Zoo Med duel T5 light fixture reviews!!!

[kmny34]

I just bought a 36" zoo med t5 duel fixture and am wondering if anyone else has used these before??? How are they???

 

[Old Scales]

I had the 30" one just like yours. It is a pretty good light for the money. The reflectors aren't as good as the high end models but they're still pretty good. I gave it to my daughter for her tank when I went to very high light. It's still working well. About 1 year now so far. OS.

 

[kmny34]

I had the 30" one just like yours. It is a pretty good light for the money. The reflectors aren't as good as the high end models but they're still pretty good. I gave it to my daughter for her tank when I went to very high light. It's still working well. About 1 year now so far. OS.

Did your plants do well using that fixture???

 

[Old Scales]

Yes. medium light plants like ambulia, wisteria, swords, and all the low light plants did well. Being medium light, you will need to dose CO2 or liquid carbon(like Excel) and have a good fert regime for best plant growth.
But there are lots of plants you can grow with it. Not just many colored high light plants.
Browse extraplant.com, azaquaticgardens.com, tropica.com, plantedtank.net for plant information profiles. Good luck. OS.

 

[kmny34]

Yes. medium light plants like ambulia, wisteria, swords, and all the low light plants did well. Being medium light, you will need to dose CO2 or liquid carbon(like Excel) and have a good fert regime for best plant growth.
But there are lots of plants you can grow with it. Not just many colored high light plants.
Browse extraplant.com, azaquaticgardens.com, tropica.com, plantedtank.net for plant information profiles. Good luck. OS.

I'm switching from a single T8 bulb to 2 T5's!!! Is it possible that I'll have a big algae bloom when I make the switch???

I don't use any CO2.
I do dose liquid and dry ferts!

My plants are:
4 anubius
1 amazon sword
1 crypt parva
1 banana plant
1 crinom I think it's called
1 moss ball
Some dwarf sag
And a few stems of water wisteria

Regular white sand substrate

 

[kmny34]

The T5's will be a total of 78 watts in a 30 gallon tank btw.

 

[Old Scales]

With your liquid ferts make sure you use a macro one as well as a micro one. Check out green leaf aquarium.com for there dry ferts. A lot cheaper to use in the long run than liquid. As far as a carbon source and to help fight algae, you could use metricide14 which is the same stuff as Excel. You buy it by the gallon, cut it 50:50 with distilled water and then dose like Excel. Much cheaper also. With your above mentioned plants I would try controlling algae by adjusting your lighting period first. With what you have already you may get by without having to do Metricide. But it would definitely help the plants grow better. OS.

 

[delfisherman]

I have the 24 in on my 29g and believe i have medium light and i hafta use met and ferts to keep my plants going. i like the light but hate buying bulbs. I finally found a good site to get my bulbs for 3 dollars a peice.

 

[kmny34]

I have the 24 in on my 29g and believe i have medium light and i hafta use met and ferts to keep my plants going. i like the light but hate buying bulbs. I finally found a good site to get my bulbs for 3 dollars a peice.

What sight is that!??

 

[delfisherman]

1000bulbs.com

 

[Old Scales]

kmny'
Just be sure that the bulbs you purchase for your light are the correct ones for plants.
You will need bulbs that are in the 6000 to 8000 K. temperature range. This is a light frequency that plants use the best. Some people use bulbs as high as 10,000 K. But most people choose a reddish, around 5000 K. floral max bulb and a 6700 K. daylight bulb for a color balance more pleasing for showing off their fish. Most good florescent bulbs should last about a year before needing to be replaced. Good luck, O.S.