55W versus 65W Coralife

MatthewJ

MatthewJ

Member
I recently purchased a Coralife 65W 10,000k bulb and a 65W Coralife actinic bulb to try in the RSM 130. Visually, the actinic spectrum is much more noticeable. They don't appear brighter to my eye. I've got them installed and will have to wait and see how the corals do. The bulbs are slightly larger in diameter, and just barely fit in the metal snaps. Length wise, they match pretty well. Here are the bulbs I purchased (I had to go through the painful process of getting marinedepot to pricematch drsfostersmith.com, but they've since lowered the price).

http://www.marinedepot.com/ps_ViewItem~action~view~idProduct~PC5653~idCategory~FILTBUPCSPSWDB~category~Daylight___White-65_Watt-Straight_Pin-Power_Compact-Light_Bulbs-Lighting-Saltwater_Aquarium_Supplies~vendor~.html

http://www.marinedepot.com/ps_ViewItem~action~view~idProduct~PC5654~idCategory~FILTBUPCSPSWAB~category~Actinic___Blue-65_Watt-Straight_Pin-Power_Compact-Light_Bulbs-Lighting-Saltwater_Aquarium_Supplies~vendor~.html

Here is a FTS before:
DSCF2073.JPG


and after:
DSCF2149.JPG


the color appears much more vivid, I don't know if this is the camera or what...it's a point and shoot and I didn't change much. Perhaps someone who is a camera buff can look at the image META information and tell if it's the camera shots themselves and not the lights? The GPS definitely has more "pop" now.
 
Mavjoy

Mavjoy

Active Member
It looks brighter and the actinic really shows. These bulbs are installed in a stock hood of the RSM right? I would consider this in the future when I changed my bulbs. Thanks MatthewJ.
 
MatthewJ

MatthewJ

Member
yep, stock hood. My plan was to eventually install at least a switch and maybe a timer for just the actinic. Not sure if I'll do that or not.
 
Mavjoy

Mavjoy

Active Member
Keep us posted and hopefully the ballast won't be affected by the extra watts. The more lights the better IMO especially for SPS and stuff.
 
MatthewJ

MatthewJ

Member
A couple months. The only definitive difference I've been able to find between standard T5 and PC bulbs is that PC bulbs are single ended and that they do not (can not?) have individual reflectors. Not to minimize those differences, especially the latter, but in general I think there is some perception that the PC bulbs are inferior in other more general ways. In any event, so far the SPS I have are doing fine with PC lighting. They are easier SPS though.
 
BigAl07

BigAl07

Administrator
RS STAFF
Pc and T5's are in the same family but there are more differences than just what you've pointed out. Also to add to the confusion some companies are mis-labeling their bulbs out of ignorance. One draw-back to PC is that it's a different INTENSITY than T5's. I don't know about your bulb/ballast set-up but I can tell you this.. I have 130 PC's over my frag tank (it's a 10g Frag Tank) and I can't do Clams, SPS or an anemone under them. That's not just a HUNCH that's been proven. Keep an eye on the SPS and watch for them to "discolor" if they aren't happy with the light. Also take note there is a HUGE difference between "Thriving SPS" and merely "Surviving SPS".

Regardless your colors are POPPING in those pics.
 
MatthewJ

MatthewJ

Member
BigAl07 - what I struggle with is the lack of solid technical information about the differences between a T5 fluorescent bulb and a PC fluorescent bulb. There is LOTS of anecdotal evidence that T5 bulbs are "more intense". Anecdotal isn't a bad word, I'm just the curious sort and like to see more. So what are the differences? Is it just the individual reflectors or is the more? For example, it makes no sense to me that given such a small 10G tank that 130Watts of the right spectrum of PC lighting wouldn't be sufficient for many SPS. Are they 10000k bulbs?

I wouldn't necessarily know the difference between thrive and survive, I'm too new to this...but I assume that if a coral is steadily growing that it is more on the survive end of that spectrum.
 
BigAl07

BigAl07

Administrator
RS STAFF
I'm running 1 65w 10K and 1 65w True Act bulb. That's my current set-up and maybe or may not have been what I was running back in my "Experimentation Days" LOL!

Here is a slightly un-biased comparison of the normal types of bulbs


here's a comparison in microEinstiens (µE m/sec²) :

depending on configuration (i.e. bulb, ballast, reflectors, etc.) these numbers may vary...so i'll use averages...

natural sunlight at noon is equal to about 2000 µE (taken at a shallow depth, comparable to the depth of our tanks)

4-110w VHO Fluorescent = 1000 µE

4-96w Power Compacts = 1100 µE

4-54w T-5's = about 1400 µE

1-400w 6500K Metal Halide (pendant) hot spots of 2100 µE
Click to expand...

Surely with these numbers you can "See" the difference. Those are 54w bulbs pushing out more than the same # of 96w bulbs.
 
BigAl07

BigAl07

Administrator
RS STAFF
Here's another bit of information that may be helpful

T5 HO 54watt bulb produces 4,700 lumens on average thats about 87 Lpw*
PC 65watt bulb produces 4,400 lumens on average thats about 68 Lpw
MH 150watt bulb produces 15,000 lumens on average thats about 100 Lpw


*lumens per watt
Click to expand...

Now I'm no lighting expert and I can't really relate Lumens to "Coral Needs" but this is another "factor" in how T5's are indeed "Stronger" than their equivalent length PC counter-part.
 
jjohnson3

jjohnson3

Active Member
Ive heard that Montipora Caps can be succesfully grown under PCs as long as they are in the top half of the tank.
 
MatthewJ

MatthewJ

Member
@BigAl07 - What I've been looking for [and not able to find] is a list of the differences in the physical characteristics of a T5 bulb versus a PC bulb that result in the "stronger" output we all agree exists generally when you compare a T5 kit to a PC kit.  Is all the magic in the ballasts and reflectors?

@jjohnson3 - one of my monti caps is in the bottom half of my tank and is doing just as well [fingers crossed] as the one higher up.
 
MatthewJ

MatthewJ

Member
I remember a discussion about why Red Sea called them "T5 power compacts", but that really boiled down to T5 being used strictly as a reference to bulb type (tube) and diameter (5/8" inch). What is really interesting to me is that the RSM bulbs are smaller diameter than the "normal" Coralife PC bulbs. So, is this the reason Red Sea chose to use this bulb versus the 65W bulb? Perhaps the 55W bulb actually produces better light? I'm going to see if anyone local has a meter I could use.
 
S

steveh

Member
Just a quick word of warning- obviously using higher wattage lamps than we recommend will invalidate any warranty for the ballasts, and may create extra heat. I haven't tried them myself so am not saying this WILL cause a problem, but thought everyone should be aware of the potential consequences.
 
MatthewJ

MatthewJ

Member
The whole bulb thing on the MAX just baffles me. These are perhaps rhetorical questions, but....

:soap:


why in the world did RedSea choose to have what appears to be a special PC bulb created for the MAX and why do they continue to choose to market it in such a misleading way? A paranoid and cynical person [like myself] might think this is a deliberate effort to mislead consumers into thinking they're buying a system with T5 lighting when they are not. Even today the 130D is sold as having T5 lighting. I think the general market consensus would be that it does NOT have T5 lighting, regardless of any efforts to narrowly focus on the "tube" and "diameter" definitions. FWIW, I didn't even buy my RSM...so I'm not suggesting that I personally was mislead.

Why is the custom bulb CHEAPER than the standard PC bulbs available?

Why does the new "bulb" have better PAR than the old...what's the difference?

How does the mysterious difference between the old bulb and the new bulb play into using the 55W or 65W coralife bulbs (assumption here is that whomever makes the coralife bulb probably makes the RSM bulb)?

I'm personally reminded of the Kenmore brand at Sears, where I worked for a number of years. Sears doesn't manufacture them obviously. When I worked there, most were manufactured by Whirlpool. Sears would have you believe that the Kenmore brand is superior, even to Whirlpool. Of course, a reasonable person would ask what incentives Whirlpool would have to make the Kenmore model better than the comparable Whirlpool model.

/end rant

I think I need more sleep:bouncebox
 
MatthewJ

MatthewJ

Member
stumbled across the below info on the Red Sea Max website. It seems to jive with the basic size of the Coralife bulbs I just got (they are slightly larger in diameter). However, I have read many times that power compact bulbs are 5/8" diameter. It is truly amazing the amount of misinformation in this hobby.

[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Q:[/FONT] [FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Why are the Max light tubes called T5 power compacts?[/FONT] [FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]A:[/FONT] [FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Regular power compact lighting has a tube diameter of 6/8”, which is known as T6. T5 tubes haves a smaller diameter (5/8”) and produce a higher intensity output. The T5s used in the MAX are custom made power compacts that enable us to provide 55 watts of light in a smaller footprint than the equivalent (2 x 24 W) regular T5 tubes would provide. Regular power compact are often powered by magnetic ballasts, but the Max T5 power compacts are powered by an electronic ballast to guarantee consistent high performance.
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[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Q:[/FONT] [FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Can I use other light tubes instead?[/FONT] [FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]A:[/FONT] [FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Regular power compacts will work in the MAX, however due to their tube diameter and overall length it will be difficult to fit them inside the hood. We strongly recommend using only the custom made MAX tubes.[/FONT]
It's still seems odd to me that Red Sea went with a custom bulb versus "standard" (whatever that means) power compacts. They don't cost more at least, which is fair. The million dollar question is whether the 65W T6 bulbs produce more output than the custom 55W T5 bulbs?
 
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