PC vs. T5 let the fight begin

sparkee61

sparkee61

Member
PC vs. T5 let the fight begin

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Ok... Im trying to upgrade my Coralife PC 4 (65) to get more light for my corals. I have a 75 gal tank. I have called 4 Chicago area stores and they all stated that PC is the light to have for anything. I mentioned th T5's and they all said I would be spending extra $$$ to upgrade the ballast to make the same light as the PC. Now my head is really spinning.
 
ci11337

ci11337

Active Member
get T5's they are much more powerful, especially if individually reflected and overdriven. I have the same fixture as you on my 55 and i'm not a big fan of it. As i understand it, if you have a IceCap ballast, ypu ca run 54 watt bulbs at over 80 watts
 
ameno

ameno

Active Member
I don't understand were these stores are coming from, unless they no nothing about t-5, if you got Ho T-5 you would have to downgrade to get pc lighting.With HO T-5's with good individual refelectors and the right amount of bulbs you will be able to keep anything you want, and put out a lot more light then pc. if you buy a complete unit go with a good brand such as Tek or Aquathinics
 
sparkee61

sparkee61

Member
That's what I understood to be true, but each store said the pc's are the way to go. I did call another store that said there is no comparison and that the T5 is the better of the two.
 
perfectdark

perfectdark

Active Member
I believe some of the confusion over the 2 is when we state T5's or CF, in reality there is no difference other than bulb diameter. Where the misunderstanding maybe is in failure to say HO T-5 lighting. This changes things exponentially, now HO T-5 lighting may show as the same wattage as CF but they give off a lot more lumens per watt than CF does. This makes them more intense, now we couple that with individual reflectors because the bulbs are smaller in diameter and our output increases dramatically from NO CF lights.
 
ameno

ameno

Active Member
very true, good point, even not being HO I would think t-5 would be better just for the fact you can use more bulbs in less space.
 
wangotango

wangotango

Active Member
Tell them to look at the number of CF and VHO bulbs on the market compared to the amount of halide and T5ho bulbs out there. I know of like two CF brands but could name at least ten T5ho brands. If they suck so much why is everyone making them?
I do agree the some confusion may come from not distinguishing between T5 and T5ho. The differences I've seen between T5 and anything else (including halides) is insane.
-Justin
 
ironeagle2006

ironeagle2006

Active Member
I will take my PC over the T-5's anyday of the week. Had a T-5 set up and had nothing but trouble with it bought a Coralife PC light with 4 lunars and love it. My fish are happier and colors Brighter than before. I run a 260 w hood with 4 65 watt PC lamps 2 Actinacs and 2 20K bulbs in it.
 
nycbob

nycbob

Active Member
pc better than ho t5? how could u get nothing but trouble? this is not even a discussion.
 
perfectdark

perfectdark

Active Member
Originally Posted by nycbob
http:///forum/post/2507403
pc better than ho t5? how could u get nothing but trouble? this is not even a discussion.
Ya I agree.... Im curious what brand gave you these issues....As far as PC lighting is concerned or any light manufacturer IMO coralife lights are garbage by comparson.
 
moprint

moprint

Member
I have owned both and T5 is the way to go. This isn't even a fight it's like a total a$$ wiping. Just get a fixture with individual reflectors and T5 is the way to go.
 
srgvigil

srgvigil

Member
I just wanted to point out all of you are saying you like something better but your giving no reasons so your answers are nothing but empty words
 
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