Lighting experts! What are T6?

Calling all lighting experts!

What are T6's?

I have just read somewhere that they fit into T8 fixtures but have the same luminsity as T5's? Is this true?

Linda i heard you use T6, how are they for you?

 

From what I've read they work great for FOWLR but won't support coral life, can't find alot on them though so I'm not sticking behind this if someone has more experience please chime in.

 

Cuttingras uses them and loves them i believe. Yes, they do support coral life

 

T-6 bulbs and T8's and T12 all fit the same pin sockets T5's when they came out in the early 90's where to replace the T8's but the owners of huge lighting place like office buildings and factories and such balked at having to retrofit all the fixtures so the T6 was introduced as a fast stop gap and lessen the retro fit cost . The T5's never caught on here in the states and where sent to Europe and else where . T6 bulbs operate under a bit more pressure then the T 8 and T 12 be it N.O and they where a bit brighter and less power consumption over the other bulbs . The T5 just operate under a bit higher pressure then the T 6's But its not enough to see and matters not to the corals .. What you need to know is the brand and type of bulbs that are available for the T6 I think I was told last spring the UVL/URI was also bringing a T 6 line out also as they did the T 5's

 

So from what i got from that is, T6 do fit the same pins as T8 but don't offer enough light to sustain reef?

 

I think that's my mistake for saying that, It's dependant on the ballasts driving the bulb I think if they'll support corals. The one's I've seen around here are cheap and crappy, very shoddy penetration, there are some newer fixtures with nicer reflectors and ballasts that look like they'd work fine

T6 is very cheap too, I may look into this more for a frag tank or at least fuge light

 

T6 will support what ever any others will . Its all about the type of bulbs being used . T5 suck unless you have the proper bulbs I'd never used them after the few sets we had to play with at the shop I never though they where that great , I had a 6 tube retro set I built on a 29 gallon tank and it was so dim on the bottom that simple mushrooms would not live all we had where the Geishmens and API bulbs then , When UVL brought their T'5 line out that was the first time I ever saw a T5 I'd use . I'd still rather run VHO's myself. But the T6 will hold their own with T5's with proper bulbs . I can call UVL to see if they started to produce them for T6 I know they do the P/C's now.