Which Bulbs should I get?

Discussion in 'T5 Aquarium Lighting' started by |-Goku-|, Aug 14, 2010.

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  1. marlinman

    marlinman Zoanthid

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    Reefgeek is the best, hands down! I recently bought a mixture of 16 bulbs that came out to $330 they gave me 10% off which is $33. I was happy as heck to get that.
     
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  3. |-Goku-|

    |-Goku-| Fire Worm

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    Ordered, along with the recommended bulbs :) So Exciting :D
     
  4. 2in10

    2in10 Super Moderator

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    Congrats, make sure and photo acclimate if you have corals already. The fixtures will crank out a great deal of light and PAR.
     
  5. |-Goku-|

    |-Goku-| Fire Worm

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    By Photo Acclimate i assume you mean to introduce the corals to the light slowly?

    I I don't have any corals(Or fish) at the moment.

    Also, when building my canopy, what is the ideal height above the water that the lights should be?
     
  6. |-Goku-|

    |-Goku-| Fire Worm

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    I went with the bulbs suggested.

    blue+
    fiji purple
    blue +
    ge 6500k
    blue +
    blue +

    This seems extremely blue. I don't have everything setup yet, but will this give also a natural color. Or just more of a blue color?
     
  7. 2in10

    2in10 Super Moderator

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    The GE will take care of a lot of the blue. It will have a blue tint to it but nothing terrible. If you have problems with coral colors fading especially on your LPS and softies take out the GE and replace it with an ATI Aquablue Special which is a white bulb or an UVL Actinic White which is pink but not as pink as the Fiji. Stay away from Geisemann's 6000K and 11000K bulbs as they have been connected with color loss or browning also. I had a GE and it caused my LPS and softies to eject zooxanthellae and look faded and in some cases bleached. I have a Superman Montipora and the blue background color is now white. My Cyphastreas lost their colors to a large extent and greens on my SPS dissappeared also. I have removed the GE and added some pure actinic bulbs and my colors are rebounding nicely.

    I would go with 6" to 8" above the water line to allow you room to work on the tank. The light will penetrate fine to the sand.
     
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  9. Travis45

    Travis45 Scooter Blennie

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    Totally agree with the fading issue with the GE 6500k, soon as I removed that bulb my montis started to color back up.
     
  10. |-Goku-|

    |-Goku-| Fire Worm

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    Ok, so the GE 6500k is bad? I thought both of you recommended this light setup :p.

    Would there be any reason at all to even keep the GE 6500 and not order a different bulb now?
     
  11. 2in10

    2in10 Super Moderator

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    I would only use it for a frag grow out tank or a freshwater planted.

    The light had been suggested on the web, but experience has reared its head and made for the change. I wish I had recognized this issue sooner I have 3 months on the bulb and a lot of faded and bleached corals.
     
  12. |-Goku-|

    |-Goku-| Fire Worm

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    Cool, thanks for the heads up. Wonder if reefgeek might do an exchange or anything like that. I don't mind biting the bullet on this one, and just ordering the other bulb you suggested.

    Oh, and I just wanted to be clear, I was just joking about you suggesting the GE 6500k. I have appreciated everyones help with my build so far.

    So get the Aquablue bulb as a replacement?