24" depth, who runs t5, who runs MH?

[Canadian]

Whoops. My mistake. I thought this thread was the one where we make blanket bull$hit erroneous statements about lighting and then other members demonstrate poor critical thinking and regurgitate them while they make absolutely asinine comparisons between different lighting modalities.

Come on guys! Look at my signature and see what kind of lighting I have and what kind of system I run. Use your heads! Look at this thread and see what I have said about T5 lighting in the very recent past: http://canreef.com/vbulletin/showthr...t=51194&page=2

Then go read this thread where some serious BS was spewed and several members gobbled it up and regurgitated it without putting on their "thinking caps" http://canreef.com/vbulletin/showthr...t=51164&page=3

Time and again this stupid comparison is made and people puff up their chests about the superiority of MH lighting all the while completely ignoring the multitude of successful large T5 lit SPS tanks. Many of these large T5 lit SPS tanks are at least 24" deep - so there's your evidence. This BB is, unfortunately, sliding down a slippery slope of pouring out some really bad information of late. I also read posts where members denigrate other sites like RC for various reasons. People need to ensure they get a wider range of views on a topic from other sources before they develop such staunch opinions. There are thousands of SPS dedicated tanks running T5s quite successfully, and several of those are at or around 24" - go look it up somewhere else before your impressionable fledgling hobbyist minds are filled full of BS on this BB.

[lastlight]

A few of you need to spend a few min in my place when 12 80w bulbs fire up. I'm hoping t prove a few people wrong but like Canadian said thousands have otherwise I'd never have gone t5.

There are so many variables. Like it was said you needtocompare very specific setups.

[gobytron]

mods, you can close this thread, I have all the links and opinions I could ask for now to form an educated decision.

thanks very much for all the the strong opinions guys, all very helpful and definitely shows how much of a debate this issue is in this hobby.

I think I am just going to wait till I find a mid to higher end 6-8 bulb t5 fixture and try it out for myself....

My 250x phoenix don't leave much to be desired so no rush, but I'm looking forward to documenting my experiences when I do make the switch.

[lastlight]

*high fives the t5 guys/gals*

WOOT!

[Ryan]

Originally Posted by gobytron

mods, you can close this thread, I have all the links and opinions I could ask for now to form an educated decision.

thanks very much for all the the strong opinions guys, all very helpful and definitely shows how much of a debate this issue is in this hobby.

I think I am just going to wait till I find a mid to higher end 6-8 bulb t5 fixture and try it out for myself....

My 250x phoenix don't leave much to be desired so no rush, but I'm looking forward to documenting my experiences when I do make the switch.

No way dont close it this is a great debate thread. Leave it open a lot of information to be had, once it starts getting out of hand then lock it down.

[Aquattro]

Ya, there is no reason to close this, even if the T5 people are wrong...you NEED MH

[banditpowdercoat]

You know, threads like this make me change my mind more than Michael Jackson changes plastic surgeons.......Ohh, that was a bad one HAHAHA


But really, I just bought a used MH for my tank, waiting on bulbs to come in, to replace my T5. But now, I'm thinking of just keeping the T5, adding a fan on the ends. the tank is like 18" water depth. I'm gona try the MH, but thing they will be reserved for the new, Taller tank I'm gettin.


But anyways, I love reading the reasons each have for liking thier choice of light. No one light is PERFECT. Each person want's, has different needs. It is nice to see that BOTH will work fine. Just depends on how picky a reefer is HEHEHE.

[Ron99]

LEDs are better than either MH or T5. Sorry couldn't resist

But seriously, they are the future for lighting in our hobby. Only problem is up front cost. I am looking at eventually building my own array for my new 65 gallon and it will probably cost me $1100 to $1200 in parts. But that will come down over time as the LEDs get cheaper. Long term benefits are lower energy consumption and no bulb changes as the LEDs should last from 8 to 11 years depending on photoperiod. I'll have PAR as good as a 250W MH with no heat transfer to the tank. With more LEDS and tighter optics you can easily hit 400W MH PAR levels but then the build costs go up too. Final benefit is you can adjust the colour temperature anywhere you want it and the Cree royal blue LEDs generate great Fluorescence in the corals and if you can build and program a controller you can dim them for dawn/dusk or moonlight effects.

[gobytron]

Originally Posted by Ron99

LEDs are better than either MH or T5. Sorry couldn't resist

But seriously, they are the future for lighting in our hobby. Only problem is up front cost. I am looking at eventually building my own array for my new 65 gallon and it will probably cost me $1100 to $1200 in parts. But that will come down over time as the LEDs get cheaper. Long term benefits are lower energy consumption and no bulb changes as the LEDs should last frmo 8 to 11 years depending on photoperiod. I'll have PAR as good as a 250W MH with no heat transfer to the tank. With more LEDS and tighter optics you can easily hit 400W MH PAR levels but then the build costs go up too. Final benefit is you can adjust the colour temperature anywhere you want it and the Cree royal blue LEDs generate great Fluorescence in the corals and if you can build and program a controller you can dim them for dawn/dusk or moonlight effects.

insert head spinning smiley here.

[mark]

LEDs are better than either MH or T5.

LED archaic, go plasma: http://news.cnet.com/1606-2_3-32509.html