Finnex Ray 2 or Aquatic Life T5HO

[Kimlafeiet]

Hi all,
After some recent losses in the fish world, I have decided to downsize, rearrange, and make my life a little less complicated.
I am downsizing from 4 tanks to 2 tanks in my home. WIth this, I am upgrading my exisitng planted 25 gallon tank to a 35 gallon tank, as it is an exisiting tank with a gorgeous stand and canopy. I am not happy with the stand and look I have going with the 25 gallon, so I am going to transfer everything to the larger tank, and get rid of the 25 gallon.

which brings me to my quesion.............

I currently have a 24inch Aquatic Life T5 HO. It is a little short for the 35 gallon (30 inches long), but I can adjust it work. Problem is.........the tank is about 1-2 inches TALLER than the 25 gallon it currently sits on, and I have found the 1 fixture does not give me the kind of light I want.
I am going to purchase a 2nd light, in a 30 inch to go over the new tank, and use this exisiting one as the 2nd light over the tank, which should give me the lighting I want.
My problem is..........I am leaning towards going LED with the Finnex Ray 2 for the 30 inch light. It is a slimmer design, less cost as far as bulb repalcement, and electric costs, and I think it will fit better under the canopy (which has an open top design, so I am not worried about heat problems).
Is the Ray 2 compareable to the Aquatic Life T5HO light, in the sense I won't be downgrading much with light?
I do plan to use the 24 inch T5HO as the 2nd light, running less hours than the 30 inch, but I am just not sure if I should go with another T5HO, or bite the bullet and go for the Ray 2 LED.

Anyone use both lights and prefer one over the other?

Brian...........since you are the light expert , what are your thoughts? Will a Ray 2 be enough to give me adequate lighting over a 22 inch tank, 3-4 inch substrate bed?
Any other "better" options for LED lights, other than DIY (yea, that's not gonna happen) that is semi-comparable in price?

 

[Brian_Nano12g]

Since you'll be also using the t5ho, you should be good in terms of getting full spectrum with a Ray 2, running them in tandem. I find the Ray 2 by itself is great at growing green plants but doesn't perform that well with colored plants in taller tanks because it's blue spectrum heavy. Finnex will be producing a Fugeray Plant+ LED that has red diodes in it too, should be out November if you're willing to wait. However, PAR is less than the current Ray 2 model. So if brighter light is what you're after, a Ray 2 would be fine. Just keep good full spectrum bulbs in that t5ho, like giesseman bulbs (I would use 1x midday + 1x aquaflora, should help balance the Ray 2's skewed spectrum).

Check out this thread, PAR tests show that the Ray 2 performs well in comparison to t5ho (with PAR, not full spectrum).
http://www.aquariumadvice.com/forum...life-dual-t5ho-and-finnex-ray-2-a-272749.html


If your budget permits and you want a new LED light like yesterday, check out the BuildmyLED.com lights.. the planted one is really good, according to reviews and Rivercats. It has a full spectrum makeup that I like. You can get with 75° or 90° optics for deeper penetration on taller tanks. I'd ask Rivercats to chime in on that one.

http://www.buildmyled.com/freshwater-planted-tank/


Edit: just be prepared to re-dial in your co2 injection to cope with that added light...otherwise algae will ensue.

 

[Brian_Nano12g]

Here's a link to info on the Fugeray Planted+
http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/showthread.php?t=338114

 

[Kimlafeiet]

Wow. I just read the entire thread for the Fugeray Planted. Any idea when they plan to put that out on the market? Maybe I should hold off on getting a new light until this comes out............lol

 

[Brian_Nano12g]

It's scheduled to release this November. It's slightly weaker than the Ray 2 but since you have an AL t5ho, you can run the lights longer and use less co2.

 

[Kimlafeiet]

Ok. I think I am going to go with the FInnex Ray 2...........but now I am seeing there is a Ray 2 day/actinic combo, and one that is just called Daylight.
I want to go with just the daylight one, right? Actinic is more for Salt water applications, correct?

 

[Brian_Nano12g]

Yes you're correct... go with the DS model that's all daylight.

 

[Kimlafeiet]

Rock on, thanks for your help Brian. I will be keeping my eye out for the Fugeray Plant light.....it looks pretty cool. I am excited to go LED here.

 

[Tobykourtney]

Rock on, thanks for your help Brian. I will be keeping my eye out for the Fugeray Plant light.....it looks pretty cool. I am excited to go LED here.

I have found the finnex is a little better par wise the big difference though is the spread of light the finnex puts out with the 120 degree lenses. The ray 2 gives me high light throughout my 75 gallon. The aquaticlife is medium-high light directly under with low end of medium towards the front and back of the tank. I the lights defense it is an 18 inch wide tank. I can't use both lights at once even with pressurized co2 because ill get algae everywhere. I use the aquaticlife 6 hours a day with the ray 2 for a 2 hour noon burst.

 

[Brian_Nano12g]

Yeah it's an exciting time for LEDs with much more room to grow. I was thrilled to get my hands on my first Ray 2. It's still a very capable light. I had three at one point.

 

[Tobykourtney]

Yeah it's an exciting time for LEDs with much more room to grow. I was thrilled to get my hands on my first Ray 2. It's still a very capable light. I had three at one point.

I'm ready for the planted + man