T5 or Compact Flor?? which one better and why please help!

[garvin]

which ones better? ive been reading up on some stuff here where people are saying 2x54w T-5 bulbs with good reflectors provide as much light as 4x65 compact flor bulbs, is this true? please help im thinking about buying a fixture, dont know if i should go T5 or CF

[motoNC]

Originally Posted by garvin

which ones better? ive been reading up on some stuff here where people are saying 2x54w T-5 bulbs with good reflectors provide as much light as 4x65 compact flor bulbs, is this true? please help im thinking about buying a fixture, dont know if i should go T5 or CF

Garvin, I believe they are the same thing. Or to be correct, compact flourescent is the general term applied to the 5/8" bulbs. There are several types of connecters for compact flourescents, and T5 is one of them.

[prototyp3]

T5 is better in my opinion. Bulbs are cheaper to replace, they run a bit cooler, they allow for better reflectors, etc.

[BiscuitSlayer]

You might want to check out this thread:

http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/li...etro-kits.html

[thefishmanlives]

The reflector is more important then the format light you choose. AH supply PC fixtures with their reflectors will give you more light then a budget t5 with poor reflectors. And vice versa.

[garvin]

dumb question.. whats AH?

[prototyp3]

Originally Posted by garvin

dumb question.. whats AH?

Not dumb at all. AH is referring to AH Supply. (www.ahsupply.com) They offer one of the better (price vs performance) retrofit kits, with a nice reflector, for power compacts.

[motoNC]

Originally Posted by prototyp3

Not dumb at all. AH is referring to AH Supply. (www.ahsupply.com) They offer one of the better (price vs performance) retrofit kits, with a nice reflector, for power compacts.

I bought one of the AH 55w CF retrofit kits to put in my 25g hood. It came with EVERYTHING needed to do the job. Great value IMO.

[macclellan]

Get the Catalina Aquarium 4x 54w T5 fixture...on sale for $149 right now!!!

http://www.catalinaaquarium.com/prod...oducts_id=1423

[Naja002]

Honest Question: What is the Quality of that catalina light and/or their stuff in general?

I always thought catalina was low quality like jebo stuff. Was I wrong or have they come up, or what's the deal....?

[motoNC]

Originally Posted by motoNC

Garvin, I believe they are the same thing. Or to be correct, compact flourescent is the general term applied to the 5/8" bulbs. There are several types of connecters for compact flourescents, and T5 is one of them.

This is not true. Sorry for the misinformation!

[fishsandwitch]

Originally Posted by Naja002

Honest Question: What is the Quality of that catalina light and/or their stuff in general?

I always thought catalina was low quality like jebo stuff. Was I wrong or have they come up, or what's the deal....?

lauralee likes it and says it is pretty good afaik

Its def. better than jebo

[macclellan]

Originally Posted by Naja002

Honest Question: What is the Quality of that catalina light and/or their stuff in general?

I always thought catalina was low quality like jebo stuff. Was I wrong or have they come up, or what's the deal....?

Naja,

I have no personal experience with the Catalina fixtures, but have just researched the various T5 options for my 75g (incidentally, I'll need to buy a new 20# co2 tank too, thanks to you ).


Short story from my research: not as good as Teks...but better than Nova Extreme (due to individual parabolic reflectors) probably on par with the Nova "Pro" fixtures. Teks are nice, but crazy-expensive, and no bulbs included..."are you serious?" in my best Jim Rome voice...

Also, Catalinas have Workhorse ballasts, a plus in my book. The actual extruded aluminum exterior housing looks JUST LIKE the Coralife exteriors for their Aqualight PC fixtures. This is a plus for me, since I already have the legs.

Also, Catalina will put in the bulbs of your choice if you call, so no need to spend extra on bulbs. I'm going with the standard 10000k and having them swap out the actinics for 6700k.

Oh, and I've never heard of one catching fire - so, no Jebo here.

I'm ordering one tomorrow. I'll post a mini-review when I get it.

Further reading: http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/lighting/62154-48-4x54w-solar-t5-hood-149-a.html"]here.

[Naja002]

Sweeeeet. Not sure where I got the impression that I had, but its good to know that there's another quality light maker out there. Not looking to buy any more light in the near future. but I'll definitley spend more time eyeballing them if the need arises......

(incidentally, I'll need to buy a new 20# co2 tank too, thanks to you ).

If you had asked a month ago....shoot--probably 2 weeks, but in the interim I've come up with another one of my "Bright" ideas........Did I mention the part about bein' poor.....

Paid for the light last night. Substrate et al today.......sheesh.

[Orlando]

http://www.fishneedit.com/t5ho-ligh.html