# T5HO or Power Compacts?



## A_Shea (Jun 2, 2007)

Im having trouble deciding on which to go with. I want the most intensity for the money. What i had in mind was either 2x55w power compacts or 2x54w T5HO. i dont know which would be better for my 55g tank. i already have 2x55w power compacts on there but want more. i have never had the T5's before so i dont know if i should go with them or not. Could any one give me some advice. i dont want to spend alot of money. The 2x54w T5HO fixture with bulbs is $100. thats about what i want to spend. maybe a little more.
Any help would be great
Thanks!


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## Avalon (Mar 7, 2005)

I think you'll find T5HO's a better choice if intensity is what you're looking for. T5HO's will have less restrike and better coverage over the length of the tank, so based on that alone, you will get more light heading downward than your typical PC. The other factor that plays a role in a T5's effectiveness is their reflectors. The better the reflector, the better the light intensity. The tiny 5/8" diameter allows each bulb to have it's own reflector instead of sharing a reflector (thus creating a restrike issue). The reflectors can also allow for better design--one of the best reflectors is the Tek-Light type, with it's 9 bend design and slightly hammered finish.

Hope this helps!


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## spypet (Jul 27, 2007)

Thinking practically for a moment; the deciding factor may be the width of the fixture, since a 48" 55gal tank is less than a foot wide. while T5HO would be better, you simply won't have the space for their wider reflectors, so I would simply get another one of the same 2x65w PCF fixtures you have already as dealing with bulbs will go simpler if you stay with the same fixture type throughout. Also keep in mind that with such strong light so close to the tank sides you are likely to get a lot of green spot algae on your tank glass unless you shorten your lighting period each day.


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## ruki (Jul 4, 2006)

CF are good for space constrained places.

For longer places, the advantage of a good reflector with T5 should win over CF.


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## A_Shea (Jun 2, 2007)

Thanks alot that helps out quite a bit


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## Dantra (May 15, 2007)

Standard 48" 55gal. tank is 12 1/2" actually about 13" wide = over a foot wide. I just measured mine. I purchased the Tek lights T5HO for my 55 gal. tank but haven't had the time to get my aquarium up and running yet.

If you intend to upgrade your tank to lets say a 75 or 90 gallon in the future then go with the T5HO for sure, which is what I am looking to do down the line. One less item you need to (re)purchase. Like I mentioned above I purchased the Tek Fixture. One reason was because you can use different individual bulbs to achieve whatever light combination you like.

Hope this helps :thumbsup:
Dan


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## A_Shea (Jun 2, 2007)

How much do those lights cost because i might just get rid of the compacts all together if they are a decent price and get T5HO?


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## ianmoede (Jan 17, 2005)

T'5 get my vote. They run alot cooler in my experience.


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## ingg (Apr 8, 2007)

Not Tek by a long shot, single reflector for two bulbs, but I'm pretty happy with my 36" version of this light over my 30 long:

http://www.petmountain.com/product/light-fixtures/512774/48-2x54w-1129-.html

$78 bucks, makes it tough to beat in my mind.

Here is an upgrade, workhorse ballasts and individual reflectors:

http://www.catalinaaquarium.com/index.php?cPath=71_136&page=2

$125 - I'd call them, as they build the fixtures, I'd think they may talk about switching bulbs for freshwater use...


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## A_Shea (Jun 2, 2007)

i like the $78 bucks thats pretty nice but that second web adress did come up. could you post that again please? im very interested


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## A_Shea (Jun 2, 2007)

And do all of those at pet mountain come with bulbs. i couldnt find anything that said they did?


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## timewalker03 (Feb 27, 2007)

I love my t5ho's very much and get good light coverage over my 55g with them I have the 4x54w and they do not add heat to the water. I have done some experimenting with them to come to that conclusion. I purchased mine from www.drsfostersmith.com and they came with 10000k daylight bulbs and 2 460k actinc bulbs which was the only down side. I bought 2 6500k and planta bulbs for about $40 and now have them in over the others, but I also have 2 backup lights in the 10000k bulbs in case of emergency. I would suggest t5hos


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## ingg (Apr 8, 2007)

The Novas come with bulbs, and the 2xbulb fixtures are available in freshwater versions. For some reason they only do the 4x in salt.

For the second link, go to catalinaaquarium.com

to lighting

to solar t5

they also include bulbs, but are standard 1 10k and one actinic, call them to see if they'd switch it out, as they make the fixtures.


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## A_Shea (Jun 2, 2007)

would 2x54w be enough or would i need 4x54w for my 55g? i have mostly stem plants; glosso, hemanthius, etc... they all grow well, with new groth every where... Just not as well as they should.. 
thanks for all the help by the way


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## rs79 (Dec 7, 2004)

They're the same thing. PC's are just U-shaped T5's. Get what's on sale.


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## ruki (Jul 4, 2006)

It's a bit difficult to compare T5HO with power compact.

T5HO is a standard format. The tubes all have the same shape and conector pins and use standard ballasts. You can look up information as to the general efficiency of the bulb and it comes from Europe where conserving energy has been important for decades. These bulbs are most efficient in a 35 C room (something like a aquarium fixture) as compared to standard bulbs which are most efficient at 25 C.

Power Compact is a generic term for a large variety of tube shapes and connector pins. Many of the bulbs have special marketing claims about the phosphors and sometimes their ballasts. But, it's very difficult to find information to back up these claims. And the special pins limit competition so it can be more difficult to get a good price for replacement tubes.

Power Compact is excellent for upgrading a small omni directional incandescent bulb, but not so good at replacing linear tubes where you want to send the light down one direction. The bends in the tubes do mess up reflector efficiency when one wants to send light straight down into the tank. Light is also wasted by sending it from one part of the tube to another part of the tube across the bends. Really short tubes aren't that efficient, so for small aquariums the greater efficiency of a longer tube may more than compensate for the bent tube limitations of PC.


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## Newt (Apr 1, 2004)

Ruki,

What's a good fixture for T5HO 48" lighting that sits on the tank (yet could be suspended from above)???


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## ruki (Jul 4, 2006)

Newt said:


> Ruki,
> 
> What's a good fixture for T5HO 48" lighting that sits on the tank (yet could be suspended from above)???


TekLight is probably the standard well known good one. I got mine from reefgeek.org.


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## goalcreas (Nov 20, 2006)

GET A TEK
2 x 54 would be way enough for your 55 gallon.
Go onto e-bay, find the seller SEEDS
contact him and wait for an e-mail.
Then talk to him outside of e-bay 
he will make you a smoking deal and it will come with bulbs.

only thing is that the 2 lamp fixtures are not all that much more inexpensive then the 4 lamps.
I would bet that you would only pay $30 more for the 4 lamp, so up to you.

I know a guy that got his tek, the 4 lamp with 4 GE bulbs from this guy for $250 shipped.

The nova has a big down side, only one reflector for all bulbs.
after you do a bulb swap on it, you will be over the $250 for the tek.
only thing left to do with the tek once you get it is hang it where the nova comes with legs, but it is pretty easy and cheap to hang it.
if you like I can give you links to a thread showing how.


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## goalcreas (Nov 20, 2006)

sorry I stand corrected

Seller is SEEDS ETC

here is a link to a thread with info on how to get this deal.

http://aape.naturalaquariums.com/forum/index.php?topic=1627.0

you might need to register for AAPE to qualify for the deal.


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## Newt (Apr 1, 2004)

I'd get a 4 lamp fixture as I have a 75gal tank and will be upgrading to a 300gal (8' x 2' x 2.5') in the future.

Are the reflectors good? I hear the gull wing style is good at distributing the light.


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## goalcreas (Nov 20, 2006)

The new Tek 2 reflectors are supposed to be the best, I think over 95% maybe even 98% (I would have to check again) efficiency. Even the old were above 90% and for a 75 more then enough.
Now for a 300, probably still enough with all 4 going (or maybe you want to up to a 6 or 8 lamp fix, more money, but more light) probably will work, but might not get light into the ends of that one.

Might think about two of the 3 foot 4 lamp fixtures and then you should cover the whole tank fine, or side by side 4 footers, since the 3 foots are not all that much cheaper, if any, then the 4 foot.


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## Newt (Apr 1, 2004)

The 300 would need another set. Maybe use the CFs I have along with the HO fixture.


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## skewlboy (Jun 9, 2006)

Probably haven't found the right post - maybe a sticky is needed....

But as far as watts per gallon on t5 - 
How many WPG are rec w/ t5 for all 3 types (NO, HO, and VHO) 

thanks


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## Newt (Apr 1, 2004)

See the sticky in this forum: The General Rules of Lighting......


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