Preparations for a new tank have now begun

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marchmaxima

marchmaxima

Aquarium Advice Addict
Joined
Jan 26, 2008
Messages
1,209
Location
Melbourne, Australia
Firstly, a big thanks to GlenC!

Last night I was reading this thread http://www.aquariumadvice.com/forums/f98/planted-125-a-101092.html and said "wow" out loud. Hubby wanted to know what I was impressed by. He saw. He said wow too. I said something alone the lines of "Can I have one for Christmas" and followed that with my pathetic version of a puppydog face and he said "Well, you really got a handle now on all this tank stuff. Why don't you start costing things and get back to me"

:multi::multi::multi::multi::multi:

So the research and planning has started on a new "main" tank. Now, unlike 3 years ago, I don't want to make mistakes and there will be as much planning that goes into this project as my wedding. In other words, I haven't rushed out to buy a tank today. Christmas sounds about right. As I make decisions, I'll start purchasing things slowly.

I think I will get a 4ft x 2ft x 2ft or similar size (90-ish gallons). I'd love to go a 125, but I have to keep in mind that sooner or later, we will buy our own apartment and space will be at a premium. I have not yet decided to do a discus tank, or a community tank yet, however I do want to go a planted tank and think that aiming for 3 WPG of lighting would be ideal.

That means a have a bit to learn on lighting and CO2 systems because my 2ft tank has low lighting and no CO2.

My first questions relate to lighting. I just read (twice) the beginners lighting guide in the stickys and am struggling to get through a lot of the science about Flux, NO, T5 vs T8s vs Metal Halide, etc. But I still am not certain what I need to ask yet....

So while I'm trying to make a bit of sense of it all, I would appreciate those with planted tanks telling me what lighting they use and why they chose it.
 
MTS - I love it. That's awesome your husband is behind you. My wife loves my tanks, so that makes it easier to justify my MTS. lol

For my tank, I use TEK T5HO lighting. It's a bit pricey, but from what I've seen and read, it's worth the money. the TEK fixtures utilize individual reflectors for each bulb which gives you tremendous efficiency on the amount of light actually getting into the tank.

The easiest way to put things is that by going by the WPG rule, I'm technically at around 2.5 WPG, but that doesn't take into account that 1/2 of my lighting is partial actinic, so I'm really even at some less WPG than that. I have no issues growing anything, even the very high light plants. I attribute this to the quality of the fixtures.

Check out Seeds Etc - We offer thousands of seeds at discount prices. . That's where I got mine from, and will give you an idea of pricing. There are options to help you get the light level you want by selecting 2, 4, or 6 bulb fixtures. The geissman midday T5 bulbs are quickly gaining popularity in the industry as the best, and I tend to agree. Call Bob over there and he'll give you a price break just for calling in and free shipping.

Depending on your budget, catalina aquariums makes T5 HO fixtures as well, that sort of mimic the TEK fixtures, and are considerably cheaper. A local from my club did a comparison between the two, and I can share his experiment and thoughts from that with you if you're interested in seeing it.

Kudos to you for planning first the way you're doing. Large tanks, even FW, can get expensive, so it's a good idea to research first and do it right the first time, rather than fumble through buying a whole lotta stuff you end up having to replace as you learn about it.
 
I would be very interested in the comparisons between the catalina and the TEK. I remember your fixtures from your 125 tank log.

Do you (or anyone) use different bulbs in your fixtures? You mentioned daytime bulbs, but you don't need many of these bulbs, do you? I have seen set ups that appear to use different globes lights. This is kinda where I get a bit lost on lighting is when people start complicating matters by using lots of different globes.
 
I will dig that up and post it for you maxima, kinda short on time, but it'll be done before the day is done.

You can mix and match bulbs if you want, it really comes down to what your eye prefers to look at colorwise. Plants will be fine with anything between 5000k and 10000k.
 
Here it is. This review/comparison was done by Ingg. The last time I posted it, he accused me of ripping him off. I'm okay with that, he's a big boy and can handle it. (he's a member of the same local club). This review he's discussing the catalina T5 lighting compared to the TEKs, but also discusses vs. the current fixtures.

ingg said:
For the money, this was a good investment I can heartily recommend.

It has all the bells and whistles available, and a good buy can be found both from Catalina on their own site, and from EBay retailers. Legs, mounting sets, moonlights, fans, multiple bulb configurations, and they offer the ability to swap bulbs to what you want, as long as they stock the bulb type.

I think the Catalina fixture is a far better buy for the dollar spent than the Current fixtures, especially after Current raised their prices last last fall. It isa superior hood, has superior legs (Current fixtures have a wire frame "leg" that sits the fixture VERY low near the tank), and has a better warranty.

Yes, TEK's are a better fixture - and are easily 30-40% more, without the legs or moonlights included. Not everyone will see the need, nor honestly the benefit, of high end fixtures like TEK's. My high light big tank uses TEK's, and I am glad I spent the money for that tank - I am also pretty satisfied I saved the money on this 75g setup this Catalina fixture is for. Not necessarily a better buy than TEK's, but perhaps a better fit for many buyers (at least in freshwater).


In the end, it is a very good compromise of a better but still mid-line quality for a good price.
Click to expand...
 
Okay, you are in Australia, and may have to do some shopping for overseas brands.... for those we have in the US, here are some thoughts.

For a 2' deep tank, I'd do the TEK.

Catalina fixtures are a good compromise of price and quality. They have some great fits.

TEK fixtures are pretty darn close to the end all be all. Very few fixtures put out more actual light output.

Here is how I think of it, after owning both -

There are tanks that TEK's are frankly overkill for. 30g longs. 55g tanks. These sizes should probably look at Catalinas, as it does have lower output, and these size tanks are just overkilled by a TEK.

There are tanks that can use either. 75g. 90g. 40/50g breeders. I know folks with TEK's over 75g's, and they end up "noonbursting" (using 2 bulbs most of the lighting period, with a couple of hour period of all 4 bulbs on) to control/limit the light output of the TEK. For very high light setups, they could run all 4 bulbs - but my friend doesn't, and doesn't need to. The 4 bulb Catalina over my 75g is acting like a moderately high light setup with all 4 bulbs on all day - about the same as my friend's noonbursted TEK.

Then there are those tanks that really can utilize all the output a TEK can do. My 180g. A 120g (which is the size you listed up top, 4x2x2). 215g. The big, deep tanks.

It all has to do with what intensity you can use, and not overdoing the intensity.

The first set of tanks are not wide, and not extremely deep. TEK's overkill them.

The second set begin to have the size and floorspace to use a TEK, but are not so big or deep that they need it.

The last set begin to have a depth/size that sorta needs it. They need the superior punch and focus of light that superior light fixtures bring to the table - and in T5's, TEK's are a superior fixture.

Hope that makes sense!

PS I was only teasing about ripping off the review, I am glad folks find it of value. ;)
 
Thanks for the info Ingg. Unfortunately I can't get the Tek brand here. We also have different power connection configurations, otherwise, I'd import to be honest.

With Catalinas, you can get the bulbs, but not the fixtures.That's kinda annoying. For a brand recommendation I'm probably going to have to survey the good folks of the local forums.

Another thing is that prices for T5 HOs (the fixtures) vary wildy here. I've noticed that some brands of T5 fixtures (with no MH) are upwards of $1,000 and I simply just can't justify that sort of expenditure. I see the same systems for $300 USD, so it's REALLY annoying I can't import, especially when the exchange rate is almost dollar-for-dollar. Sorry, needed to rant for a moment.....

Next Q: Can someone please explain what the difference is between a fixture and a ballast? I thought that they were synonymous terms.
 
Funny how Ingg always seems to just show up when I post his review somewhere. Odd, don't you think?

Good catch though, I didn't factor in that you were in Australia - sorry about that.

I can't speak to those max, never used MH and know very little about them.

What about a T5 retrokit?
 
marchmaxima said:
Next Q: Can someone please explain what the difference is between a fixture and a ballast? I thought that they were synonymous terms.
Click to expand...

The fixture is the entire housing for the lighting. It includes the ballast, sockets, wiring, reflector, exterior, switches, etc. The ballast is just one piece of the fixture that handles supplying the correct amount of power to the bulbs.
 
I totally agree with pitt420dude I love my catalina lights check out there web site at catalinaqariums.com they also have great costumer service IMO.
Good luck with your new tank sounds like a lot of fun.
 
Purrbox said:
The fixture is the entire housing for the lighting. It includes the ballast, sockets, wiring, reflector, exterior, switches, etc. The ballast is just one piece of the fixture that handles supplying the correct amount of power to the bulbs.
Click to expand...

Ah, thanks joy!
 
Interested in moonlights. Definitely something I'm considering. Over here it seems to be more cost effective to buy a seperate unit for that, perhaps even an underwater light.

I just looked at the catalinas. Very nice and quite reasonably priced. If I could import them, I probably would. I can buy the catalina globes, but I haven't found anyone whose selling the fixtures yet.

Locally, many people (obviously those who can't spend thousands) favour the cheapie brands and there are many customers who say that they are very happy on these. The good brands are sooooo unreasonably priced here.

With the MH/T5 combo I posted earlier (link again below), would this be too much light? I'm not quite certain how this works. I would have 300W of MH and 4 x 55w of HO T5s.

Now that's a lot of light (520w all up) and adds up to 5.7wpg. That's a LOT of light. I hadn't planned on that much. Wouldn't I be able to reduce that by using only 2 of the T5s? That would give me 4.5wpg.

And I assume you start with the MHs for morning and evening and only turn on the T5s for midday. Or is that the other way around?

Heres the link Metal Halides - 150W New Aquarium Metal Halide 1250 Long With 10000K - Guppy’s Aquarium Products Online - 150W New Aquarium Metal Halide 1250 Long With 10000K

Sorry of these are dumb questions.
 
Last edited:
Yup, too much. You'd end up just using the MH's.

Here is the difference in T5's, and it is hard to see without being like holding them.

Baseline. In the US, this is like a CurrentExtreme fixture.

Flat reflector, bent at ends, flat behind all the bulbs. Reflectors are typically just alittle wider than the bulbs.
Reflector looks like: \_____/


Midline. Like a Catalina.

This has a wrap around each bulb, but flat behind the bulb. Bulb is typically held in with clips, so is still close to the reflector. Reflectors are a little wider here, maybe 1.25-1.5" per bulb.

Reflector looks like: \_/\_/\_/\_/

High End. Like a TEK. Bulbs are held up off the reflectors, reflectors are wider, 2 to as much as 3" wide per bulb. Reflectors have multiple bends, including an inverted V behind the bulb so all light gets reflected around the bulb and down into the tank.

I can't even draw this one, hehe, take the image above, and put several more bends in it - a little spike behind where the bulb goes, and the sides are multiple angles instead of flat angled walls.


Hagen Glo are an import - do you have Hagen Glo retrofits where you are? Those are nice midline retrofit setups of HOT5's. Retrofit means it is a kit that comes with ballast, plug, and reflectors, but it must be mounted in a canopy or DIY hood.
 
Ingg, i get ya. Believe it or not, your pics make sense. I think I recall a local guy saying that the \_/\_/\_/\_/ reflectors were better and gave better light penetration.

Keep in mind that these are the cheapies. And this is the only place I've found that sells them. Everywhere else the T5 HO and MT fixtures usually run into the thousands of dollars. Thats far more than what you pay over your side of the world... I'd love to be able to get good brands like you can for < $800.

So perhaps I should just look getting 2 x 150w MHs lights, and put one on the left and one on the right of the tank.

I guess I could get two of these

Metal Halides - METAL HALIDE CLAMP ON LAMP CH-150 FOR MARINE AQUARIUM - Guppy’s Aquarium Products Online - METAL HALIDE CLAMP ON LAMP CH-150 FOR MARINE AQUARIUM

The only place I've found so far that sells Hagen Glo fixtures are these guys. So if I went this route, I'm looking at 2 x 54w ballast units and 2 x 122cm (48') reflectors? Is that right?

Aquarium Products
 
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