Upgrading my lighting...

park83

park83

AC Members
Dec 2, 2006
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central PA
Well i'm upgrading my lighting in my 45g FOWLR. Right now there is just 2 - 15 watt standard fluorescent fixtures (one 10000K, and one actinic). I would like to replace one of them with a higher output light, for starters. I don't want to break the bank, just help my LR in habitants grow a little better.

My thoughts were one of these 2 lights:

http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_display.cfm?c=3578+3733+9654+9871&pcatid=9871

http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_display.cfm?c=3578+3733+13822+16770&pcatid=16770

Which would be better?

Also, is the actual light output in lumens per watt higher on T5s than compact fluorescents?
 
The latter would probably be a bit brighter. Yes, they put out comparably more usable light per watt of energy used.
 
Well, in terms of intensity, it is a baseline fixture, but I haven't heard complaints about the actual quality of the product. I take it from your description above, you don't plan to have corals, correct? If you do decide to start on corals, then these fixtures would be a better option. Better yet, if it were me, I'd probably go with a Tek fixture with individual reflectors.
 
When buying lights - plan for the future! I have wasted more money in this hobby buying inexpensive stuff only to replace it down the road with what I really wanted. If you are never ever going to have corals than buy anything that will make your tank LOOK nice.

The t-5 will supposedly cost less over time because of bulb replacement. I have both a compact and a t-5 on my tank and have been very happy with the results.

IMO spend the money on GOOD lights!
 
jayghmi said:
When buying lights - plan for the future! I have wasted more money in this hobby buying inexpensive stuff only to replace it down the road with what I really wanted. If you are never ever going to have corals than buy anything that will make your tank LOOK nice.

The t-5 will supposedly cost less over time because of bulb replacement. I have both a compact and a t-5 on my tank and have been very happy with the results.

IMO spend the money on GOOD lights!
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I may get mushroom corals one of these days. Something on the easier side. I don't have a protein skimmer though, so i'll probably need one of those even for the mushrooms, right?

Also, I just ordered 2 of those T5 fixtures. So i'll be replacing my 30W of T8 light with 96W of T5 light. Hopefully i'll notice a big difference!
 
You will be able to do much more than mushrooms with those lights and yes you will notice a huge difference - and no you don't need a skimmer for mushrooms.

As you build your tank a good skimmer may be your next piece of equipment. Lots of skimmer deals out there on the used side, so do your research and take your time .
 
jayghmi said:
You will be able to do much more than mushrooms with those lights and yes you will notice a huge difference - and no you don't need a skimmer for mushrooms.

As you build your tank a good skimmer may be your next piece of equipment. Lots of skimmer deals out there on the used side, so do your research and take your time .
Click to expand...

A little off topic of lighting, how much nitrates can most mushrooms handle? My tank is never at 0, its usually about 20 ppm. I may have to work the WCs a little more often if I want to keep them.
 
20 ppm of nitrate is negligible when it comes to mushrooms. Though it may not be the ideal situation, they can handle levels much in excess of that and still do well.
 
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