Power compacts vs T 5

[jft]

Could someone with experience and not hearsay Please compare pros and con of powercompacts vs the T 5 for planted tanks and reef in the 100 to 200 gallon range 20 to 24 inch deep aquariums looking to rid tank of overrated and hot halides thanks!!

 

[FishCrazyBenBOMB]

Well the main thing you have to pay attetion to is your reflectors. The angled reflectors on a powercompact fixture beats the single reflector stripe of a T5 fixture by fair.

I would say with that big of a tank use powercompact, they will work better for the size.

 

[Blueiz]

I have found that less wattage of T5 is needed for the same results from a higher wattage CF, depending on the quality of reflectors of course.

 

[mgamer20o0]

not all lighting is made equal though. what makes t5 ho better then pc is individual reflectors. with the individual reflectors they tend to also get more light into the tank then cf. since the bulbs are smaller with the reflectors around them they get less restrike then cf. generally speaking t5 ho run cooler then cf. for me at least it makes it easier to evenly light a tank.

i cant speak on reef tanks but i havent had any problems with depth penetration with cf or t5 ho. though i make sure to get lights where each bulb has its how reflector.

where mh comes into play at least in fw is the looks. with cf and t5 you dont get that shimmer look that so many people like though it does come with draw backs.

cheap place for t5 ho. not the best in the world but 1/2 the price of the higher end systems.
T5-HO Light

only place i use for cf. they have the best reflectors for cf around. one day i hope they start doing t5.
Compact Fluorescent Lighting Kits

 

[jrp1588]

Well the main thing you have to pay attetion to is your reflectors. The angled reflectors on a powercompact fixture beats the single reflector stripe of a T5 fixture by fair.

I would say with that big of a tank use powercompact, they will work better for the size.

Hey ben, you got that backwards. T5's have far superior reflectors because their shape allows them to better work with a parabolic reflector. There's also less of a problem with restrike. T5's are far superior. I run my reef setup with SPS corals on a 6 lamp Tek T5 unit. T5's don't penetrate depths quite as well as MH, but they get the job done in my standard 75gal tank.

 

[FishCrazyBenBOMB]

Hey ben, you got that backwards. T5's have far superior reflectors because their shape allows them to better work with a parabolic reflector. There's also less of a problem with restrike. T5's are far superior. I run my reef setup with SPS corals on a 6 lamp Tek T5 unit. T5's don't penetrate depths quite as well as MH, but they get the job done in my standard 75gal tank.

Yeah I didn't know exactly but I knew one was the other lol. Thanks for the correction

 

[jft]

Thanks