While T5s might be cheaper initially, the bulbs don't last that long before the intensity and spectrum start to change. Factor in the need to replace bulbs every 6-9 months and the value of LEDs becomes apparent.

There is nothing wrong with T5s, I successfully used them on a reef tank and planted tanks ~10 years ago when they were the state of the art. But the bulbs aren't cheap!

 

Mmm that makes sense. Some people say tho that cheaper leds like nicrew and hygger also deteriorate quickly and are thus not worth it.... but other people say they last well? So hard to decide without trying stuff out

 

While T5 bulbs initially drop PAR slightly and slightly alter their spectrums after a relatively short period of use, once done they don't budge until they eventually burn out (years in many cases) so replacing them once per year or whatever you red online is a bit misleading. Most T5 users right now don't ever change their bulbs, and they have zero issues.

The SunBlaster T5's are amazing for planted tanks, I am running 6 of them at the moment and will be purchasing more when I setup a new tank or two.

 

While T5 bulbs initially drop PAR slightly and slightly alter their spectrums after a relatively short period of use, once done they don't budge until they eventually burn out (years in many cases) so replacing them once per year or whatever you red online is a bit misleading. Most T5 users right now don't ever change their bulbs, and they have zero issues.

The SunBlaster T5's are amazing for planted tanks, I am running 6 of them at the moment and will be purchasing more when I setup a new tank or two.

Nice!!! How much heat do they put out, would that be an issue? Is the spectrum of the white ones ok or should I get a rainbow like you?

How hard are they to suspend/ stand up on braces, could they sit on top of a transparent tank top?

 

I think a simple 2 bulb fixture would work great for you. Others will be able to better answer about the spectrum, but this could be a simple start to improve your lighting.

 

I’ll look around for those!

Nothing wrong with older tech, some of the gurus of the hobby use T5s to good effect. Look around your area, there is a lighting supplier close to me that sells T5 replacement bulbs at an excellent price. When I ran a 29gallon I used a CFL fixture and achieved almost overwhelming growth.

Also, nothing wrong with the Nicrews, I have a Nicrew on my Fluval Spec V now that has achieved some pretty great growth over a matter of weeks. If you buy from Amazon you can try them out for a bit and return if they disappoint. Also, at least where I am, the Nicrews are so cheap that it's no big deal if they fizzle out after a couple years. They're also fairly slim, and you can double up without too much of a hit to the pocketbook if you need to. I did try a Hygger, I found it not as bright as the Nicrews, also a lot bulkier.

would you rather recommend nicrew or T5, since you ran both?

 

Nothing wrong with older tech, some of the gurus of the hobby use T5s to good effect. Look around your area, there is a lighting supplier close to me that sells T5 replacement bulbs at an excellent price. When I ran a 29gallon I used a CFL fixture and achieved almost overwhelming growth.

Also, nothing wrong with the Nicrews, I have a Nicrew on my Fluval Spec V now that has achieved some pretty great growth over a matter of weeks. If you buy from Amazon you can try them out for a bit and return if they disappoint. Also, at least where I am, the Nicrews are so cheap that it's no big deal if they fizzle out after a couple years. They're also fairly slim, and you can double up without too much of a hit to the pocketbook if you need to. I did try a Hygger, I found it not as bright as the Nicrews, also a lot bulkier.

 

They also have these near me..... wonder if there was a way to just add this LED one to what I already have....

 

Maybe the nicrew will be a more reasonable, less faffy choice.... wish I could see some clear comparisons of the nicrew vs the Fluval but it’s like all the lights makers have vowed to never give the same type of strength unit for their lights...

 

I think you should use the photone app to get a par reading of your fluval fixture (it wont necessarily be accurate but should be good enough for comparison purposes). Order a nicrew and use the app under the same conditions to get a comparison reading. If the nicrew has enough of a par delta to justify the purchase, hang onto it. Otherwise send it back.

 

Have you ever tried the SunBlaster LEDs? They seem just as affordable as the T5...

I haven't tried the LED versions, however I have heard they are about equivalent to a T5-HO, just note the visual colour may or may not be ideal - like a bulb, you are stuck with whatever color you buy.

I will likely end up trying the LED bulbs in the near future.

 

Would anyone who has one of the Nicrew lights be willing to use the Photone app to read its PAR at 18 inches?

 

ok so I got the app and just as I thought the light is giving like barely over 20 PAR at substrate..... my jar light is better.

Dang.

What size tank? I remember 29 gallons but what dimensions?

 

30'' long, 18'' deep, 12'' wide..... When you subtract the substrate height I guess my substrate is at around 16'' from the light....

 

Hmmmmmm. Amazon has a couple of Nicrew ClassicLED Pluses on sale for 33$ because of 'cosmetic defects' ..... I wish they'd show a picture, have no idea what they consider to be a 'large cosmetic defect'.... Sort of tempting tho.

 

I use Beamswork LED's and they work well. I am low tech, no CO2, just liquid ferts once a week and get fine growth. Might check then out on Amazon.

 

use Aquaneat LED lights for planted tanks they work provide all spectrums come in many sizes and arent super expensive

use Aquaneat LED lights for planted tanks they work provide all spectrums come in many sizes and arent super expensive

also these can be bout off of amazon

 

For your tank low light is doing you a favor.

If you really wanna push it look for plant growlight for farm/greenhouse use.
Its going to give the most PAR value for money. (most likely way stronger than "high end LEDs".)

I've got one that gives 300PAR (100 is considered high light) at substrate for about $40.

 

I thought so too but I wonder if for some plants it's not just too low. Would be fun to try something brighter, guess I could always tone it down again if it seemed to affect things badly.

I use Beamswork LED's and they work well. I am low tech, no CO2, just liquid ferts once a week and get fine growth. Might check then out on Amazon.

Beamsworks seem nice but about double the price of the Nicrew for the same length.... Aquaneat weirdly Amazon CA doesn't really have them. Well they do but not my tank size at the moment....

 

Do you have co2? As par goes up you need co2 or you will guaranteed have an algae farm.

 

Thats.....what many of us have heen telling her.........

 

You can't trust the output of the photone app unless you've calibrated it against a trusted source. Uncalibrated, it's only useful to measure deltas.

 

What are deltas? 😅

I get it’s not any sort of precise measurement. But everyone says this light is crap. It’s only 1260 lumens and it’s a 18’’ deep tank. General consensus of this same forum when I first came here was ‘that’s a terrible light nothing will grow with it except maybe anubias, you need to change it.’ I’m not sure when that advice changed to ‘the light is the only thing saving you from disaster hold on to it for dear life’, but apparently that’s where we are? I’m pretty sure tho that some people have low tech tanks with light higher than this and they didn’t, like, die.... I may be wrong of course!

 

I've had t5 ho and I would not recommend them. Waste of money imo, they are hot noisy and need you to constantly replace bulbs.

You also could look at refurbished led lights.
All the power at half the price.

 

I've had t5 ho and I would not recommend them. Waste of money imo, they are hot noisy and need you to constantly replace bulbs.

You also could look at refurbished led lights.
All the power at half the price.

Yeah I was worried they’d be hot. I definitely don’t need hot.

I’d go for refurbished maybe or this Amazon deal where they’re selling damaged ones at half price... presumably the damage is just cosmetic...

But I don’t know, maybe I need to be sticking to the awful light. Seriously the more I try to figure all this out the more confused I get.

 

I have two Beamswork lights running since 2015. I also have a Nicrew ClassicLED+ running since 2019. They are dirt cheap compared to comparable light output T5/T8, dimmable (you'll need to add something like this: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07WT8VK28 - it is a dimmer and a timer with slow light ramp up/down for sunrise/sunset), run way, way cooler than bulbs. LED lights were expensive, they are not anymore - they are cheaper than bulbs, last much longer, run much cooler and are dimmable. They also much more compact. If you are thinking about high end $200+ LED lights than find me for the same price traditional lights that come with remote and with all these programmable features to adjust light spectrum, intensity, timings etc. There are none, of course, this is something that is simply not possible with bulbs. The only thing that can go in bulbs favor is better CRI of some most expensive bulbs - compared to cheap LEDs. Some can say also the fact that you can change bulbs (and so change the light spectrum) instead of changing the whole LED light fixture. The only problem is that changing the whole LED light fixture can be cheaper than changing quality bulbs. TLDR: light bulbs are outdated technology, stay away.

 

I think I would prefer the T8 fixtures since you can easily get them at hardware stores and stuff. But I use a Finnex Stingray fixture which is pretty cheap I feel like compared to a lot of other high end fixtures. I have been using it for two years and it still seems to be going strong.

 

JC&P Full Spectrum and Hygger Advanced 24/7 are a few budget LED's to consider also.

Adjustable, built in timers, dimmable etc.

 

As someone who has had almost every kind of light, including metal halides, the best bang for your buck is going to be LED.

There are pros to using T5's, but you have tradeoffs to consider that IMHO outweigh the pros. T5's generate more heat than a comparable sized LED light. Electricity costs are also higher.

When I set up a reef tank a friend gave me his T5 fixture he used before he went with LED's. I ran it for close to a year and my electricity bill was noticeably higher. The one thing I knew about them is that they tended to generate a lot of heat based on my last planted tank. During the summer, unless the A/C was on, my temps rose into the 80's. Before summer arrived, I intended on running the A/C whenever the temp exceeded 76-78 degrees. The heat was more manageable, but I began wanting to keep SPS corals which just didn't seem to do as well under the T5's so I went with metal halides and oh boy did the costs of electricity skyrocket. I calculated what I was paying in electricity, bulb replacement, etc. and dove right into LED's and haven't looked back since.

It's hard to beat the colors you get from T5's, but the tradeoffs are higher operating costs over the long term and heat. PAR also begins to drop off significantly at around the 6 month mark. A friend of mine had a PAR meter and I'd borrow it from him once a month just to test the bulbs to see when they needed replacement. As soon as I hit the 6 months mark PAR would begin to degrade rapidly. I wound up giving the T5 fixture back to my friend, and sold the MH lights and picked up a Chinese LED panel during a group buy with a local reef group. Kessil came out with a pretty high powered light that was controllable by the Apex so I went with that. The savings in electricity costs really outweighed the price of the LED. I honestly could have just used that Chinese LED because it was incredibly powerful, even more so than the Kessil. The only reason I didn't continue using it is because I wanted to control the light through my Apex and at the time you only had two options....Kessil and Radions.

If I'm getting comparable results, with a slightly higher initial investment, by the end of the year what I've saved in electricity and bulbs more than pays for that higher initial cost over T5.

I would recommend getting a controllable LED though. You'll want to be able to control the intensity of the light.

 

Yap you guys are right, there’s actually more affordable LED options than I’d thought.... I’ll compare them a bit and see what’s available on amazon.ca I guess. And then I need to decide whether more light will murder my tank 😅

Fortunately your tank is (assumed 12") narrow so one fixture should do..

NICREW SkyLED Plus Aquarium Light for Planted Tanks, Full Spectrum Freshwater Fish Tank Light, Light Brightness and Spectrum Adjustable with External Controller, 30-36 Inches, 30 Watts : Amazon.ca: Everything Else

NICREW SkyLED Plus Aquarium Light for Planted Tanks, Full Spectrum Freshwater Fish Tank Light, Light Brightness and Spectrum Adjustable with External Controller, 30-36 Inches, 30 Watts : Amazon.ca: Everything Else

www.amazon.ca

Amazon.ca

 

yep it's 12, one would cover it.... Those are exactly the two I was trying to pick between hahah. Do you have a favorite? Hygger seems overall stronger and is waterproof which is a plus, but people told me they have horrible tech support and Nicrew guys are better if things go wrong..... Also Hygger has some programming complications? Someone was saying their programming was not flexible.. but I don't remember what the issue was exactly... Price is close enough I guess. Which one would you go for?

 

Yap you guys are right, there’s actually more affordable LED options than I’d thought.... I’ll compare them a bit and see what’s available on amazon.ca I guess. And then I need to decide whether more light will murder my tank 😅

I agree both sides are correct.
Co2 definitely helps control algea.
I've had algea wars in the past, and co2 definitely helps.

Lighting needs to be fairly strong while,
Injected co2 and alot of algea eating fish and inverts was the answer in my tank.

 

Agree with above statements. While you can probably increase light a bit, your tank already looks great imo and near the point where any more lighting will require co2 to keep algae at bay.

 

Yeah, I think I'd aim for a minimal increase really, just to see if some plants do even better before things start to algify. I definitely am NOT looking at any sort of high par.

Are there any loose guiding figures about this? Like '20 PAR is too little for anything', 'low tech tanks should aim for 30-40 PAR at substrate', 'high tech tanks should aim for 70-100 PAR at substrate', or anything like that? Because just thinking of it in terms of 'seems low' or 'seems high' is very vague....... I get there can't be like a 100% precise guide but I'd be interested in like 'I ran a low tech at 40 PAR and could never defeat algae', or 'I grew a low tech at 30 PAR and everything grew great' or whatever.

 

You're like a sailor charting across the Atlantic and ending up in the unknowns of the bermuda triangle. Then they see the light and ending up getting co2! Haha well I think that's what most people in this weird zone do, they either go backwards to low tech or forwards to high tech 😄. To answer your question though, every tank has its own variables which makes it hard. You'll just have to experiment a bit to find out what's too high lighting, and what's right. I just adjusted my burst lighting to turn on 30 minutes later, and upped my K dosing a bit. It's all a fun never ending experiment anyway.

Just wanted to also point out that you're in the normal progression to a high tech tank. People get to where you are and find they need higher lighting to improve plant health, they get higher lighting then find out the tank is running too fast, and algae starts having the upper hand. Then there comes the need for co2 to keep up with the higher lighting, then there needs to be more nutrient dosing to keep up with the "faster growth". Welcome to the never ending world of keeping plants growing as optimally as they can. I think when/if you do eventually get co2, you'll have more success since you already have a good amount of experience and foundation on keeping a "mid-tech" non co2 tank. It's all a natural progression in planted tank keeping 😄

 

Just wanted to also point out that you're in the normal progression to a high tech tank. People get to where you are and find they need higher lighting to improve plant health, they get higher lighting then find out the tank is running too fast, and algae starts having the upper hand. Then there comes the need for co2 to keep up with the higher lighting, then there needs to be more nutrient dosing to keep up with the "faster growth". Welcome to the never ending world of keeping plants growing as optimally as they can. I think when/if you do eventually get co2, you'll have more success since you already have a good amount of experience and foundation on keeping a "mid-tech" non co2 tank. It's all a natural progression in planted tank keeping 😄

Good to know I'm on the right path at least And that freedom of choice and self direction is a myth in a deterministic universe 😂

Oh by the way what does everyone feel about really short and strong bursts of light? Another multi-decade tank guru swears by having the lights on for just 2-3 hours but really strong...... says it works great for his low tech tank..... is it some sort of newbie hazing thing or does that technique really work?