more t5s = more intensity?

[Blair]

I am running 4 24" t5s over my 30" wide tank. They are over driven on an ice cap 660 with ice cap reflectors. I have room to add maybe two more t5s, if I add two more will I just be increasing light spread or will I be increasing the light intensity in the tank? Since switching to the t5s my growth has been good, but the colors just aren't that great. I was thinking that adding a little more intensity might boost the colors. Will I get more intensity with more t5s or just a wider lighted area?

Thanks,
Blair

[Newlin]

what bulbs are you using? I am running dual daylight and dual actenic(sp)

[Blair]

2 aquablues and 2 blue plus by Giesmann

[luke33]

It will add both, i'd suggest atleast one aquasun if you add two more.

[Newlin]

Aquablue, actenic+, 6000K, Pure actenic+

That is the setup that I'm running front to back on the hood. I have great color and there is enough light to support anything in my 55g. If you are getting close to replacing the bulbs, get one of each of those and you will be set.

[luke33]

I'd have to disagree with that as the actinic's are very poor performers in par. I never run actinic's because of this reason. If you are looking for growth the aquasuns and ge65k are going to be your best but are ugly. The aquablue's and blue+'s are excellent color scheme's and have very good par. imo the only use for actinic's are for our eye's and some coral pop.

[JediReefer]

I thought the same thing about actinic...

http://archive.reefcentral.com/forum...readid=1270275

[luke33]

Yes, but can't you get the same wavelengh's with blue + ? Which are greater in par.

[SouthernK]

http://archive.reefcentral.com/forum...light+spectrum

[JediReefer]

According to ATI yes...but it seems the Blue + are being sold as supplemental actinic. From that I gather it is one in the same as any other "actinic" bulb. I believe that the par rating varies with ballast/reflector/etcetc

[luke33]

Here's the description of the blue + So you get alot more par with the actinic spectrum

Combines the properties of a Blue bulb with a Actinic Blue 03 bulb producing a unique spectrum that encourages both bluing in SPS corals and fluorescence in capable corals.

[luke33]

If you drive a blue + at 54w it will be around 320par, a blue actinic will not even be close to that. I'm not saying that the blue + has more of the actinic spectrum than a super act or act, but with them imo you don't need actinic bulb's.

[luke33]

Oh yea, the par is with an IC reflector, so no individual reflector not sure what its at......sorry!

[JediReefer]

If I am reading that graph right the light is peaking at the 420-430nm. Since it is the same as some actinic and they run at the same 54w...how is it any more intense?

I am not trying to dig at you or anything...just trying to learn...

[DarG]

You have the actinic spike at around 430 nm but there is a much broader bump centered at about 450 nm. It all goes toward the par of the lamp. It's not just a peak reading at the top of a spike that accounts for the total par of a bulb.

Granted that the pure actinics dont have the par of the blue + , Aquasuns, Daylights, Aquablues etc. But they still do contribute to par and they probably do so pretty efficiently with that 420 nm peak. They may not be a good choice when you have to get the most out of the bulbs you have because you dont have room for more. But in set-ups with multiple bulbs where there is leeway to add bulbs specifically for appearance of the tank and the corals, that is a great situation to use actinics.

Also, for supplementation of halides. If you want to blue up a yellowish or white halide, the Blue + is a much better choice but for tweaking color of an already blue enough halide set-up plus adding pop to coral colors the super actinic is a great choice as well. I think they can do alot for blue halides. Adding another blue bulb like a blue + just adds more blue and can really look washed out. Adding whiter T5's can often whiten up the halides too much plus usually prevents you from timing in a dawn/dusk effect because most people with halides do that with the supplemental T5's. But sometimes adding a super actinic or two to blue halides really "warms" up the blue color. It can shift the hue a little bit so the blue doesnt look as washed out. And again, it does contribute to the par, just not as much as most other bulbs.

Just my 2 cents.

[luke33]

I'm definately not arguing by any means, i would like to know if its better to use a actinic bulb or if a blue + type of bulb will do more........i've always thought the blue + will do both actinic and par but it seems like we need a lighting expert like grim to chime in.

[DarG]

If I am not mistaken, most photsynthesis on the reef occurs throughout 420 - 450 or 460nm range. So, I think the ATI Blue + and bulbs like it are better overall for growth because they have higher par within that entire range. The True actinic has a narrower spectrum peaking at 420nm and the par is not as high within it's limited spectrum. But I dont think it's true that "pure" actinic bulbs are worthless for coral growth. They just dont cover the entire spectral range in which corals photosyntesize and have lower par because of it.

I think it's something like that but the real experts can add to that or correct me or whatever the case.

[JediReefer]

That makes sence.

[luke33]

Ok, that makes sense, thanks Dar.

[Blair]

It seems to me that all the really colorful T5 sps tanks do not run any true actinic bulbs, but usually a combination of blue plus and aquablue or other white bulbs. I am considering adding another two blue plus bulbs to try to get a bluer look, and a little more intensity. However, if adding two more bulbs just widens the light field I won't waste my money. I guess my real question is whether adding more bulbs next to each other has an additive effect increasing the light intensity in the tank? Seems to me if you take two lights of equal intensity and shine them on the same spot you don't necessarily end up with a brighter spot...

[DarG]

Blair, yes, adding more bulbs does increase the overall par.
And again, I think that most T5 users who are using just enough bulbs to get the needed par would likely skip the super actinics. But if you are using an 8 bulb fixture over a 90 gallon tank for example, you definitely have the leeway to make one or two of those bulbs super actinics or fiji purple to add some color "pop". In fact, there are plenty of T5 users who also run a couple of VHO super actinics for the best possible 420nm color they can get as UVL VHO super actinic is regarded as better than any T5 super/pure/true actinic. Whether to run actinic bulbs or not is a personal choice but they probably do provide the best overall color pop to many corals.

[luke33]

The fiji's are actually pretty nice. I know there par is around 240 at 54w. Not great but nothing to be ashamed of. They are a very unique color.

[DarG]

The UVL Super actinic is 210.

[luke33]

See, the fiji is much much better : ) lol

[chirocato]

Originally posted by Blair
I am running 4 24" t5s over my 30" wide tank. They are over driven on an ice cap 660 with ice cap reflectors. I have room to add maybe two more t5s, if I add two more will I just be increasing light spread or will I be increasing the light intensity in the tank? Since switching to the t5s my growth has been good, but the colors just aren't that great. I was thinking that adding a little more intensity might boost the colors. Will I get more intensity with more t5s or just a wider lighted area?

Thanks,
Blair

I run 8 80w on Ice Caps and IMO it's too much. I fry everything I add. I can't even put a frag on the sand bed w/o it bleaching out. I am running 6 Blue plus, 1 ATI Aqua blue and a GE 3000k currently. I have been fiddling with this setup (diff bulbs) for about a year and still am not pleased. Tons of growth, crappy colors. I am so dissatisfied that I just bought a complete new light setup. Going back to MH w/Phoenix 14k's. Ran them before and got intense colors and decent growth. Shoudda left well enough alone. Point of this post...don't assume more bulbs = better color. You may have more than enough now in a 55g.

Here's my PAR readings via Apogee meter