Made The Switch...

[Myka]

Originally Posted by gobytron

And yes Myka, 24" deep.
Myka - I was told by the good people at JL (you know who you are) that the 454 t5's do not even come close to the 454 VHOs for "pop"...is this true?
I have a Maxima on my sand and it actually seems very happy since the switch, this is the animal I am watching the closest for signs of light deprivation.
Also, so far, my Euphyllia are loving life right now.

Ya, that's true. The VHO Super Actinics have uber POP too. You really can't touch those two VHO bulbs for fluoresce.

All your LPS should be happier with the new light...?

[phi delt reefer]

24" is reaching the maximum limit of T5's from what i have read. Make sure you are placing them as close to the water as possible. I'm going to be using the same 6 bulb tek but 36" over a 12 inch deep tank. The fixture will gain about 10-20% Par if you add a fan to cool the label end of the bulbs. A cheap clip on fan will do the trick.

Bulb combo

4 ATI Blue Plus <-- very high par bulb
1 ATI Purple Plus (cheaper than the KZ - almost identical output)
1 GE 6500K daylight

swap out one ATI Blue Plus for 1 ATI Aquablue Special if its too blue.

I think KZ and ATI bulbs are both made by the same manufacturer but i cant be for sure. Maybe someone else can ring in on this.