Coralife T5 Light Fixtures

[RD.]

I picked one of these up at the RD Petland this weekend, and for anyone considering one of these low profile T5 lights, IMO they are a mighty impressive little unit. Great if you are lacking in space, as they are only 3.25" wide & 1" tall, but they put out some serious light. The 48" twin tube fixture costs $99.00, and comes with both tubes included.

Here's a pic of a 125 gallon tank with two 36" lights. (not my tank)

I actually find that on a 125 the 48" fixture throws enough light for my tastes. YMMV

[tc51]

I picked one of these up at the RD Petland this weekend, and for anyone considering one of these low profile T5 lights, IMO they are a mighty impressive little unit. Great if you are lacking in space, as they are only 3.25" wide & 1" tall, but they put out some serious light. The 48" twin tube fixture costs $99.00, and comes with both tubes included.

Here's a pic of a 125 gallon tank with two 36" lights. (not my tank)

I actually find that on a 125 the 48" fixture throws enough light for my tastes. YMMV

Very nice set up Neil I like the lighting, worth looking into for my 187. It makes your T.P.S. substrate look really light

[Were are the comps]

Tom.

I picked one of these up at the RD Petland this weekend, and for anyone considering one of these low profile T5 lights, IMO they are a mighty impressive little unit. Great if you are lacking in space, as they are only 3.25" wide & 1" tall, but they put out some serious light. The 48" twin tube fixture costs $99.00, and comes with both tubes included.

Here's a pic of a 125 gallon tank with two 36" lights. (not my tank)

I actually find that on a 125 the 48" fixture throws enough light for my tastes. YMMV

Very nice set up Neil I like the lighting, worth looking into for my 187. It makes your T.P.S. substrate look really light

[Were are the comps]

Tom.

Sorry double post messed-up.

Tom

[RD.]

Here's a pic of a 125 gallon tank with two 36" lights. (not my tank)

[vic]

Neil:

I am in the process of augmenting the lighting on my 125. Do you have a photo of your tank so that I can get an idea of the outcome? I have been researching the concept of Compact Flourescents in a DIY project. I am concerned about the heat level at this point.

Cheers;

[tc51]

Here's a pic of a 125 gallon tank with two 36" lights. (not my tank)

Whoops

Tom

Edited February 13, 2006 by tc51

[RD.]

Vic - Unfortunately I'm still waiting for Rob, aka Bob, aka Robert to complete my custom stand, so I don't have any pics of my 125. Unless you want to see a pic of it empty.

I think that if you were to add one of these 48" lights to your new tank, with the 2 lights that it came with, you'd have plenty of light. With two 36" T5 lights it would be lit up like the 4th of july.

BTW - while I don't know what the CRI is of these Coralife tubes, the color of the fish when I had this over my 55 gallon was pretty much dead on. This is something that I am VERY picky about, I don't want yellow fish with an orange cast to them, or blue fish that look washed out. To my eyes the CRI is quite high.

[RD.]

BTW Vic - Petland has a generous no questions asked return policy (30 days) so you could always try the light out, and return it if it's not what you're looking for. Just a thought ........

[fatpuffer]

Anyway to mount that in the a canopy lid (inside) without taking it apart?

The canopy that I bout has four screw on bulbs (24 x 2 and they are in four corners covered with white light diffusers. The only space is in the middle of the tank 36 inche 5-6 inch wide strip. The light would be great if I can mount on the inside lid cover of the canopy....any ideas?

Js

[Toirtis]

I agree...I love both the fresh and saltwater versions....and a set of two (so four tubes total) is fantastic on a 55 planted tank.

[midgetwaiter]

I'm having trouble picturing the canopy you have Jonah but you could mount these fixtures pretty easy. You could do it with zip ties even.

I's like to add that when I put one of the 24" salt fixtures over my 12 gal I was getting halide style shimmers in the tank. I had originally planned to put 2 of them over my 15 but it turned out to be too much, things are going quite well with just one.

[finaddict]

Neil, what k rating r they???

Daylight 6700k or 10000k ??

just wondering??

[RD.]

The daylight is 6700K, the other bulb is referred to as a "colormax full spectrum", and is along the lines of an actinic. Nice combo IMO.

Coralife also sells a number of other T5 bulbs, including a 10K, which are listed here:

http://www.esuweb.com/subcategory.asp?ESUS...&RelationID=112

Edited February 14, 2006 by RD.

[RD.]

BTW - this is a great read on T5 lighting.

http://www.lrc.rpi.edu/programs/nlpip/ligh...t5/abstract.asp

A couple of key points is the life of these bulbs compared to T10 & T12 bulbs, as well as their light output as they age. If your lights are set for 12 hrs per day via a timer, you should be able to easily get 4 years out of a T5.

How long do T5 lamps last before they burn out?

Lamp manufacturers claim that T5 and T5 high output (T5 HO) lamps last 20,000 hours (Philips Lighting 2001/2002; OSRAM SYLVANIA 2002; GE Lighting 2001/2002). This average rated lamp life is measured at temperatures between 15°C (59°F) and 50°C (122°F) when operated on electronic programmed start ballasts on a three-hour switching cycle—3 hours on and 20 minutes off—and designated as the number of hours after which 50% of the lamps fail. The 20,000-hour lamp life of T5 lamps is the same as the lamp life of most T8 lamps, although newly developed prolonged-life T8 lamps have lives of 4,000 or 10,000 hours longer than T5 lamps. Lamps operated on longer burning cycles will have longer life spans. Shorter burning cycles (frequent switching on and off) reduce lamp life. Use of ballasts that do not meet lamp requirements set forth by the lamp manufacturers may also result in reduced lamp life.

Also, as you can see by the diagram in the link below T5 bulbs maintain their light output over their lifetime much better than T12's, as well as T8's.

http://www.lrc.rpi.edu/programs/nlpip/ligh...rs/lat5/pc9.asp

Do T5 lamps have better lumen maintenance than T8 or T12 lamps?

Lumen maintenance refers to how a lamp maintains its light output over its lifetime. Both T5 and T5 high output (T5 HO) lamps maintain a higher light output than T12 and most T8 lamps. Manufacturers claim that T5 and T5 HO lamps retain more than 95% of light output at 8,000 burning hours (40% of rated average life). An improved phosphor coating reduces mercury absorption, which is one of the main causes of lamp lumen depreciation, leading to a higher lumen maintenance value. Also, because the T5 is smaller in diameter, it has a much smaller surface area. Manufacturers use only tri-phosphors in the T5, compared to the T8 and T12, in which there may be a mix of tri-phosphors with halo-phosphors. Figure 9 illustrates lumen maintenance curves for T5, T8, and T12 lamps (see How long do T5 lamps last before they burn out? ). In Figure 9, T12 lamps are labeled as "CW/HO," which stands for cool white high output.

[Golfnut]

This part that confused me, but makes me think that T8 is still better...

http://www.lrc.rpi.edu/programs/nlpip/ligh...s/lat5/pc10.asp

The T8 operates better at 20-25 degress as opposed to the T5.

-Andrew

Edited February 14, 2006 by Golfnut

[RD.]

I don't believe that it's quite that simple. While ambient temperature is typically defined as room temperature, one has to also take into account the temp of the 'room' where the fl. tubes are being housed.

If you've ever grabbed hold of a fl. tube that's been running for a few hours, you'll know what I mean. Even a small 18" T8 will become very hot within a very short period of time.

In the case of the Coralife T5 fixtures, the tubes are sealed along the bottom of the fixture with a piece of clear acrylic, and while this is not 100% air tight, I suspect that it raises the 'ambient temperature' by a significant amount once these two 28w bulbs warm up. I don't have a temp probe small enough to fit in between the acrylic seal & the housing, but when I place my hand against the outside of the acrylic sheet, it becomes rather warm to the touch within a very short period of time. I don't believe that it would take very long for the temp 'inside' the fixture to reach the 90F range. This is why they state:

The higher optimal temperature of T5 lamps may allow T5 lamps to perform better in closed luminaires than open luminaires

The acrylic sheet also serves as an extra safety precaution, should a tube crack over time due to the high temps and/or age.

Edited February 14, 2006 by RD.