Which to choose.... T'5 or HQI?
 

I have a 29 gallon nano and am looking to upgrade the lighting. Any thoughts about which to go with? the T-5's or the HQI? i know the HQI gives off more heat, but do the T-5's give off the same light as the MH's?

I have softies and LPS in there right now but would like to brighten up the tank and give my zoos more colour and later on have some SPS.

I was going to go out and buy 2 Viper T2 70watt HQI units today but i thought i would do some more research first.

Is 250 watt overkill? or is 150 watt ok? with T-5's they only add up to 96 watts...

Any input would be appreciated.

Sorry... i meant to put this in the lounge forum... i dont know how to change it.:redface:

Everything I kept under my halides I can keep under my t5's. Short of the different visuals each gives (whichis up to the viewer) and the minimal heat from my t5's. they are the same (livestock sustainability). That being said i am going back to 20k metal halides with the nano cube sometime during Christmas.

Since your tank is shallow, I think you can achieve what you would like to with four T5 bulbs. Although the Vipers would be a good choice as well, I would prefer the T5s in order to have actinics.

My MH had actinics :) VHO Actinics to boot.

t5 will give off less heat for sure, the hqi 150w will be sufficient even a 70w however it may get warm in the summer also if you want more colour out of the hqi go with 20k. If it was my choice I would go with a hqi for a small tank, if your tank was wider like 3ft then t5

Honestly the best way to get an idea of what you want is to go to a store or a persons house an look at the difference in t5 and MH. Bulb choice with t5 also makes a dramatic difference, as well as good individual reflectors. There are crappy MH and T5's out there so be sure an do your homework :). Honestly for a small tank the viper would be okay, but for a 29 i would go 150 watt at least, the color from the 70 watts is not very nice. Pendants would work nicely for you tank, and they have a lot of flexibility. Some people, just cannot live without the shimmering effect of MH, while this is recreatable with LED'S, it is not the same visual. You might end up being part of the shimmer crowd. :)

its simple do both. :mrgreen: get the best of both worlds

Use the 150 watt HQI for the main light and get a two light T5 retrofit set up to use as actinic lighting.

T5's do not put out the same intensity of MH but they will grow anything, although Mh with grow it faster.

Steve

The Vipers have actinics in them??

No I did not have a viper I had a fixture from Europe is all I'll say :)