3 - VHO's or 2 - T5's? Supplement with LED's?

[Tinyfish]

I should have asked this before starting.

I have a 75g tank that is 4' long. I am currently running 2 - T8's which seems fine for mushrooms and zoanthids but I would like to have the option to put in some SPS.

I have an IceCap 430 which will drive either of these, but I don't know enough about the total light being produced to make a decision. LFS told me to go VHO with LED's.

Which of these two options provides the most light?

Or is there some other characteristic of the lights I should know to help me make a choice?

And I don't know beans about LED's, not even where to start.

 

[Saltpro]

i have a 4 bulb vho on my 75 gallon and its pretty bright. They do run some power and some heat but hasnt been any trouble with the four computer fans inside my hood. I think t5's would be a whole lot brighter on my system and im thinking of changing to them, plus less heat and power usage. Also i have been looking into led's....so far i like them but they are expensive. Although they seem to last a long time. Here is a link you may want to read http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1587273 to help you better understand them.

 

[mtraylor]

+
I agree. I dont think you will get the growth/color you will be looking for out of a regular T8 vho bulb over sps. It will do fine for monti caps and ceaphastrea, and stuff like that, but high demanding sps corals will not thrive under just T8 vho....Unless you had allot of them under there squezed together. I would go with some t5's suppliment. I think your tank would have an amazing glow with that combination. I cant speek to the led systems, since I only use them for night lighting. Maybe someone on here whom has a successful sps tank with LED's can give you some advice on them and show you some pics of the succes.

 

[Tinyfish]

Today I finished mounting the 2 - T5 bulbs with reflectors and the IceCap430 ballast.

Here is a before under the T8's

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Here is an after with same camera settings under the T5's

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Here is a shot of after with better exposure settings.

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Now I am unsure what the next step should be. Do I need even more light? Is this overdriving the T5's?

 

[Saltpro]

so your using two t5's right? I would add two more T5's, of course you would need another ballast too. What reflectors are you using? I know the icecap 660 ballast overdives the bulbs im assuming the 430 does too. I think its suppose to run them at approximately 85 watts instead of 54watts. Your supposed to have a fan blowing on the end of the bulbs to keep them cool. I think its the end with the lettering on it.

 

[Tinyfish]

Here is a link to my other thread: http://dfwmas.org/Forums/viewtopic.php?f=94&t=72518

How did you figure the watts on the overdrive? I am just curious.

Reflectors = Miro4 T5 reflectors. They seem to work very well. Individual for each bulb.

I know I can get one more T5 in there but to get another I will have to relocate the ballast. I really don't know where to put it.

Oh and I thought the fan was to blow on the end without the lettering. I will have to read up on that again.

I was kind of surprised that just 2 bulbs give off enough heat to make a difference. When I was running 4x24w on my small tank there was not enough heat to mess with.

So would a 4" fan be fine? Is one better than another?

 

[Saltpro]

@Tinyfish wrote:

Im not sure what end the fan is suppose to cool....you maybe right. Like i said wasnt sure if all icecap ballasts overdrive t5's. I think its just to keep the filament cooler so they dont burnout prematurely from being over driven. They have the new icecap bulbs supposedly have a heavier duty filament or something to that effect. I read it somewhere on what the wattage difference was when its overdriven. Cant you just put the ballast under the stand or on the outside of the back of the hood if theres room? I dont put mine in the hood. If yours is a 75 gallon you should have room for at least four bulbs and most likely six will fit. I was trying to decide how many i would use and am going with just 4 bulbs t5 to replace my 4 bulb vho. I dont plan to keep sps corals mainly just lps. I would think any 4" inch fan you have will work fine. I have mine hooked up to a timer so it comes on when the light go on and off

 

[bimmerzs]

Hi,

When overdriving you should cool the ends with the writing. Both the 430 and 660 will overdrive T5 lamps, although the 430 will not overdrive as much. The 660 runs a 54 at about 80, a 39 at 60, and a 24 at 30. Here is a comment taken from reefcentral concerning overdriving T5's.

Taken from this post. http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1850392&highlight=overdriven+t5
Also good info. http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1850392&highlight=overdriven+t5



Cheers,

 

[Tinyfish]

I have to say that overdriving a bulb in general seems to be a bad idea to me.

From my research a T5 HO bulb (NOT overdriven) needs to be cooled on the end OPPOSITE the writing. The T5 bulb is manufactured to have the lettered end hot and in a special temperature range in order to properly light.

If overdriving was what I was after AND i cooled the lettered end it might put the bulb in that temperature range for maximum life.

The back of my canopy is completely open. That is why I am having difficulty locating the ballasts.