t5 light help

[ahubble]

Hi everyone, my husband bought me a 125 gallon tank for our anniversary Now the problem is ... it came with a hood with t5 lighting which I no nothing about as I use compacts on my current 75 gallon tank.
The 125 gallon has 2 glo lighting systems with two bulbs in each and and there is another set up wired into the hood which contains 2 bulbs all t5's.
These currently do work, however the tank has set un attended to for over a year ( previous owner) and when i turn the lights on the tank looks more white with a yellow tinge... so while prepping tank I would like to get new bulbs.
So after all that my question is .. are all t5' interchangable? and I am looking for more of a bluish ... looking tank so what would everyone recommend I purchase in order to get that look.
the tank will have fish and soft coral.
Thanks in advance for any and all help!

 

[teresaq]

T5s are a little better then pc's depending on the fixture and weither they have individal reflectors. There are many combos of bulbs you can do to get the color tank you want. search the diy forum - there are several threads with bulb combo recommendations.
Welcome to the site

 

[flower]

Quote:
Originally Posted by ahubble http:///forum/thread/387369/t5-light-help#post_3407955
Hi everyone, my husband bought me a 125 gallon tank for our anniversary Now the problem is ... it came with a hood with t5 lighting which I no nothing about as I use compacts on my current 75 gallon tank.
The 125 gallon has 2 glo lighting systems with two bulbs in each and and there is another set up wired into the hood which contains 2 bulbs all t5's.
These currently do work, however the tank has set un attended to for over a year ( previous owner) and when i turn the lights on the tank looks more white with a yellow tinge... so while prepping tank I would like to get new bulbs.
So after all that my question is .. are all t5' interchangable? and I am looking for more of a bluish ... looking tank so what would everyone recommend I purchase in order to get that look.
the tank will have fish and soft coral.
Thanks in advance for any and all help!
Hi,
A socket made for 40w max can't handle a 100w bulb safely. Same thing with T5s...make sure the watts are the same and the little pins match..some have 4 straight and some have 4 square...any bulbs that match the original will be fine. So if you want a more blue look..add another actinic and remove a white one, or maybe just swap possitions.

 

[teresaq]

hey flower, just so you know. t5s only have two pins on each end, lol pc's have 4 straight or 4 square.

 

[1guydude]

Sounds to me like ur bulbs are done! If u have a measuring tape, u should be able to get a ruff idea of wat size they are! Ur gonna want ATI, grussmiens, or i think they are zuchint or something! I used to have a 4bulb t5 system! I used ati bulbs and they were 2 blue+, 1 purple+, and 1 aquablue special! Looks way kool but didnt give me the shimmer my Leds give!
As said individual reflectors are the way to go.... VVVVV <---should look like that!

 

[snakeblitz33]

Dang. I was hoping I was the first to say something! lol
OP, if I were you - I would replace the bulbs as you said. If you want more blue - add one more actinic bulb than you have white. It will throw it off balance a bit.
Quote:
Originally Posted by TeresaQ http:///forum/thread/387369/t5-light-help#post_3407986
hey flower, just so you know. t5s only have two pins on each end, lol pc's have 4 straight or 4 square.