T5/SPS LIGHTING

rtparty · Jan 30, 2017

haanstang said:
Are those just different t/5 bulbs ?
I haven't heard of them

They are LED bulbs that fit right into an existing T5 slot

haanstang · Jan 30, 2017

rtparty said:
They are LED bulbs that fit right into an existing T5 slot

Ok yeah I've seen those. I'll check them out thanks for the tip.
I'm assuming that the par rating isn't as high as a regular T/5.

kodo28 · Jan 30, 2017

gus6464 said:
Higher end materials? The reflectors are both alanod Miro silver. The ballasts are both programmed start with same ballast factor. The only difference is that the Gies has a shinier shell yet it still doesn't hold a candle to an ATI Powermodule which is made of 100% extruded aluminum.

The reflectors on the Gies are 30% weaker than the quasi parabolic of the sunpower and even worse when compared to the full parabolic of the powermodule. Giesemann chose to go the cheap route with it yet charge a premium.

Not only have owners on rc done par tests on the Gies but also temperature tests and bulbs get way too hot past the optimal T5 operating temperature.

Light that’s reflected back at the tube with parabolic reflector can increase its working temperature which is not the case with specular reflector and light is more spread reason with you loose on PAR readings on the Matrixx.

Did you already saw a Giesmann Matrixx II in front of you ??
The Matrixx is a much better looking fixture with a tick anodized aluminum frame fixture with Twin Layer Powder Coat Finish with passive glass cooling, it is not just a piece of bent aluminum like the ATI.

kodo28 · Jan 30, 2017

haanstang said:
Are those just different t/5 bulbs ?
I haven't heard of them

Have a look on the Biotek B5HO to

andrew james · Jan 30, 2017

kodo28 said:
Light that’s reflected back at the tube with parabolic reflector can increase its working temperature which is not the case with specular reflector and light is more spread reason with you loose on PAR readings on the Matrixx.

Did you already saw a Giesmann Matrixx II in front of you ??
The Matrixx is a much better looking fixture with a tick anodized aluminum frame fixture with Twin Layer Powder Coat Finish with passive glass cooling, it is not just a piece of bent aluminum like the ATI.

I know and from owning the matrix that if you take the splashguuard off PAR will increase over 100 PAR at the water's surface. To me that's a pretty clear display of insufficient cooling. I still wouldnt trade it for a ATI because they look like do do and my tank is a display for people to see and I want it to look good.

kodo28 · Jan 30, 2017

andrew james said:
To me that's a pretty clear display of insufficient cooling.

Like this was already explain earlier in 2009 !!!

As you can see the Matrixx is made to run at 35c at 100%...so there is any insufficient cooling.

Lab Test run

rtparty · Jan 30, 2017

kodo28 said:
Like this was already explain earlier in 2009 !!!

As you can see the Matrixx is made to run at 35c at 100%...so there is any insufficient cooling.

Lab Test run

Every real world test shows otherwise. Many tests show the bulbs running up into the 140's faranheit. Check out the RC thread where people aren't even seeing 500 PAR at the surface.

This sounds like the Geisemann rep that I talked to years ago. They denied every real world experience as well.

gus6464 · Jan 30, 2017

rtparty said:
Every real world test shows otherwise. Many tests show the bulbs running up into the 140's faranheit. Check out the RC thread where people aren't even seeing 500 PAR at the surface.

This sounds like the Geisemann rep that I talked to years ago. They denied every real world experience as well.

Considering what he posted is basically the standard T5 lumen/temp curve which is everywhere it's quite suspect. There is no denying the cooling on that fixture is atrocious. They could have ditched the splash guard and been in a much better situation.

Vaughn17 · Jan 30, 2017

andrew james said:
If I where to do it again I'd run a 8 bulb fixture with 2 of the bulbs being E5 blue pop and dont bother with a the t5 dimmable fixtures They put out less PAR at max, like 10-15% less.

I have one, and this is absolutely true. Also, despite ATI's claims, all of their bulbs are not equal as far as growing acros is concerned. Most of my acros prefer the aqua blue special with the actinic. I also just added a KZ 10,oooK bulb, which is very bright (I don't have a PAR meter, but in footcandles it puts out a thousand more than the aqua blue special.

kodo28 · Jan 31, 2017

rtparty said:
Every real world test shows otherwise. Many tests show the bulbs running up into the 140's faranheit. Check out the RC thread where people aren't even seeing 500 PAR at the surface.

This sounds like the Geisemann rep that I talked to years ago. They denied every real world experience as well.

Strange because David Saxby one of the most famous private aquarium confirmed at that time that the fixture was running at 35c over is tank. And there is some difference between lab and real world like you said but there is also a lot more possibilities for errors in real world to.

andrew james · Jan 31, 2017

On a peninsula I'd do two blues they really make the corals look much better. I tried an E5 blue pop bulb and honestly I couldnt really tell the difference between it and a normal T5 blue plus. The color was slightly different but it didnt produce any more light. I think the selling point of the E5 is how long they last compared to a T5.

haanstang · Jan 31, 2017

andrew james said:
On a peninsula I'd do two blues they really make the corals look much better. I tried an E5 blue pop bulb and honestly I couldnt really tell the difference between it and a normal T5 blue plus. The color was slightly different but it didnt produce any more light. I think the selling point of the E5 is how long they last compared to a T5.

Thanks
The more I read about the E5 bulbs the more I am leaning to the reefbrites blues.
I'm not sure yet on getting the HO's or the cheaper version. I'm not sure if I'll need the high output if I'll have the ATI 8x80. But my tank is deep (30") so it's up in the air at this point.

dragon99 · Jan 31, 2017

Take a look at the SBreeflights actinic bar also.

haanstang · Feb 1, 2017

Does anyone have any picks of their ATI reefbrite combos?

Scott.h · Feb 1, 2017

I have the 8 bulb Ati dimmable. It's capable of around 200 par at the bottom. As far as t5s go it really is a nice fixture. I'm not running it full strength either.

Scott.h · Feb 1, 2017

Vaughn17 said:
I have one, and this is absolutely true. Also, despite ATI's claims, all of their bulbs are not equal as far as growing acros is concerned. Most of my acros prefer the aqua blue special with the actinic. I also just added a KZ 10,oooK bulb, which is very bright (I don't have a PAR meter, but in footcandles it puts out a thousand more than the aqua blue special.

why would you need more then what it's able to produce? I don't get it.

https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/par-to-lux-conversion-real-world-t5-numbers.281126/

haanstang · Feb 5, 2017

Mainly just wanted the additional leds for my dusk to dawn effect and the minimal shimmer I will get within them. Not for more output.
But my tank is rather deep at 30" so that's why I was up in the air between the two different reefbrite blues as far as the higher power or lower power.
And also the ATI fixture I was looking at isn't available as a dimmable model for the 60"
I would like to have the option to dim the T-5 bulbs but not really wanting two 36" fixtures just because of the bulb cost.
I am undecided expect that I know I want T-5s with led accents

haanstang · Feb 7, 2017

johnwick · Feb 12, 2017

I have an 8 bulb ATI non dimmable. It's run without issue for 4 years and I love it. I have two actinics come on an hour before the mains and stay on an hour later. As far as my bulbs, I have experimented with several. My current setup is: 2 blue plus, 2 actinic, 2 coral plus, 1 aquablue special, 1 purple plus. Next time I'm going to add 2 additional blue plus and skip the actinics. You'll love the fixture due to the reliability, active cooling and superior reflectors. As others have debated regarding heat, cool bulbs are Happy bulbs and these things run cool.

johnwick · Feb 12, 2017

Forgot to mention, ATI has a section on their website that lists people's favorite bulb combinations. That's what I'm going to. Either way, I've gotten great growth no matter what I've chosen.