Which T5 bulbs?

GotSalt

AC Members
May 4, 2008
13
0
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45
East TN
Its about time I get new bulbs. Right now Im using the stock current bulbs which is 2x10k and 2xactinic in my nova extreme fixture. Corals have done good under this lighting I just want something that gives the tank a little darker look and just wanted to get some ideas on which bulbs would achieve this.
 
I like the Gieseman Pure Actinic and UV Lighting 12,000K bulbs myself. I haven't tried all that many brands of bulbs, but have been happy with a mix of those two. I can say from experience that just about any of the bigger name actinic bulbs I've seen are better at making a tank more blue than the actinic bulbs Current makes.
 
I tend to prefer UVL, ATI, Giesemann, and GE bulbs. Some others I haven't tried but others seem to like include the Korallen Zucht (KZ) bulbs. Currently, I actually have a high daylight ratio, which is trickier to use, but I like the overall color. My array consists of 3 ATI Blue +, 1 UVL Aquasun, 1 ATI Aquablue special, and 1 GE 6500K. Gives the tank a whiter light with a slight blue tint.
 
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