# Which T5HO bulb are you using?



## Newt (Apr 1, 2004)

Like the title says:

What T5HO bulb do you use and do you like it?

I've been using Giesemann Midday and Aquaflora 54w bulbs. I like the Aquaflora but hate the color of the Midday. It 'burns' green and casts a horrible hue. I actually had better success with a T8 Triple tube AGA fixture using a AGA 8000K + Philips Aquarelle + Philips ADV850. The Aquarelle has to be imported now and is just cost prohibitive. The AGA is now by someone else and is not the same. The ADV850 is pricey.


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## mooncon (Oct 12, 2011)

Im running 4 of the wavepoint 6500k tropical wave and 2 wavepoint red wave these are all 54 watt.Im thinking about going with the ge 6500k starcoat ive read some good things about them and the price doesn't seem bad at all.The wavepoints are ok but I want to try something different.


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## Newt (Apr 1, 2004)

I have some of the 5000K GE Starcoat bulbs. I sold many and had people ask for more. I'm going to use those in the place of the Middays when those need to be changed. Its a very good bulb when you factor the price. The 5000K has a bit less green than the 6500K. they are both great bulbs when balancing out very red/blue bulbs and bulbs with low CRI.


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## mooncon (Oct 12, 2011)

So are you saying you like the 5000k better than the 6500k ,or that I need both to balance out the tank.


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## Newt (Apr 1, 2004)

I've always mixed bulbs to get a balanced white light. The 5000 - 6500K always seem to have a lot of green light. Some 5000K are quite reddish like the Aquaflora. Some 10,000K are lavender like the Aquarelle while others are white or white/blueish. (is blueish a word?)


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## TropTrea (Jan 10, 2014)

Newt said:


> I have some of the 5000K GE Starcoat bulbs. I sold many and had people ask for more. I'm going to use those in the place of the Middays when those need to be changed. Its a very good bulb when you factor the price. The 5000K has a bit less green than the 6500K. they are both great bulbs when balancing out very red/blue bulbs and bulbs with low CRI.


When I ran standard T-12's I found the best combination of looks as well as plant growth was combining the GE 6,500K with then so called Chroma 5,000K bulbs. The 5,000K's were not as bright as the daylights but they had a much higher CRI that gave a more balanced look as well as an increase in red spectrum that some plants loved.

Presently I'm using HO T-5 Gman bulbs because I got a good deal on them on two of my tanks. I experimented with different combinations and found that what I like the best as well giving me the best plant growth is a combo of the Tropic and Super Flora. After trying various HO t-5 Combos I would strongly recommend this combination.


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## TropTrea (Jan 10, 2014)

Newt said:


> I've always mixed bulbs to get a balanced white light. The 5000 - 6500K always seem to have a lot of green light. Some 5000K are quite reddish like the Aquaflora. Some 10,000K are lavender like the Aquarelle while others are white or white/blueish. (is blueish a word?)


Keep in mind that manufacturers K ratings must occasionally be taken with a grain of salt especially when your comparing different brand names. There are Kelvin charts that would show you what the true color of lighting source would look like if the CRI were 100 on the bulb. But I yet to find a bulb that exceeds a CRI or 92.

But generally speaking bulbs in the 5,000K to 6,000K should be fairly equally balanced between red, green and blue. Bulbs below 5,000K have more red in them and less Blue, While bulbs over 6,000 K have less red in them and more Blue. The excessive or insufficient amount of green light produced is what really kicks the true CRI factor down. Co low CRI bulbs will start to pick up either a strong green tint to give them a high lumen value, or will give a purple tint from the lack of green and have a low lumen value.

Photosynthesis depends on red and blue light but for our viewing pleasure green light is required. The secret is to get the right ration of the observers eye and still get happy plants.


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## TropTrea (Jan 10, 2014)

mooncon said:


> So are you saying you like the 5000k better than the 6500k ,or that I need both to balance out the tank.


I'll through something into a ringer here.
With LED's I'm finding I have better plant growth with 4,200K LED's over 6,500K LED's
But if I combine the two I get better results than either of these alone.

Note the 4,200K LED's have a considerable amount of red in them. while the 6,500K LED's have a considerable amount of blue in them.


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## Newt (Apr 1, 2004)

TropTrea said:


> When I ran standard T-12's I found the best combination of looks as well as plant growth was combining the GE 6,500K with then so called Chroma 5,000K bulbs. The 5,000K's were not as bright as the daylights but they had a much higher CRI that gave a more balanced look as well as an increase in red spectrum that some plants loved.
> 
> Presently I'm using HO T-5 Gman bulbs because I got a good deal on them on two of my tanks. I experimented with different combinations and found that what I like the best as well giving me the best plant growth is a combo of the Tropic and Super Flora. After trying various HO t-5 Combos I would strongly recommend this combination.


That's what I'm talking about. However, remember, what I like (find pleasing) you may not and vice versa.

I was looking at the Gmann Super Flora. Is it like the Aquaflora in color? (pinky/red to me). I have not interest in the Tropica based on the spectral output. I'd rather run a GE 5000K Starcoat at half the price and better spectral output.


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## TropTrea (Jan 10, 2014)

Newt said:


> That's what I'm talking about. However, remember, what I like (find pleasing) you may not and vice versa.
> 
> I was looking at the Gmann Super Flora. Is it like the Aquaflora in color? (pinky/red to me). I have not interest in the Tropica based on the spectral output. I'd rather run a GE 5000K Starcoat at half the price and better spectral output.


The Super Flora seems to have slightly less green and slightly more blue than the Aqua Flora's do. Then the Tropical seems to have a slightly stronger green look. But this is only my personal opinion. I no longer have access to a light spectrum analizer like I had years ago. Everyone sees light slightly differently which is why some people complain about the GE 6,500K bulbs being too blue and other complain they are to yellow. I think it is a matter of the individuals eye being more sensitive to red or blue light compared to the next person.

Another factor I found is the ambulant light in the room. If you have incandescent lighting in a room that is rich in reds anything else looks more blue to you. but if you have newer Compact Florescent or LED room lighting with daylight bulb it may look more yellow to you.


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## Newt (Apr 1, 2004)

TropTrea said:


> The Super Flora seems to have slightly less green and slightly more blue than the Aqua Flora's do. Then the Tropical seems to have a slightly stronger green look. But this is only my personal opinion. I no longer have access to a light spectrum analizer like I had years ago. Me either. Everyone sees light slightly differently which is why some people complain about the GE 6,500K bulbs being too blue and other complain they are to yellow. Yes, yes. It also has to do with where you live on the globe, believe it or not. I think it is a matter of the individuals eye being more sensitive to red or blue light compared to the next person. Could be.
> 
> Another factor I found is the ambulant light in the room. If you have incandescent lighting in a room that is rich in reds anything else looks more blue to you. but if you have newer Compact Florescent or LED room lighting with daylight bulb it may look more yellow to you.


Yup!


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## Newt (Apr 1, 2004)

Does anyone have experience with this bulb> http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_display.cfm?c=3578+3733+13821+23649&pcatid=23649


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## TropTrea (Jan 10, 2014)

Newt said:


> Does anyone have experience with this bulb> http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_display.cfm?c=3578+3733+13821+23649&pcatid=23649


I used to sell Zoo Med bulbs and I would call them fairly high quality compared to most of the other mid-priced manufacturers. Today the only high quality manufacturer for the hobby is the Geisman Bulbs and I do like there Flora Bulb but not for a stand alone bulb it needs to be mixed with something like a GE 6,500K or other full spectrum bulb to create a more appealing color balance to the eye.


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## Newt (Apr 1, 2004)

I haven't been able to find the new Giesemann Super Flora on any of the big online stores like Drs FS and TPP.

I'm going to try the Zoo Med, too.


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## TropTrea (Jan 10, 2014)

http://www.coralvue.com/super-flora-giesemann-t5-lamps

They have a link to local stores that sell this bulb as well as online sources.


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## Newt (Apr 1, 2004)

Thanks for the link.


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## Thejackal (Jan 5, 2015)

Newt said:


> Does anyone have experience with this bulb> http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_display.cfm?c=3578+3733+13821+23649&pcatid=23649


I'm currently using 1 GLO Aqua Glo Flora 48" T8 which looks exactly like the light color from that zoo med. In conjunction with the T8, I'm also running 4 T5HO bulbs in a 48" fixture...2 Fluval Life 6700k's, 1 Zoo Med Ultra Sun Super Daylight 6500k, and 1 10,000k stock bulb that came with the fixture. After trying a few different combo's, Iv noticed that Flora bulb (2800k) causes my Hippo Grass leaves to turn more red than without using it It really helps balance out the viewing color to a more pleasing look as well.


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## TropTrea (Jan 10, 2014)

Thejackal said:


> After trying a few different combo's, Iv noticed that Flora bulb (2800k) causes my Hippo Grass leaves to turn more red than without using it It really helps balance out the viewing color to a more pleasing look as well.


Yes this is understandable. Many people use loads of 6,500K and higher K temp bulbs but what they do not realize is these bulbs put out very little red light. When you add a 2,800K bulb your adding a substantial amount of red light and photosynthesis uses both red and blue light.

I believe that if someone simply used only the light waves that are used for photosynthesis and not other wave lengths they could have flourishing tanks using a fraction of the total wattage they are using. But the draw back would be that it would not be that pleasing to the eye, with a deep purple color and virtual no green light to reflect the beauty of the foliage.


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## BruceF (Aug 5, 2011)

I saw an indoor hydroponic farm the other day on tv that only uses red and blue light. They were getting good results. Maybe the thing to do is just use certain spectrums when you are actually viewing the tanks!


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## Newt (Apr 1, 2004)

The latest in growing veggies is no soil and hydroponics. The roots are expose to the air and feed water/nutrient spray. The lighting is ugly - red and blue only.

@Bruce> believe it or not plants become used to the light they have and the photo-period. My Rotala 'colorata' knows when its time for only the dusk light to come on as all the leaves fold up just prior to the light coming on.


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## TropTrea (Jan 10, 2014)

BruceF said:


> I saw an indoor hydroponic farm the other day on tv that only uses red and blue light. They were getting good results. Maybe the thing to do is just use certain spectrums when you are actually viewing the tanks!


This is why it is usless to use lumens to evaluate light for growing plants.

Plants can use blue light between 420nm and about 480 nm for photosynthesis a 60 nm wide spectrum
They can also use red light between roughly 600nm and 68onm for photosynthesis an 80 nm wide spectrum. Add the two together any have about 140 nm. But lumens is measured from 400nm to 700 nm which is a 300 nm wide range. So if all is measured equally and the spectrum were flat the plants could only use less than 1/2 of the measured on the PAR meter. But when we use a lumens meter we weigh the green light or the light not used by plants heavier than blue and red light so in reality it is only about 1/3 accurate at the most.

Unfortunately just supplying the red and blue light creates an ugly looking tank for most people eye. The exception is if your growing purple plants which are extremely rare. But it would still look weird as the background would still all look purple.

Now if you look at the salt water reefs the need for red light is even diminished since very little of it penetrates into the deeper waters. Trying to get max photosynthesis form minimum wattage then requires primarily blue light. This is why you see those extremely blue reef tanks. Fortunately there is much more florescence in corals otherwise it would be a monotone blue world under water.


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