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goincrzy
04-01-2009, 04:16 PM
hi im new at this stuff and was looking into a new light system for my 55 gallon tank, what is the difference between a power compact light that has 4 bulbs rated at 65 each for a value of 265 compared to a t5 fixture and bulbs??? i currenty have an old florecent light setup that uses t12 bulbs... i want to get some xenias and other corals but i know i need the lighing to support them, can someone tell me if the power compact would be good for the xenias??? thank you

Phurst
04-01-2009, 04:47 PM
Power compacts over a 55 is not going to cut it I'm afraid. While 1 watt is 1 watt no matter where it's coming from, what we're really after is PAR (photosynthetically available radiation) and PUR (photosynthetically usable radiation) T5s have much higher PAR and PUR values than PCs.

rayme07
04-01-2009, 07:23 PM
I agree T5's are way better than PC's

Carty
04-01-2009, 08:31 PM
T5 > power compacts

fat walrus
04-02-2009, 03:16 AM
T5 is a diameter. Most Powercompacts are T5 also. So why would a T5 be superior to a powercompact that is really just TWO T5s side-by side?.

Is the T5s blessed with some technology that is impossible in a powercompact bulb? New phosphors? No. More rare phosphors? No. Some kind of new super glass tube? No. More watts per inch? No. Newer tech? NO, not by a LONG SHOT!

T5s have been around before most of us. We did not think of them as T5s, they were just the flourescent light bulb in your desk lamp before the age of halogens. They were the lights under the kitchen cabinets, and the lights in glass display cases.

The one and true advantage IMHO is really that they were able to take advantage of reflector technologies.

Carty
04-02-2009, 07:19 AM
so like I said... T5 > power compacts

ryandlf
04-02-2009, 08:58 AM
T5's are much better than power compacts. I am no scientist so I can't explain the exact reasons, but I do know that from experience, I am able to keep much more light dependent corals under T5's than I ever was able to under PC's.

fat walrus
04-03-2009, 03:30 AM
T5's are much better than power compacts. I am no scientist so I can't explain the exact reasons, but I do know that from experience, I am able to keep much more light dependent corals under T5's than I ever was able to under PC's.
And what experience might that be? Please understand that I am not being confrontational, but would like to hear what you experienced.

saltaddict
04-05-2009, 07:01 AM
T5 is a diameter. Most Powercompacts are T5 also. So why would a T5 be superior to a powercompact that is really just TWO T5s side-by side?.

Is the T5s blessed with some technology that is impossible in a powercompact bulb? New phosphors? No. More rare phosphors? No. Some kind of new super glass tube? No. More watts per inch? No. Newer tech? NO, not by a LONG SHOT!

T5s have been around before most of us. We did not think of them as T5s, they were just the flourescent light bulb in your desk lamp before the age of halogens. They were the lights under the kitchen cabinets, and the lights in glass display cases.

The one and true advantage IMHO is really that they were able to take advantage of reflector technologies.

If the reflector is the big difference then wouldn't PC be fine with individual reflectors?

poppin_fresh
04-05-2009, 08:50 PM
The problem with PCs is that are in a U shape which makes it difficult to reflect the light into the tank without more of it ending up back on the bulb itself.

Its not so much of watts/par/etc. problem but rather the geometry of the bulbs. T5s are simply easier to get more of the bulbs light into the tank, which I'm pretty sure is where we want it.

Carty
04-06-2009, 02:21 AM
...that and T5's are smaller meaning you can fit more of them meaning more light

a single PC reflector is 5 inches wide
a single t5 reflector is 2 inches wide

so you could either go with 2 PC's or 5 T5's... easy decision

T5 life = 18-24 months
PC life = 6-10 months

T5 price = $20ish
PC price = $25ish

and the difference in light...

4x54w T5 = 1400 µE
4x96w PC = 1000 µE

oh, and there is the saving on the power bill

UTCreefer
04-08-2009, 12:44 AM
.T5's for me too. I grow all kinds of SPS with them.