
I've got the same model in the 24" size in my wishlist on ebay, lol, I was wondering the same thing. it looks to be a decent fixture for the price.
 
Really thinking about going MH on my reef. Do they really use a lot more electricity than T5s or LEDs?
 
AquaRick said:
Really thinking about going MH on my reef. Do they really use a lot more electricity than T5s or LEDs?
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I'm not sure about electricity, but I would think so. They also generate a lot more heat. To the plus side, they do create a very nice shimmer effect, which LEDs do also.
 
AquaRick said:
Really thinking about going MH on my reef. Do they really use a lot more electricity than T5s or LEDs?
Click to expand...

Energy consumption is a function of voltage and wattage (which is about the same thing as volt-amps). If you have 400 watts of MH the ballast will draw a bit and the total consumption for one lamp would be about 450 watts. A 4' T5HO lamp is 54 watts. Because the ballast is electronic on the T5 there is almost no energy consumption. So.....a 3 lamp MH would be 1350 watts. Run for 8 hours that equals 10.8 Kilowatt hours. At .07 per kilowatt hour that is $.756 per day. An 8 lamp 4' T5 fixture would be 432 watts. Run for 8 hours that would be 3.456 Kilowatt hours. At .07 per kilowatt hour that is $.242 per day. Now if you want to talk LED. LOL
 
Looks nice. Are those t5's directional or is that just the design? Now Im thinking about the fixture for my upgrade. I would think the lack of fans might be an issue though, with everything built into the unit the heat inside that metal housing might get pretty darn hot without fans. If I get one it would not be housed in a canopy would the outside air be enough to keep things cool?
Who is gonna be the first to take the plunge?
 
I think I'm going to order this fixture. Ofcourse heat will be a issue but I will be putting 4 fans in my hood 2 to bring in the cool air and 2 to draw out the heat. I'm not sure if the t5 are directional but that would be awesome tho.
 
rdnelson99 said:
Energy consumption is a function of voltage and wattage (which is about the same thing as volt-amps). If you have 400 watts of MH the ballast will draw a bit and the total consumption for one lamp would be about 450 watts. A 4' T5HO lamp is 54 watts. Because the ballast is electronic on the T5 there is almost no energy consumption. So.....a 3 lamp MH would be 1350 watts. Run for 8 hours that equals 10.8 Kilowatt hours. At .07 per kilowatt hour that is $.756 per day. An 8 lamp 4' T5 fixture would be 432 watts. Run for 8 hours that would be 3.456 Kilowatt hours. At .07 per kilowatt hour that is $.242 per day. Now if you want to talk LED. LOL
Click to expand...

Very good info nelson thanks a bunch
 
paulweck said:
I think I'm going to order this fixture. Ofcourse heat will be a issue but I will be putting 4 fans in my hood 2 to bring in the cool air and 2 to draw out the heat. I'm not sure if the t5 are directional but that would be awesome tho.
Click to expand...

Hopefully we can get a full review.
 
rdnelson99 said:
Energy consumption is a function of voltage and wattage (which is about the same thing as volt-amps). If you have 400 watts of MH the ballast will draw a bit and the total consumption for one lamp would be about 450 watts. A 4' T5HO lamp is 54 watts. Because the ballast is electronic on the T5 there is almost no energy consumption. So.....a 3 lamp MH would be 1350 watts. Run for 8 hours that equals 10.8 Kilowatt hours. At .07 per kilowatt hour that is $.756 per day. An 8 lamp 4' T5 fixture would be 432 watts. Run for 8 hours that would be 3.456 Kilowatt hours. At .07 per kilowatt hour that is $.242 per day. Now if you want to talk LED. LOL
Click to expand...

Awesome info. Thanks! Though I think the fixture uses only 250w MH. This would be less than the 75 cents you mentioned. Just need to check the price of electricity where I am. Great info again rd!
 
Ya it will probably be almost 1/2 that its only one 250 watt mh HQI and 156 watts of t5ho and 18 watts of leds for moonlight and with the ballast your probably looking at around 450-500 watts for the hole fixture.

Wow all this just so I can get myself a clam Haha he better be stunning when I get him
 
paulweck said:
Ya it will probably be almost 1/2 that its only one 250 watt mh HQI and 156 watts of t5ho and 18 watts of leds for moonlight and with the ballast your probably looking at around 450-500 watts for the hole fixture.

Wow all this just so I can get myself a clam Haha he better be stunning when I get him
Click to expand...

A clam is definitely on my list. What made my decision between MH and T5 was the fact I could get all the parts (except lamps) for free to do a DIY 6 lamp T5HO. :) That kind of took MH out of the picture in a hurry. LOL
 
I would like to stay away from mh BUT I'm not sure if a 6 lamp t5 fixture will be enough for my 24 inch deep tank
 
Have you talked with Mr._X about it? If I remember right, he said he actually has run par tests and the T5HO is a very good option up to 24" deep.
 
No I haven really. But with t5 fixture with 6 lamps would only give Me about 5 watts per gallon will that be enough for a sps and and my clam. I wanna be able to keep anything I don't wanna be limited to my lighting setup
 
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