[proranger]

hello every one ,

I have a 48'' t5 ho 4 bulb light i just bought so i kno that i will not have to change the bulbs as of yet but wanted to kno when i do have to what do i need to buy and what are good bulbs to use . the light has 2 actintic ,2 white 54w right now what color temps should i be using for a mixed reef tank .i have read on here of many people using many diff color combs what is best to use .

 

[backdraft]

I use ati bulbs they seem to work great.
I use blue plus and aqua blue special

 

[evolutionracr]

I use ati bulbs. 3 blue plus and 1 aquablue special.

 

[weimers75]

+1 for ATI

 

[lemonjello]

+1 ati blue+ aqua blue special

 

[Froggy]

I agree with ATI. I use 7 ATI bulbs out of 8 in my fixture. ATI bulbs also carry higher PAR than stock bulbs that your fixture came with. As far as combinations, it depends on the look you want. The good thing about blue plus bulbs is they are a high PAR blue bulb. Actinic bulbs are very low PAR. For a 20K look try 3 blue plus and 1 purple plus. 3 blue plus and either 1 aquaspecial or KZ new generation will lighten things up. 2 blue plus, 1 purple plus, and either 1 aquaspecial or 1 new generation will be even lighter. All of these combos will have high PAR and the look is up to you. I use 5 blue plus, 2 purple plus, and 1 GE 6500.

 

[barav17]

I'm a ATI guy too! I got a deal on some G-man specials and they have less par.

 

[iyachtuxivm]

ATI and KZ are both good bulbs high par nice colors. Personally when I had 4 bulbs over my tank I used 3 blue+ and a kz fiji purple. 6 bulbs I used 4 blue+ a kz fiji purple and an actinic. While the blue+ does give a little fluorescence it doesnt give as much as the actinic bulbs. ATI makes a purple + bulb but personally I like the KZ fiji purple better. But for most other bulbs ATI all the way.

 

[chadf]

I just swiched my four bulb fixture to ATI and a KZ. Two blue+, a blue special, and a KZ fiji purple. Love it.

 

[proranger]

does any have any pic of there diff combos so i can see what i will want to get.

 

[jmowbray]

When you guys are saying that you have 3 blue + etc etc. Is that all you run on your tank? What does the tank look like when you do that. I'm guessing blue all the time. I was going to get a midday bulb so I wouldn't have to run the MH all day but it sounds to me like your tanks are blue the entire time. I know that corals don't need MH to grow but doesn't the blue all the time bother you?

 

[soverjas]

I have since replaced the GE6800k with another Blue+ so now its
4 ATI Blue+
1 KZ purple
1 ATI Blue Special

 

[proranger]

thanks looks good

 

[Froggy]

When you guys are saying that you have 3 blue + etc etc. Is that all you run on your tank? What does the tank look like when you do that. I'm guessing blue all the time. I was going to get a midday bulb so I wouldn't have to run the MH all day but it sounds to me like your tanks are blue the entire time. I know that corals don't need MH to grow but doesn't the blue all the time bother you?

No the tank is not blue all the time. Depending on the total bulb amount, you may only need 1,2.3 etc daylight bulbs in the mix. If using ATI bulbs, most of them should be blue plus IMO. Depending on how much you want to lower the spectrum, you can use a 6500 bulb, the aqua special, the new generation, the coral plus, or the purple plus/fiji purple. The purple bulbs also have daylight spectrum in them.

As far as pictures, it is soooo hard to get accurate pictures under T5 lighting. The pictures look very blue unless edited even though it doesnt look that way in person. It is better to see the bulbs in use in person to see if you like the look.

Joe