Changing Ballasts - Higher Light Corals?

[Frag Freaks]

So I am deciding to upgrade my ballasts from 3 Workhorse Ballasts to 2 IceCap 660s.

I have a 6 bulb T5 Setup. Changing all my bulbs to the new UVL HO T5 bulbs with internal reflectors.

So with the new bulbs being overdriven by the 660s and the internal reflectors and IceCap individual reflectors, I am hoping to push the bulbs to about 55-60 watts a piece giving me a total of about 330-360 total wattage respecitively over my 65g with dimensions of 36Lx18Wx24H.

With the extra wattage can I start to keep higher light corals such as SPS and Clams? If so can they be any types of SPS and clams or specific ones?

 

[JayM]

you can keep pretty much any SPS in that tank, and if you have the right bulbs, pretty much any clam in the top half of the water column.

BTW, overdriving actinic bulbs does no good, except to your electric utility

 

[KSC]

You definately do not want bulbs with internal reflectors if you are using the Icecap reflectors. I'd try to get some fans blowing on the endcaps to increase output and also bulb life.

 

[Frag Freaks]

you can keep pretty much any SPS in that tank, and if you have the right bulbs, pretty much any clam in the top half of the water column.

BTW, overdriving actinic bulbs does no good, except to your electric utility

Sounds good! What would you suggest for a first time clam keeper? What would be the easiest ones to care for?

Thanks for the heads up on the actinic bulbs.

 

[JayM]

squamosa are the easiest to keep

watch for one that comes up that has been in a member's tank...

prior to my tank crash, I had 9 clams in my system. The maxima clams all perished, and one of the crocea's did, but the rest lived, and my squamosa seems to have survived it best. Got 4 left out of 9, and plan to add more back in once I see a pretty one I can afford....

 

[JohnK]

You definately do not want bulbs with internal reflectors if you are using the Icecap reflectors. I'd try to get some fans blowing on the endcaps to increase output and also bulb life.

Second that. Internal reflectors make no sense for a T5 set up with good external reflectors.

 

[Frag Freaks]

Second that. Internal reflectors make no sense for a T5 set up with good external reflectors.

I dont see how it could hurt the tank at all thought right?

 

[JohnK]

Internal reflectors were a deccent idea for T12 florescents because the big bulbs would block most of their own light even if fitted with good reflectors.

With T5, the great benifit is that you can use them with very effective parabolic reflectors that can catch the 180 degrees of light coming up off of the thin bulbs, and focus it all back into the tank. The internal reflector will keep much of the light from ever getting to the external reflector. That light would be directed more or less down, but no where as effectively as if it were being focused and directed by those nice parabolic reflectors.

 

[Frag Freaks]

Internal reflectors were a deccent idea for T12 florescents because the big bulbs would block most of their own light even if fitted with good reflectors.

With T5, the great benifit is that you can use them with very effective parabolic reflectors that can catch the 180 degrees of light coming up off of the thin bulbs, and focus it all back into the tank. The internal reflector will keep much of the light from ever getting to the external reflector. That light would be directed more or less down, but no where as effectively as if it were being focused and directed by those nice parabolic reflectors.

Might be a good time to try and get the light meter and see if there is a difference between the bulbs with the internal and the bulbs without.

 

[JohnK]

I agree. The light meter would take the guess work out of this.

I don't have any facts to base my comments on here, it's all speculation (but I still think I'm right ).

 

[wrassefan]

..BTW, overdriving actinic bulbs does no good, except to your electric utility

I don't know if I agree with this....in my research (back in the day) when I was doing T5s, overdriving was giving off more intense light...that included the actinics

 

[Frag Freaks]

I agree. The light meter would take the guess work out of this.

I don't have any facts to base my comments on here, it's all speculation (but I still think I'm right ).

Maybe you are but this would be a good test to run for sure. To see if there is a difference how much of a PAR difference there would be. Would need the same brand of bulb and same rating. So say a 12k UVL standard HO bulb and a 12k UVL VO-HO Bulb (VO being Variable output).

Test 1 (Control) - PAR with no reflectors bulb vs. bulb
Test 2 - Regular HO T5 with individual reflector
Test 3 - VO-HO T5 bulb with individual reflector

This would have to be done with all new bulbs of course.

In the description of the VO-HO says there is a 180 Degree reflector. Which this means the reflector doesn't go all the way around correct? What if the bulb was focused so the internal reflector was focused upward into the individual reflector then with that reflector focused down into the tank. Would this cause some kind of difference in the readouts? Assuming you can actually determine where the internal reflector is so that you can arrange it in that way.

Would bring out:

Test 4 - VO-HO T5 bulb internal reflector focused upward

 

[JohnK]

^^ I agree %100 about the comparision.


About the orientation of the internal reflector bulbs;
IMO/assumption there is no way they would be superior to regular bulbs with good reflectors. By pointing them up, the light that normally would be reflected down would ALL be blocked/reflected back at the external reflector. The external reflectors work great, but not so great that you want to divert the light already directed at the tank to be re-directed into the reflector, then back into the tank.

My point/assumption is that;
An internal reflector on a T5 will never be as efficient as a good external reflector.

I totally agree;
The light meter is the only way to answer this an any meaningful way. Otherwise we are comparing opinion to opinion with no fact to fall back on.

 

[Frag Freaks]

I will see if i can get a hold of the light meter and try and get a regular UVL T5 HO lamp and do the tests.

 

[Kenny B]

Sounds like an episode of Mythbusters is afoot! Go get'em Jamie err a Jimmy!

 

[Frag Freaks]

So I got 4 of the new UVL Bulbs today. You can clearly see where the internal ballast of the bulb is inside the bulb itself.

I still am running my old ballasts (still waiting on the icecap 660s), I can already tell that the bulbs seem to be putting off more light compared to the other UVL HO bulbs I have. Whether there is actually more or less PAR being produced is a whole other question, but they sure do look good!