T-5 Light Bulb Question Need Opinions!!!

[tdog7879]

So today i went to my LFS to get some replacement bulbs and the owner showed me UV lighting bulbs which i never heard of. So i looking for something a little different besides current or GLO bulbs and pick up 4 of them 2 of the bulbs are called 454 which blue actinic and the other are 10k aquasun which have a pink tent to them. One nice feature to theses bulbs are they have a 180 internal reflector in them which is a plus! Anyways my concern is the aquasun(pink tent) with it being only 10k is this going to be good enough for my tank? I have LPS, SPS, one clam and assorted soft corals.
I have a nova extreme pro so i need to get to more bulbs and i have only installed 2 of them right now. If ever thinks i will be ok with the 2 aquasun then i was going to get one more blue and then just get a full white current?
Thanks!

 

[geoj]

I would do 4 actinic and 2 full spec. +Blue
I have tried some red tinted full spec did nada for coral color

 

[tdog7879]

Originally Posted by GeoJ
http:///forum/post/3057279
I would do 4 actinic and 2 full spec. +Blue
I have tried some red tinted full spec did nada for coral color
so the 10k arent good enough? right now i have 3 blue and 3 white should i just go 2 blue and 4 white?

 

[geoj]

Originally Posted by tdog7879
http:///forum/post/3057284
so the 10k arent good enough? right now i have 3 blue and 3 white should i just go 2 blue and 4 white?
Go to ATI or Giesemann www and look at there bulb spectrums
You can get a full spectrum bulb that is much like a 10k with a spike in the Actinic blue and is still very white in look. This lets you see all the color you would miss if you had only Actinic. I like a 1:2 ratio white to blue or full to Actinic so two 10k and four Actinic
Get as much light in the 420-470nm ranges as you can stand looking at. If you can put it on a switch so you can turn off some blue light to look at all the color during the best viewing time this would be nice.

 

[tdog7879]

Go to ATI or Giesemann www and look at there bulb spectrums
You can get a full spectrum bulb that is much like a 10k with a spike in the Actinic blue and is still very white in look. This lets you see all the color you would miss if you had only Actinic. I like a 1:2 ratio white to blue or full to Actinic so two 10k and four Actinic
not to sound like a dumb A$$ but you rather have more blue lighting than white? Or a white actinic with a blue in it? Sorry the whole lighting thing has me confused

Get as much light in the 420-470nm ranges as you can stand looking at. If you can put it on a switch so you can turn off some blue light to look at all the color during the best viewing time this would be nice.

 

[jdl]

2nd link
http://www.lmgtfy.com/?q=grim+reefer+t5

 

[nycbob]

uv makes good bulbs. below is nova pro with 4 uv bulbs (2 14k and 2 aquasun) and 2 giesemann.

 

[tdog7879]

Originally Posted by nycbob
http:///forum/post/3057393
uv makes good bulbs. below is nova pro with 4 uv bulbs (2 14k and 2 aquasun) and 2 giesemann.

Thanks nycbob! so you use just 2 blue acntics on your nova? And the rest a daylight kinda of bulb?
Edit: by the way great tank!

 

[nycbob]

i actually am not using any actinics bc i wanted more growth. with the 12k and 14k bulbs, i am still getting some blue light into the tank. i just changed to these bulbs 3 weeks ago, and am already seeing the color change of my corals. b4, i was using 6k giesemann daylight bulbs and actinics and the corals looked browned out.

 

[brokendeck]

the pink tint bulbs are ussally used for freshwater plant growth. Let us know how they turn out for saltwater.

 

[tdog7879]

Originally Posted by nycbob
http:///forum/post/3057563
i actually am not using any actinics bc i wanted more growth. with the 12k and 14k bulbs, i am still getting some blue light into the tank. i just changed to these bulbs 3 weeks ago, and am already seeing the color change of my corals. b4, i was using 6k giesemann daylight bulbs and actinics and the corals looked browned out.
I think i going to go with the 2 aquasun 2 454(blue) and order 2 of the 14k! How long did you take with changing out your bulbs? did you change 2 at a time and then wait a week or 2? With the 2 aquasun bulbs does your tank look more pinkish than you like?
Thanks for the help

EDIT: are the 12k bulbs on the pinkish side to?

 

[nycbob]

most people will tell u to change 2 at a time. i changed all 6 at the same time. i hv done this twice already and seen no adverse effect. i change mine t5 bulbs every 12 months. if it was someone that hasnt changed their bulbs in 2 years, then perhaps doing 3 bulbs at a time would be recommended.