T5, t8, t12?????????????

What is the difference between these. im about to purchase a new fixture and was about to get a t5. should i be looking at the others also.

72 gal tank
48inches
gonna have soft coral far down the road.

 

If your looking for t5s i would make sure they are t5 ho's what kind of tank you want fowlr or reef???

 

starting out with live rock and then live soft coral down the road

 

i would look into a t5 ho fixture. your regular t5s wont do it. not enought watts per gal. i wouldnt get a power compact, i did and I dont like it from what iv seen as far as t5 ho lights go.

 

t refers to the shape. tubular
the number refers to the the diameter in 1/8's of a inch so a t8 is one inch

as there are different outputs for each bulb
NO-normal output
HO- high output
VHO- very high output



t5 lighting was developed for tanning beds, there are 2 type NO and HO, HO are used for reef aquariums
don't buy NO for a reef tank as you will need double the amount

t12 NO is used for homes, the least efficient off the 3
t12 also has a HO version i believe but rarely seen now
t12 has a VHO version, it was used in reef aquarium up to and during the time powercompacts came out, since then it is out of date.

t8 is used for commercial purposes, business school, etc.
t8 is more efficent then t12 but less then t5
t8 has NO,HO, and VHO t5 has replaced these in the hobby i believe these bulbs were only widely used in europe for aquaria.

edit:t5 also has VHO version(excuse me i was wrong i was thinking of a overdriven t5 ho, so no t5 vho)
there is also a t6 bulb which was made to provide the benefits of t5 but fit in a t8 socket

 

ok thanks makes sense. so the higher the number doesnt mean its better.

Im looking at a t5 4x54watts 2blues and 2whites