Lighting Question

[fowlr75]

I have recently set up my 75gal tank that will most likely be fish only. I have a 6 light 48" nova extreme T5 light that I have had for a few years. It is still in very good condition and is being used now.
Because of the age of the fixture and bulb usage, do I need to replace them if I'm only doing a FOWLR tank? Are there any cons about not replacing them? Will they cause algae problems?
The bulbs are 3 actinic and 3 white. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks

 

[blue raptor]

Hello, In my honest opinion you do not have to replace them, usually bulbs after 10-12 months tend to loose the color temperature and i have heard that they tend to lead to algae blooms!

 

[fowlr75]

Hello, In my honest opinion you do not have to replace them, usually bulbs after 10-12 months tend to loose the color temperature and i have heard that they tend to lead to algae blooms! 
That's what I have heard also. Since I will get the the normal hair algae because my tank is new, will I get twice the algae problems because of not replacing the bulbs?
Does anyone know which color bulbs cause the most problems?
Would replacing only the 3 white bulbs help?

 

[2quills]

Yes, the white bulbs are the ones that tend to see the most spectrum shift as they lose efficiency over time from what I understand. Actinics don't really shift they just lose most of their brightness as they age which isn't a huge deal for a fish only system.

 

[beaslbob]

I think your lighting will work fine especially for a FO tank.
FWIW if this is a standard 75g 4' wide I would just use cheapie 2 tube flourescent utility fixtures from home depot with 6500k tubes.
my .02

 

[fowlr75]

Thanks for the input. I will just continue using them for now. It is actually a good fixture! :t^: