# T5 Giesemann's Midday & Aqua Flora; Aqua Medic's Planta



## fishstein

I have to pick up 4 T5 54W bulbs for a Tek II retrofit kit for a new planted 125H gallon tank. Would you go with with 4 Midday 6000K, OR mix 2 Midday 6000K with 2 Aqua Flora? 

What color visible light does the Aqua Flora throw? 

Based on my experience with a great combo of T8 bulbs I had been using (Phillips ADV850 Advantage 5000K and Phillips Aquarelle 10000K), I'm guessing the combo of Midday 6000K and Aqua Flora will look very nice and work very well.

Also, how does the Aqua Medic Planta bulb compare with the Giesemann Midday and Aqua Flora? Which Giesemann bulb is it closest to? Does it last as long as the Giesemann bulbs? What color visible light does it throw?


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## gravy9

I have the combination of Midday and AquaFlora for my tank and works great. Be sure that you're supplementing the tank with CO2 and ferts.

Here are the links to the Giesemann Light Spectrum charts for T5HO bulbs: Midday and Aqua Flora.


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## Newt

Hi Fishstein,

I'm not sure what the color of the light is from either the AquaFlora or Planta bulb. The Aquaflora until very recently has been very had to get hold of. The Planta bulb by AquaMedic has been described as a bit pinkish when compared to the Midday which are white. This could be true as the Planta has a very small green spike. The Planta is listed as 5000K. The AquaFlora does not have a kelvin value. At least nowhere I have seen. I would choose the Planta as the red emissions are up around 650-660nm as compared to the AquaFlora at 625nm - plus its less money. The AquaFlora does appear to have stronger blue emissions.

Planta bulb:









AquaFlora:









Midday:


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## fish dork

I have Aquamedic Planta in my tank, they are 6500K as per the bulb. They look pink... even to look right at them they look pink. The red plants look great under them! They do need to be paired with some kind of midday bulb... or something that is 'whiter'. Mine are paired with 6500K Sunblaster bulbs (they make everything kind of green/yellow). The sunblasters are local. Apparently the plantas look good paired with the midday 6000K from what I've read, but I haven't tried it myself. I can't say much for the longevity of the plantas either as I haven't had these for long. Check out the colour in my tank pics


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## Newt

You achived a nice balance of light in your tank, fish dork. Healthy looking plants, too.
Is the substrate Eco or Flourite Black?

You could be correct about the Planta but I got the 5000K from Aqua Cave: 
http://www.aquacave.com/planta-t5-lamps-by-aquamedic-982.html
http://www.aqua-medic.com/t5_bulbs.shtml

I googled Aqua Medic and searched their website and found that they make an Aqualine T5 Plant Grow light in a 6500K. It does not have the same spectral output as I posted above. It is quite different (less intensity thru the spectral output).

http://www.aqua-medic.de/freshwater/en/24/T5 set 24W/


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## fish dork

They came from here http://http://www.hellolights.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=1436

I'm going to have to bookmark aquacave, that's a good price for those! And yes, it turns out these are the aqualines, not the plantas as advertised! Nice catch I hadn't even noticed. At any rate the plants like them, they're looking nice (in combo with the other bulbs) and I'm seeing the space between nodes on the stem plants are getting shorter.


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## fish dork

The substrate is just black gravel. It's capping a mix of peat moss, sand and clay (kitty litter).


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## fishstein

gravy9 said:


> I have the combination of Midday and AquaFlora for my tank and works great. Be sure that you're supplementing the tank with CO2 and ferts.
> 
> Here are the links to the Giesemann Light Spectrum charts for T5HO bulbs: Midday and Aqua Flora.


gravy9, since you are using both Giesemann bulbs, can you tell me:

1) Would you describe the Giesemann Midday as throwing a white-blue light or a white-yellow light? I'm not a big fan of yellow light and one guy in my local aquarium club wrote he thought the Middays threw a little yellowish light

[he uses Coralife 6700 and 10000K 28w (non-HO) bulbs and lets the Tek ballast overdrive them - after running out of spare bulbs he thought he'd give the Coralife ColorMax bulbs a try. He thought the pinkish Colormax in a photo looked like the GE 9325 AquaRays].

2) How would you describe the color that the Aqua Flora throws? I ask because the visible light thrown by a bulb may not match its kelvin chart.

3) Which bulb do you find grows plants better/faster (which is better for photosynthesis), the Aqua Flora or Midday? I've tested bulbs I've mixed separately to know their effects - my old T8s both were excellent, one was good for lateral growth and the other for height.


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## fishstein

Newt said:


> You achived a nice balance of light in your tank, fish dork. Healthy looking plants, too.
> Is the substrate Eco or Flourite Black?
> 
> You could be correct about the Planta but I got the 5000K from Aqua Cave:
> http://www.aquacave.com/planta-t5-lamps-by-aquamedic-982.html
> http://www.aqua-medic.com/t5_bulbs.shtml
> 
> I googled Aqua Medic and searched their website and found that they make an Aqualine T5 Plant Grow light in a 6500K. It does not have the same spectral output as I posted above. It is quite different (less intensity thru the spectral output).
> 
> http://www.aqua-medic.de/freshwater/en/24/T5 set 24W/


Hi Newt, what color do you find the Aqua Medic Planta 5000K throws? Does it look white-yellow, white-blue or pinkish? Again, asking because the visible light thrown by a bulb can be surprisingly different from its spectral chart.

Also, how does the Planta perform compared with your other bulbs?

What kind of growth do you get with them?

What kind of bulbs do you pair them with?


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## gravy9

fishstein said:


> gravy9, since you are using both Giesemann bulbs, can you tell me:
> 
> 1) Would you describe the Giesemann Midday as throwing a white-blue light or a white-yellow light? I'm not a big fan of yellow light and one guy in my local aquarium club wrote he thought the Middays threw a little yellowish light
> 
> [he uses Coralife 6700 and 10000K 28w (non-HO) bulbs and lets the Tek ballast overdrive them - after running out of spare bulbs he thought he'd give the Coralife ColorMax bulbs a try. He thought the pinkish Colormax in a photo looked like the GE 9325 AquaRays].
> 
> 2) How would you describe the color that the Aqua Flora throws? I ask because the visible light thrown by a bulb may not match its kelvin chart.
> 
> 3) Which bulb do you find grows plants better/faster (which is better for photosynthesis), the Aqua Flora or Midday? I've tested bulbs I've mixed separately to know their effects - my old T8s both were excellent, one was good for lateral growth and the other for height.


Hi,

1) The Midday bulb throws a very white light and the difference I saw since switching to T5HO has been tremendous. I decided on this combination based on my discussion with another member Niko in this forum. I really like the output from this bulb. As for the yellowish light, I'd have to disagree with it as I feel that it's bright white.

2) Aqua Flora throws a light pink on its own and in conjunction with the Midday does not show any significant color difference with the Midday. I use the Midday bulb in the front to minimize the impact. That said, I have not tried the Midday in the back.

3) I do know that the plants grow extremely well with this combination and Niko uses two Midday bulbs and I think he might be the right person to answer this question. One thing with the T5HO bulbs, I would recommend that you have the right amount of CO2 and fertz to maximize the growth. I've only had these bulbs for about a month and am not the right person to answer this question and will defer it to the experts.

Hope this helps.


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## niko

I don't have experience with the Giesemann AquaFlora.

So it all down to either using Giesemann Midday by itself or mixing bulbs. The Midday bulb gives the best combination of warm and cool light in one single bulb. The green plants look very green and the reds in the fish and plants are not washed out. They do not appear exagerated but rather natural, as they should be. I don't think there is a need to mix that bulb with any other.

The only way to increase the reds would be to add a warm bulb of course. But once you see the colors that the Midday reveals you will not want anything else. Unless AquaFlora really, really makes the reds pop out.

--Nikolay


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## fishstein

gravy9 said:


> 2) Aqua Flora throws a light pink on its own and in conjunction with the Midday does not show any significant color difference with the Midday. I use the Midday bulb in the front to minimize the impact. That said, I have not tried the Midday in the back.


You don't find that the pinkish Aqua Flora helps pop the red plants and fish at all?

What did you mean by "minimize the impact?"


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## gravy9

The problem I have currently is that I've been procrastinating on removing my UGF from the tank since I started it this June. I'm planning on redoing it over the next week. I would have to attribute the slow growth to the UGF. Comments?...

By "minimize the impact" I meant that putting the Midday bulb in the front to present the tank with a whiter light than the pinkish light in front. Not sure if it makes any difference at all.


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## niko

I forgot to mention something. I think it's important because I see that for whatever reasons people seem to tend to mix bulbs.

Back when I got my first Giesemann Midday bulbs I was very, very worried about their 6K rating. I thought that they would produce light that is reddish because all the stupid and now obsolete Power Compact bulbs appear reddish unless they are above 6700K. So I ordered some of the 11K Giesemann Aquablue to mix with the Midday.

That was a foolish mistake. First off the Middays don't need any supplementation with either a blue or a red bulb. Of course if someone really wants to make the reds pop they can do it. And here's what I want to warn about;

*Example set-up:*
With the individual reflectors a T5 bulb produces a rather narrow beam of light. Over one of my tanks I have one Midday bulb (front) and one Aquablue bulb (back). The distance betwen the 2 bulbs is about 2 inches. The front half of the tank appears beautifully lit (Midday bulb) and the back half (AquaBlue bulb) appears idiotic blue.

*Suggestion:*
If you want to mix the T5 bulbs DO NOT use the individual reflectors because then the light doesn't really mix. By not using the individual reflectors you will loose a lot of light but you will get what you want - tweak the appearance of the light to what you want it.

--Nikolay


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## gigi

Ok, 
Next month I" wish buy 3, Giesemann Aqua flora end 3 ,Midday T5 
You consider , to deserve this fluoroscents tubes put my aquarium plants ?
You know also better fluorescent tubes from aquarium plants?


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## fishstein

Niko, thank you for that one - I just checked the thread after returning from business travel just before ordering the bulbs - I was worried about the reflector effect and mixing bulbs - given that I'm staggering 4 4 ft. T5s with Tek II reflectors over a 5 ft. tank, think I'm going to stick with all Middays this time. Later I can always add another red-popping bulb like the Planta + reflector in the center, if I think it will makes things look that much nicer.

Thanks everyone for your very helpful advice.


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## gravy9

Any updates on your decision, fishstein?


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## Newt

I just got my 4x54w TEK fixture w/ Midday bulbs from Reef Geek. Free shipping on all items and that included the box with the brackets. Plus some free candy - Yahoo. Excellant packaging, too.
Reef Geek does offer discount prices for buying bulbs in bulk. I dont have that info with me (at work) but if anyone wants it just ask for it with a post in this thread and I will post back with the info.

I will be ordering some Planta AquaMedic bulbs thru AquaCave. Reef Geek has the AquaFlora now but the Planta has a better peak in the red and is less costly. I will wait until I read of some feedback on the Giesmann AquaFloras before trying them.

I'll be running the Planta bulbs in the middle 2 slots and the Midday on the outer 2 banks.


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## Newt

I've had my new Tek lighting (4x54w) with Midday running for over a week now and what I have observed is an increase in pearling but my Rotala indica and water primrose are not nearly as red as with the Philips CF PLL950s.


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## supersmirky

Newt - Did the Planta Aquamedic bulbs not help with the reds?


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## Newt

supersmirky said:


> Newt - Did the Planta Aquamedic bulbs not help with the reds?


I havent purchased them yet. I suspect they will.
BTW, my plants are pearling great and look real healthy and have reddened (is this a real word?) up a bit but are still not as red as with my Philips PLL950s.


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## supersmirky

so a full fixture of the Giesemann midday bulbs are working beautifully then. 

I thought about a mix, but this thread makes sense as to not do that.


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## supersmirky

For anyone considering Giesemann Midday bulbs, I just found this great site that has them for only 17.74/each

http://www.horticulturesource.com/p.../2073?osCsid=21cf0098195fd3cdcea6706b5246d0e9


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## Newt

supersmirky said:


> For anyone considering Giesemann Midday bulbs, I just found this great site that has them for only 17.74/each
> 
> http://www.horticulturesource.com/p.../2073?osCsid=21cf0098195fd3cdcea6706b5246d0e9


Yeah, but that's not the 48" which they are selling for 25 dollars and change which is not a good deal.


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## Newt

supersmirky said:


> so a full fixture of the Giesemann midday bulbs are working beautifully then.
> 
> I thought about a mix, but this thread makes sense as to not do that.


I'd hesitate to say beautifully as my red plants are not as red as they were with my CFs. I also have a GroLux standard and a Philips Aquarelle over the front half of the tank. The center 2 Midday bulbs are on for 2 hours as a burst.

I will be trying the Planta bulbs in conjunction with the Midday bulbs.


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## belladee

Newt, any update on how you like the bulbs? How are the red plants? and the combo of bulbs?


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## Newt

I just sold the TEK T5 fixture and the Midday bulbs. Althou they made the plants pearl really well I really didnt like the color and how they 'washed out' my plants.


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## ecotanker

Guys,

I decided to try what Newt was thinking about, a Giesemann Midday in combination with a Planta bulb. I ordered them from Aquacave and got the Midday and an AB Aqualine bulb.
I wrote to both Aquacave and Aquamedic, asking if the AB Aqualine is the same as the Planta bulb. They both said yes they are the same.

Max


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## Newt

I thought people were saying the Giesmann Aquaflora and Planta were the same bulb. I do not believe they are.


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## ecotanker

The Aquaflora is a different bulb from the Planta. 

But in the first few post of this threads, there was a distinction made between the planta and the aqueline bulbs. According to aquacave and Aquamedic they are the same bulb.


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## kwheeler91

ecotanker said:


> Guys,
> 
> I decided to try what Newt was thinking about, a Giesemann Midday in combination with a Planta bulb. I ordered them from Aquacave and got the Midday and an AB Aqualine bulb.
> I wrote to both Aquacave and Aquamedic, asking if the AB Aqualine is the same as the Planta bulb. They both said yes they are the same.
> 
> Max


eco did you try the midday/planta combo? i use two 54w life glo bulbs (6700k) that are midday bulbs and am thinking about getting a aquaflora or planta bulb to get a more red coloration. i wanted to know how they looked together and if the planta bulb actually made a difference in the color and if it hindered the plant growth at all.


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## EQUINOX

Real interestiong thread.
Any updates?

I'm very curious as to the effect that the D-D AquaFlora bulbs have over reddish color appearance on plants.

Anyone knows the Kelvin rate for the D-D AquaFlora bulbs?
It's not written anywhere.

Thanks.


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## Newt

EQUINOX said:


> Anyone knows the Kelvin rate for the D-D AquaFlora bulbs?
> It's not written anywhere.


Plant Gro bulbs rarely, if ever, have a kelvin rating applied. Plants dont care what the kelvin is anyway. Its the blue and red light in the spectral output of the light source that matters.


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## bosmahe1

subscribed


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## EQUINOX

Newt said:


> Plant Gro bulbs rarely, if ever, have a kelvin rating applied. Plants dont care what the kelvin is anyway. Its the blue and red light in the spectral output of the light source that matters.


Thanks.
I always thought that the Kelvin rate represents the color (given the term "color Temp.") or is somehow interpreted into a "Light Chart" (or histogram? Here is the link to your explanation).

I need help deciding what light bulb to add to a my high-tech.
It is a 240L Juwel Rio that already has Juwel Nature and Juwel Day (T5's 54W)
The choices are:

Juwel Colour (The practical advantage of this is that it fits better since it's shorter. This is also the mid-cost)

Giesemann's AquaFlora (expensive alternative)

Or Osram Flora/Sylvania GroLux which is a plain non-pretentious bulb (cheapest alternative).

Which would be the best choise?
Thanks.


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## Newt

Go with the Planta by AquaMedic available at Aquacave.

http://www.aquacave.com/planta-t5-lamps-by-aquamedic-982.html


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## EQUINOX

Newt said:


> Go with the Planta by AquaMedic available at Aquacave.
> 
> http://www.aquacave.com/planta-t5-lamps-by-aquamedic-982.html


I live outside the US (Israel) and so i'd perfer avoiding from shipping such fragile item.. Is it that much better than all three other bulbs?
The three options were the ones available to me.
Thanks.


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## Newt

The Giesemann Aquaflora is supposed to be used with their Midday bulb. I did not care for the Midday bulb on its own. I did not try it with the Aquaflora. 

Is the GroLux a T5 bulb. The spectral output graph I posted was for the old T12. I do not belive the 
T5 has the same characteristics.

I do not know the Juwels.


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## EQUINOX

Newt said:


> The Giesemann Aquaflora is supposed to be used with their Midday bulb. I did not care for the Midday bulb on its own. I did not try it with the Aquaflora.
> 
> Is the GroLux a T5 bulb. The spectral output graph I posted was for the old T12. I do not belive the
> T5 has the same characteristics.
> 
> I do not know the Juwels.


A pair of Giesemann T5's, 54W, cost here about 110$.. Is it worth it?
Regarding the GroLux, yes. It's T5. Comes in all regular sizes and wattage outputs.


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## bosmahe1

EQUINOX said:


> A pair of Giesemann T5's, 54W, cost here about 110$.. Is it worth it?
> Regarding the GroLux, yes. It's T5. Comes in all regular sizes and wattage outputs.


Can you get these in Israel? I use them in combination with the Giesemann Mid Days and get excellent growth. The GE's look a little bluer so I use them to balance out the yellow of the Giesemann's. In my opinion, Giesemann's are good but I wouldn't pay $110.00 per pair.

http://www.aquariumspecialty.com/ca...=2623&osCsid=b9bb42dca5f9881d7002c95022fa8b58


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## bosmahe1

A link to PAR comparisons of T5 bulbs popular with Reef folks:

http://mail.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=918935

What I thought was interesting, if you look at the PAR numbers for Giesemann and GE.


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## EQUINOX

bosmahe1 said:


> Can you get these in Israel? I use them in combination with the Giesemann Mid Days and get excellent growth.
> 
> _Which ones were you refering to? the GroLux or the Giesemann_
> 
> The GE's look a little bluer so I use them to balance out the yellow of the Giesemann's. In my opinion, Giesemann's are good but I wouldn't pay $110.00 per pair.
> 
> _If by GE you mean General Electric - we don't have these here_
> 
> http://www.aquariumspecialty.com/ca...=2623&osCsid=b9bb42dca5f9881d7002c95022fa8b58


Thanks.


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## bosmahe1

I would look at anything that is a full spectrum with peaks in the blue and red spectrums listed from 5000 k to 10000 k. Unfortunately, most bulbs don't list PAR, just lumens and CRI which doesn't help to much. The kelvin rating doesn't really tell you to how the bulbs will look. Sometimes a bulb in the 6000 k range will look yellow, giesemanns for example and sometimes they will look a little blue General Electric as an example. Do you have hydroponics stores and websites accessible to you? They might still be less expensive than some of the aquarium bulbs.


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## EQUINOX

bosmahe1, thank for the reply.
Unfortunately, hydroponics isn't very popular to have a lot of stores here (though I reckon in the near future it'd be wide-spread) which an abundance of supplies to also fit the aquarists lighting demands as to T5's (MH they have plenty).
I would keep my head up for any fluorescent tube with a PAR (what does it stand for?) which has high and wide spikes on blue and red. 

Thanks.


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## bosmahe1

EQUINOX said:


> bosmahe1, thank for the reply.
> Unfortunately, hydroponics isn't very popular to have a lot of stores here (though I reckon in the near future it'd be wide-spread) which an abundance of supplies to also fit the aquarists lighting demands as to T5's (MH they have plenty).
> I would keep my head up for any fluorescent tube with a PAR (what does it stand for?) which has high and wide spikes on blue and red.
> 
> Thanks.


PAR stands for Photosynthetically Active Radiation.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Photosynthetically_active_radiation


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## Newt

I was running a 4 x54w TEK with Midday bulbs. I found it washed out the colors of my fish and especially plants and did have a blue/yellow appearance. They did make the pants pearl very well but also brought on GDA on many of my plants. I sold the fixture and went back to T8 lighting combo with GroLux as dawn/dusk.


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## EQUINOX

Are you implying that maybe what you should have done is mix different lights? Let's say Planta/Aquaflora?


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## Newt

Looking back I think I should have tried the Midday with a Planta or Aquaflora, yes.
I also didnt need 4x54w for a 75. I could have gotten away with 2x54w and still used my dawn/dusk grolux lighting or some other N.O. bulbs.


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## fish dork

I'm now using Aqualine Plant Grow (supposed to be Aquamedic Planta... nother long story), mixed with the Geisemann midday. I like the colour of the plants and the fish and growth/pearling is good.


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## Riverboa

Thanks for the thread. I was running Midday only and was happy with the results (I bought the fixture and Middays from Newt ) I didn't feel that it was 'washed out' thought my wife commented that the lights remind her of hospital (I took that as "I don't like the lights") so I went out and bought a couple of Aquaflora based on the information I read on this thread and few other sources.

Here are a couple of shots for comparison.
Personally, I am happy with the Midday and AquaFlora combo, they brought out the rock and cardinals more.

Tank on 9/26 *4 x Midday*









Tank on 10/11 *2 x AquaFlora + 2 x Midday*









*-Riverboa*


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## Newt

Looking good Riverboa.
It really washed out the colors for me. I may of had the fixture too close to the tank.
You should really try the AquaMedic Planta bulbs. They are available from AquaCave.


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## EQUINOX

Riverboa, fantastic mate!
I'm sure that one reason the tank looks better with the AquaFlora is that the Eleocharis acicularis grew so well.
At the short time prior and after the use of the AquaFlora, did you feel that it had any change other than the change of colors?
The growth or behavior of plants?


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## Riverboa

Newt, Equinox, thanks for the comments.

Newt, I might give the Planta bulbs a try once I am through with this sets.

Equinox, the Aquaflora has only been there for 3 days. So far, I did not detect any noticeable difference in growth rate or growth behavior in any of the plants.

*-Riverboa*


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## EQUINOX

Hey,
I thorough read the entire thread from beginning to end after wising up from Newt's excellent sticky post ("Lighting Spectrum and Photosythesis").
I have done all this because I'm seriously considering ordering T5's from AquaCave.

A few issues:

1.	Newt, the spectral output graph of the Aquaflora's red spike is just a little under 650 from what I can tell by looking at the graph show on their website. Are you sure it's at 625? Having witnessed the Planta's red spike at 650-660 (as you've mentioned and which I agree on) would there still be a favor towards the Planta (please take into account the blue spikes as well)?

2.	The AB AquaLine's Plant Grow by AquaMedic is supposedly the Planta (probably what I get if I order that planta) - ecotanker says (and fish dork mentions too) that both aquacave and aquamedic claim it is the exact bulb as the Planta. Still, as Newt suggests, the spectral output of these are *different *and if I'm not mistaken the Kelvin rate as well. It'd be a shame if it is true, and Plantas are no longer manufactured.

3.	Having read so many praises regarding the Midday by Giesemann, I'm wondering if maybe just Midday would suffice (I already have warm-white and cool-white)? I'm interested in healthy, good-looking plants and I think that would make fish look good as well.

What do you think, guys?


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## Newt

I wrote that article a long time ago and I'd change a few things if I was to post it today. Especially in regards to T5HO.
Anyway, there has been a lot of back and forth on a few bulbs. For a time it was the Planta was the same bulb as the Aquaflora; and there were lines of people who said they knew it was true. Now it seems as if its between the Planta and and the PlantGro. I dont believe any of them nor do I have proof other than the spectral output graphs provided for each bulb.

The graph I usually see for the Aquafloras is in the attachment below. I havent loaded it to my photobucket yet. Its from the Giesemann website. I buy lots of bulbs to compare and experiment. I can say that the Planta has a truer red then the Aquaflora and they are less expensive. I have seen only a few bulbs that have true red emissions (650nm) and that is the Sylvania GroLux Std, the GE Freshwater and the Hagen AquaGlo (both of which are weaker intensity than the GroLux) - I'm sure there are a few others.

I'd put my $$$ on the Planta.


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## Newt

The attachment didnt take in the post above.


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## EQUINOX

He Newt.
I'm guessing that photosynthesis processes haven't changed since then? 

Anyway, it's remarkably funny of you to mention the Sylvania as an excelling bulb at red emissions since it's available to me here at my home-state.
Do you have a spectral output better than what I found here?










BTW, it appears Sylvania has no info on that bulb on their site.

Thanks.


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## Newt

That doesnt look like the T12 GroLux bulbs. I think they have a T5 that is not as good, in some respects but better as it is T5. Looks like it has a much bigger/stronger green spike/emission and european.




























How are these? They are for the T12 bulbs. Great dawn/dusk lighting when used together.


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## EQUINOX

That may be so.. Nowhere on the net have i found official info regarding Sylvania Gro-Lux and Osram Flora (Sylvania is Osram's daughter firm).

I might buy these.. :doubt:

BTW, what are the implications of such green spike?
And what makes you think these are European?


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## Newt

They make a few of the GroLux in T8. The T12 and T8s are made in Canada.
They do make a T5 but it is only in Europe as far as I know.
http://www.aquaristikshop.com/e_Produktinformationen/Sylvania-Gro-Lux-T5.htm

If you click on your link the web address is dot de. I belive this means Denmark. Also, if you click on the link Technical Data at the bottom of that page you get wattages of the various bulbs. They seem to be the European wattages.

I dont know what length you need but if you want the T12s then you can get a good price for them Here:
http://saveonlighting.com/p-4702-f40groaqrp-40-watt-t12-gro-lux-aquarium-fluorescent-tube.aspx

http://saveonlighting.com/p-4703-f40groaqwsrp-40-watt-warm-white-t12-fluorescent-tube.aspx

*Get your Planta bulbs here:*
http://www.aquacave.com/planta-t5-lamps-by-aquamedic-982.html


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## EQUINOX

What i need is a T5 lamp, 54W. 115Cm (which is 48")
I have a T5 carton casing that comes with the Sylvania GroLux.
The bulb itself was given to me by a fellow hobbyist but it was broken.

I went ahead and read every detail I could.
It's made in Germany.
The spectral output graph is very small and hard to read.
It's different than what you've posted here (confirming what you've thought). I'd photo it and upload a photo soon.
In the meantime I can say that it has a very high (highest on the chart, reaching 100% on the Y axis) spike in the blue zone (440-460), a second high spike at the green zone (540-560, at 70%) and a third and forth spike at 630 and 660 at 25%.

I am a bit disappointed about the red emissions. I hope it performs better.
I might buy it soon.
I gave up on ordering from Aquacave as the shipment costs nearly 200$..


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## Newt

$200
where are you located? UK


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## EQUINOX

Nope, Israel eace:

Anyway, other light bulbs have come out as optional after a trip to a store i haven't been too, today.

I have the next bulbs available to me:
1.	Dennerly (are you familiar? Really well-known firm in Europe) color & color +
2.	Juwel Colour (also eally well-known firm in Europe)
3.	Sylvania GroLux (we've already discussed)

4.	Hagen Power-Glo (18000 Kelvin)

I can also the store him to bring me other bulbs&#8230; Hagen has a bulb called Flora grow. I wonder&#8230; You know anything about it?


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## Newt

The Hagens tend to be pricey and are a bit underpowered.


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## EQUINOX

Thanks for the chart (where do you get these anyway?! )

Seems like both flora glo and power glo do well at the red emissions (~ 640-660), flora glo even better *but* at the lower blue emissions, ~430-453 (which are more important for red plants!) they do poorly..


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## Newt

Not sure where you ca get them.
Blue is what red plants need as the red is reflected.


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## EQUINOX

exactly! And That is what surprised me the most! Regardless of the prise do you find these hagens better than the sylvania?


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## Newt

No. They dont have the intensity of the GroLux and they cost much more than what you can find the GroLux for.


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## EQUINOX

Okay.
I'll probably buy the Sylvania GroLux. Still pondering over the Dennerle Trocal Special Plant.
I can't get any info regarding it's specifications (Lux. PAR etc..).
Newt, could you try and help me with it?


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## Newt

http://www.hobbyfish.net/index.php?productID=4001615029123


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## EQUINOX

Hey guys!
interesting updates on my quest for new light bulb.
As this thread has overgrew with info irrelevant to the original intention, I chose to open a new thread to everyone's convenience.

Follow Me.


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## gigi

I"us from 7 months Giesmann Aqua flora mixt with midday 
Is a best light can I"Use from 15 yeras ago 
intensity is high ,in comparation with same bulbs 
Lose intensity is not mor 5% after 7 months use
sylvania gro lux end else tubes lose mor much intensity in times for us 
end change more quicley about 6-9 months 
plants grow best


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## EQUINOX

Thanks for sharing.


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## gigi

This is My aquariu with Giesmann light 

End here is a same aquarium of course whith giesemann light


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## Newt

For anyone who cares:
I've been searching the web for sources of Aqua Medic Planta bulbs with no luck. I called Aqua Medic NA and spoke with Sean in Customer Service. *The PLANTA bulb is no longer made.*


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