V
vinnyraptor
Guest
my t-5's blew a few weeks ago and i'm not gonna replace them (ballasts and bulbs). right now im running my 2 bulb t-8 fixture with 2 12k bulbs and a 24in single bulb actinic. coral's are doing fine but my long tentacle nem moved under a shelf and isnt getting any light. i went to a box store and bought a 6500k 23 watt compact flor. it's a mogul based bulb and is equal to 100 watts and has 1060 lumens. i made a homemade pendant and hung it over near where the nem is. to my suprise the nem stretched to get as much light from this bulb as possible. so i started thinking what if i build a box with 3 or 4 of this bulbs plus 2 to 4 48 inch t-8's and the led moonlights from the t-5 fixture.
this would give me 400 watts of 6500k and over 4000 lumens. i would run actinic and 10 or 12k with the 4 ft t-8's and have the led moon's for nightime. i have read that most corals show the best growth rates under 6500k but that most reefers dont like the look. i'm thinking the actinic and 10 or 12 k would mask the yellow a bit. these 6500k bulbs are like 7 bucks and last 50000 hours.
would this work? if not why?
this would give me 400 watts of 6500k and over 4000 lumens. i would run actinic and 10 or 12k with the 4 ft t-8's and have the led moon's for nightime. i have read that most corals show the best growth rates under 6500k but that most reefers dont like the look. i'm thinking the actinic and 10 or 12 k would mask the yellow a bit. these 6500k bulbs are like 7 bucks and last 50000 hours.
would this work? if not why?
