deciding on lights for 65 gallon.

what about led"s? there going to be the next big thing in aquarium lighting

 

ehhhh, not proven really that they are worth teh huge price tag yet IMO

 

from what ive been reading.. go with Giesmann, ATI or UVL brand bulbs for good growth rate and PAR/PUR ratings..

current bulbs will be ok for a couple months if your budget is limited..

shop around.. reefgeek.com has a good selection.. I just ordered a couple UVL aquablue 14k today..

 

Pg your blog's pic of the NEP shows what I mean when I constantly say that they are NOT SLRs, as they do not entirely cover the lamp.. Better than a single reflector but could stand to be .25" or so longer on each side to cover the lamp better.

A T5 fixture with good lamps and good SLRs will penetrate just as deep as MH and draw less watts, whats not to like....?

They have been proven, just by scientists and career hobbyist, not by the common man as they are too pricey. James Fatherree tested one as did Riddle I believe. The PAR output was absolutely insane. BUT PFO went out of business so bye bye Solaris, now its Aquailluminations model which is SIGNIFICANTLY cheaper than the PFO which actually ripped Aquaillumination off.

 

i still dont trust t5s in a tank 20 inches or deeper just me but yea i dont trust them lol


and yea par is great BUT for me until i see this run over someones tank for a year and see the results i wont even think about buying one

 

Whats your reason for not trusting T5 in tanks over 20"? Old info from when T5 was in its infancy and barely understood?

 

Nope, just have always had better luck with MH thru my experiences, dont get me wrong i use t5s on my 55 frag and 29 frag but i would never change out my MH on my 180 for t5s nope just wont do it doc, you should know that you cant teach an old dog new tricks lol

 

$$$Gimmick....very doubtful!!!!:-/

 

Have you ever used them on a big tank? Have you used anything besides NEPs and FNI or similar cheap brand?
;D

 

Not a gimmick, just not feasible yet...

Its like when something new comes out... Look at LCDs and plasmas and all that 30" tvs were going for $6000 dollars... I have a HD 1080p 42" I bought for like $500 a couple months ago....
Everything will go down. Heck even PS3 just dropped the price!

LEDs work, at least the fixtures do... The DIY ones work to an extent but don't crank out the PAR like the Solaris did....