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8 bulb t5 with single reflector brighter than 6 bulb with individuals?

R

REEFLECTIONS

i know that individual reflectors deliver alot more light into the tank but..... what about this? i would get 2 of these fixtures for my 72" 125g.

6x39w 6 bulb 36" t5 total of 468 watts for probably $350 per fixture total of $700(but with individual reflectors)

or 4 of these fixtures all attached

4x39w 4 bulb 36" t5 total of 624 watts but this would actually be 4 fixtures with one reflector per 4 bulbs. these only cost $89 per fixture for a total of $356 on aquatraders.com by far the cheaper alternative to brighten up this tank. which will deliver more total light into the tank?
educated guesses or experienced opinions please?
 
Y

ynotme4886

Until I switched to a full 72in fixture I had a similar setup to your option #1

The issues you are going to have are simple.....if you use 2 fixtures over a 6ft tank you are going to need to build some sort of center brace to hold them up and be even with the top rim of the tank.

With the aquatraders lights they flip up so I'm not sure how you would mount that type of leg in the middle of the tank.

If you are gonna hang from the ceiling then the whole point is mute.

I used 2 nova pro 36" on mine and built a plexi bracket to fit in the middle of my 125.

Here is what it looked like
p1915518.jpg


p1918709.jpg


I still have the brackets in my extra bedroom and if you want them you are more than welcome to them.

They fit great on a 125 AGA and should work with anything that has normal types of legs

I like the individ reflectors too
 
R

REEFLECTIONS

thanks for the offer on the legs, but at this point i'm pretty sure they're gonna be hung, and i'll splice some of the plugs so there are not so many
 
Y

ynotme4886

I live in an older mobile home so hanging the lights was not an option for me.

So I built bracket :D

The makers of the Nova lights sells refurbs on Ebay direct from the manufacturer at great prices. No 36" t-5 units listed now and occasionally they list a 12 bulb 72" unit but none there today either.....you hafta watch for them and hope to snag a deal at the min price.

They only have the 72" outer orbit halide fixtures listed right now.....think they have a 3-150w version (what I have) and a 3-250w version with t-5's
 
R

REEFLECTIONS

wanna stay away from halides, and i have had a 4 bulb 48" fixture on there for almost 2 months since my upgrade. i have to make a move and soon. how much do the refirshed fixtures usually cost (about) cause in all honesty, within the next year i will probably rip all the guts outta this thing and retro it all into a canopy that i'll build
 
N

njstillwell

Guest
How about buying the cheaper fixture taking it apart and then using the componets and buying new reflectors.Make it a retrofit kit..?
 
R

REEFLECTIONS

that'll be the eventual plan, maybe a year out or so. but at like $20/reflector, thants like $320 right there. i just am curious which would be better in the short run
 
R

REEFLECTIONS

i remember a discussion you were involved in a while back ed about the over driven t5 bulbs, i'd like to avoid it for this application simply because i'd like to replace the 12 or 16 bulbs depending on what i go with, as seldom as possible. thanks ynot. i have to see if the extra funds could be scraped up, but the $7 shipping may do alot to equalize the final costs. thanks for looking that up for me. was liking the thought of 600+ watts. but i have to consider budget on this one
 
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