MH or T-5's??

[Home_Depot]

I am going to upgrade to a 125g and I am not sure if I should get 2 250w MH with 2 VHO actinics or just go with all T-5s I need some help??

[usmc121581]

I love MH's. Go with them and the VHO's.

[Blown 346]

I agree, to properly light up a 125 you should have 3 halides. Basically for every 2 feet there should be one halide.

[smm607]

I asked the same question when starting out and got a pretty much unanimous answer from many different sources. MH for sure, Reason being from what i have been told T5 is still pretty new and manufacturers are still working out some bugs on many of the fisxtures

[mg426]

I think that T5s are most likely the equal to Halides now a days, however I am staying with Halides cause I like the shimmer lines.

[usmc121581]

And I thought I was the weird one that liked the shimmer. It looks natural.

[sabbath]

I like the shimmer of a point source as well. I would use MH even if it was less efficient.

[Home_Depot]

OK than MH it is, Should I use 175w or 250w?

[boomsticks]

Well that depends on what you are trying to keep. For SPS definatly go for the 250. I run a 150 14K on a 30 gal for my sps course I only have one table acro, but I got it for 10 bucks!! I also have a meat or scoly coral in the back and a orange plate but they aren't directly underneath. Oh and the BTA loves it!

[Home_Depot]

Well I would like to get a little of everything...LOL

[mg426]

I would get the 250s

[Blown 346]

I would also have to say to get the 250's. Once you get the tank going you are going to want to keep the more difficult corals. I told myslef softies will be fine, now I have SPS, Clams, Stonies. I had to by 2 light fixtures, I wish I would have just went halide the first time.

[hahnmeister]

You could get just as much light with a 6x80wattT5 setup. If you get a T5 VHO setup (6x100watt), it will be bright enough to grow SPS on the bottom easily... so perhaps too much. Id do a 6x80watt setup myself on a 125g. 3x250watt halides is more than you need, and alot more wattage.

check out reefgeek.com for a t5 retro.

[jubjubrsx]

cant beat the shimmer MH ftw

[Mark426]

Both MH and T-5's will do the job.
But.............
I cant think of any reason not to use T-5's on the tank you described. Even though I run MH now, I think its over rated and old technology. Way too many downsides to MH too (like heat!) Seems like the LAST advantage that MH proponents can boast about is ...shimmer lines.
My next tank will have T-5's.
My vote...T-5's

[Reef'in Colorado]

I have 4x250wt 14k on my 6ft 125g, looks great.

[stevedola]

here we go...let the battle begin.

[Shouse94]

I don't know about you guys but I don't have money to burn on the 'shimmer' lines. Lots of other things I still need in the hobby before I spend the money on 'shimmer' lines. I like the T5's for one thing, efficiency. Good outputs for the money.

[thor32766]

t5's plain and simple the reasons far out number MH. Yes shimmer is sweet thats for sure, but with t5's better lumen numbers, less heat, less electricity use, less frequency for replacing bulbs. On t5's you can use whites for 2 yrs and blues for 18 months. You can't beat it.

[killagoby]

Better color with the combinations of T5's you could use.

[hahnmeister]

There are going to be add-on LED strips that you can place alongside your T5 systems which will blink and simulate the 'shimmer'. Some mfg's like SEAQUALUX in the EU already use these systems... http://www.korallenriff.de/artikel/2...Zoo_Zajac.html

I have seen other similar units in development to simulate the shimmer. The LED's are controlled by a small timing computer... these also can act as nightlights. So the 'lack of shimmer' is a temporary comparison at best... if that concerns you.

IME, the coloration I get with T5s is just better than with halide. the pigments in the corals really respond. I think its easier to 'mix and match' to get just the right look, where with halides, its all or nothing. I have a buddy (goes by thorium here) whose tank was on the home page of Euro-reef's website. Its a very pretty 125g, lit with PFO pendants and pheonix 14,000Ks. But he knows he could have better colors.... sure, the pheonix are intense, but they lack a certain 'pop'. So he wants to add supplimental T5s since there isnt another halide that on its own would provide the look and output he is going for. But with supplimental T5s, that tank might be getting too much light... so its a tricky game, and one that will result in more wattage being consumed than is needed. So thats why I say stick with T5s only. You can get the right light, the right intensity, etc. easier by mixing and matching bulbs. And the shimmer can be added later. IMO, a 6 bulb 5' T5 system will provide you with just as much coral growth and coloration as a 3x250watt halide w/ suppliments system, and for much less wattage and cost.

Check out this thread...
http://archive.reefcentral.com/forum...readid=1252187

That guys PAR levels are easily enough to grow SPS on the sand... a 60x24x24 tank, and scorch them at the top. He is using the Icecap ballasts though, so the bulbs are running at 100 watts each. Still... those readings will easily compete with halides, and with 8 bulbs. A 6x80watt HO T5 system (spec T5 ballasts keeping the bulbs at 80 watts each) will be plenty for a 125g. Now thats about 480 watts... about half of what the halide solution would be, esp if you consider adding supplimental bulbs anyways. The cost of bulbs will be about $25 per bulb every 2 years (depending on the bulbs... some bulbs will cost less, and others, like true actinics, should you use them, not last as long)... so $75 a year. A halide solution, even with $65 bulbs (hamilton, ushio and pheonix 14,000Ks) which are lower cost solutions, would cost $195 a year (yearly replacement). Sure, the ushios can be left to run longer, but then I would assume you would want supplimental lighting as well (not as blue of bulbs) and then there is the cost of those bulbs. Any way you look at it, the T5s are a cheaper solution to maintain as well.

Dont get me wrong... if it was a 120g, 4x2x2, then I would most likely be telling you to go with halides, at least in part, but a 6' long 125g has dimensions which lend themselves to being more of a great T5 lit tank.

[Craig Lambert]

hahnmeister,

You've got PM

[Chibils]

At MACNA, one of the speakers talked about how some things just grow better under MH than T5 no matter what (from the MACNA thread). T5 gives better color combos. MH gives better light penetration. T5 bulbs last longer. T5 bulbs have increasing par into the blue range (20000k+). MH bulbs have increasing par into the warmer range (10000k). The heat from MH has never caused me a problem. T5s simultaneously run cooler yet are harder to cool due to the distribution of the heat across the lamp.

imo, they're comparable.

[hahnmeister]

Correct that above... per watt, T5s give more penetration due to their linear nature.

There are some corals that seem to prefer halide to T5... very few though. Mostly lower-light LPS it seems... maybe because they arent used to getting bathed in light from so many angles. halides provide more shadows for corals like shrooms to hide under. My only suggestion with T5s sometimes is that because they penetrate better, they can mean a more uniform light field from top to bottom (as well as side to side when compared to the spotlight-like halides). That tank I linked to only varies by about 300-600 microMol, and more like 290-450 where the corals actually exist. My T5 lit 40B was similar... 200-250 at the bottom, and 400-450 along the top of the rocks. Halide lit tanks tend to vary more... 600-700 along the tops, esp right under the bulbs, and 100-150 at the bottom.

What does this mean? Well, a T5 lit tank is less able to accomidate a wide range of corals as well as halides. Luckily, most of the corals we see in the trade adapt very well, and many do just fine under light in the 200-350 range... except some lower light corals like open-brains, candy-cane, etc. Some of these corals need even lower light. So if you plan on keeping shrooms, my suggestion would be to use a taller tank with the T5s to get the 'gradient' from top to bottom. Otherwise, whatever light level you have at the top of a T5 tank isnt going to vary that much from the bottom like with a halide.

OTOH, this is something I could care less about myself. I find the light level gradient with halides to be rather frustrating sometimes. I find it difficult sometimes, even with a PAR meter, to place a coral in a spot that is just right for it, when moving it 3" up, to the side, etc can vary the light intensity it is getting by so much. And how do you think the coral likes it? Its must be like walking down the street with the sun moving all over the sky... not knowing if you need to put your sunglasses down, wear a coat, prepare for snow, or if you are going to be too hot. The light field that halides often provide is very pinpointed... not so natural. A coral can grow 3" up and encounter a light field that it wouldnt see in 3 feet in nature. I know corals in captivity dont grow likw ones in nature anyways for other reasons, but still... this must be the straw that broke the camel's back for some corals. I have had corals that get moved 4" under halides, and all of a sudden they RTN because the light field just tripled. With T5s, as long as you pick corals which like similar light levels, I think you are better off. The corals grow more in all directions, fuller, and with more pigmentation over more of their surface due to light coming from more angles. To me, the light field that T5s offer is a more natural solution. You can pretty much place a SPS anywhere along the top and it will be getting the same light field... not like halides with their 'spotlight' efects. Even lumenarcs atill behave like spotlights/point sources moret han a linear bulb. Sure, on a 125g, it may mean that the lowest light corals you can grow on the bottom are acan lords, zoas (zoas and acans grow like weeds under T5s, and look like jewels compared to under halide), etc. if the corals up top are med-high light acros... but so what. If you really want to grow lower light species, get a taller tank, like a 150g, so you can put an extra 5-6" between the top and bottom of the tank. Or, use less T5 bulbs so the whole tank gets less... but if you like SPS, this may be a problem.

[Shouse94]

Dont get me wrong... if it was a 120g, 4x2x2, then I would most likely be telling you to go with halides, at least in part, but a 6' long 125g has dimensions which lend themselves to being more of a great T5 lit tank.

Amen Brother. That's One thing I don't think people realize.
You really do need to take your aquarium dimensions into account when deciding MH/T5's. I'm a big T5 supporter but I don't understand why people buy these 4x24w fixtures. Not only do they have to replace 4 bulbs, but they are paying the same price as an 80w bulb. In a circumstance like that, it's probably better going with one MH.