New fixture, replaced bulbs, no raves yet...

Just bought a quad bulb T5 fixture to replace my compact florescent unit. Since this unit came with some questinonable quality bulbs I ordered some replacements right away. I ordered some ATi's and selected the specific ones based on much reading on these posts. Guess what? I am not dazzled and amazed quite yet. I love the added punch that the T5 has given me over the compact florescents but I am not sold that there was very much WOW or even improvement by way of the "name brand" bulbs. Sure there was subtle differences, but at this point I don't think I'll be dropping a bunch of cash on more bulbs just to sample!:-/

 

What bulb combo did you get, and what kind of look were you shooting for? Not everyone appreciates the same appearance. CIP: I'm not a big fan of the ultra-blue tank with green corals glowing yellow like a mustard stain under black light. So when I switched from PC to T5, I stuck with the 10000K daylight/460nm actinic combo. My corals are happy, I'm happy...

 

Agreed also your eyes play with you. Get some ATI bulbs put them in run for a week then swap in the cheap bulbs you will see a Hugh difference IMO

 

I did that! I had no name blue actincs and 10,000k , 2 of each. Then I bought ATi Blue Plus and Aqua blue plus. Just do not see that the extra money is worth the cost? Saw some subtle differences just not ooh and ahh bigtime differences. I guess this way I have some spare bulbs.

 

I don't think the idea behind higher quality bulbs has much to do with how they look. You should get better coral growth and the bulbs should last longer. I have no evidence to prove that, but that's why people recommend them.

 

I luv ATI..my favorite T5 bulbs..and you picked my 2 colors that i use.Tons of par and the color i like...and there not that expensive ? I have to pay 25 bucks each + shipping for the 54's .. and i run 8

 

Wait a couple of weeks and then see if you like the (greatly) improved color of your corals. When I switched from CF to 4x24w T5 HO I thought like you do. Didn't seem much different than the CF fixture (brightness wise). After about a month, the tremendous color change had me thinking otherwise.

 

Depending on the "quality" of the no-name bulbs, you may or may not see a big difference to the naked eye. PAR readings have shown ATI bulbs to have far better output than most others however, so your corals should be happy with the better bulbs.

 

Dude, relax! this whole hobby is based on patience! Sure you may not get immediate results, but i bet you/ll be happier with better lights in 3 months or so verse what came with them! Keep those for emergency backup!