Coralife Double Strip Light

[Sonjamo]

Coralife S/W T-5 Aqualight Double Strip Light-36"
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Thinking about getting this fixture for my aquarium, the question I have is, do I have to buy the:

T-5 Fluorescent Bulbs - Coralife T-5 10,000K Lamp-36" & Coralife T-5 True Actinic Blue Lamp-36" ?

Or can I put these:

VHO Fluorescent Bulbs - Coralife 10,000K VHO Fluorescent Lamp -36" (95Watt) & Coralife Actinic Blue VHO Fluorescent Lamp -36" (95Watt)?

 

[12 Volt Man]

that striplight comes with two bulbs already - one 10000K one and one true actinic bulb.

you can't put the VHO's in that type of fixture.

 

[Sonjamo]

They wont fit? Or too many watts?

 

[gmh]

I think you would need a retrofit kit. What I did with my fresh water setup was simply buy two aqualite fixtures and set them up side by side over my tank. I get double the standard T5 lighting and have the flexability of being able to set up each light on a seperate timer so as to customize the lighting cycle.

 

[dwag88]

those bulbs aren't really suited for a FW aquarium. coralife makes the same fixture with bulbs for plant growth instead of coral growth. be ready to combat serious algae though. im opting for the single strip light for my 36" tank.

EDIT: woops! thought you were talking about the coralife pc fixture. didnt read it thoroughly enough. sorry!

 

[12 Volt Man]

They wont fit? Or too many watts?

too many watts.

VHO's need their own ballasts.

 

[gmh]

Yes, I have the freshwater coralife fixture. Assumed you were talking about a saltwater system. If not then you definately want to go with the freshwater 6700 and 5000 K bulbs rather than the marine bulbs you mentioned. In either case getting two standard T5 fixtures can be a cost affective alternative to going with a more expensive VHO system, depending on just how much light you need.

 

[12 Volt Man]

one thing that you can do is upgrade the 6700 K plant bulb on the freshwater system and use a 10,000 K bulb instead along with the pink colourmax bulb.

I have done that on all my freshwater tanks and like the look (less yellowish)-and brightness- of a 10,000K bulb much better than the 6700 K bulb.

My plants don't seem to notice the difference and the tanks are brighter.

 

[Star_Rider]

vho ballasts can run $200.

the problem with VHO is getting bulbs in the right color spectrum.
closest I have found is daylight.

 

[Sonjamo]

T-5 Fluorescent Bulbs - Coralife T-5 10,000K Lamp-36" & Coralife T-5 True Actinic Blue Lamp-36"

You think those wont be good for my freshwater setup? I have no real plants. I just wanted something to brighten up my tank.

Or is it better to get the Coralife F/W T-5 Aqualight Double Strip Light with one Colormax Full Spectrum and one 6700K or 10 000K T-5