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Suspended T5 lighting, what to go for?!!

The pendant looks alright & they have a great clearance price on the 5foot (no 4foot left) BUT it's still a narrow build for a 60cm wide tank

You might email/call Iquatics (they seem very interested in customer service etc) & see what they can put together for you

Most of what I see on their site is meant for retro-fitting into existing canopy etc or if you build the "box" (or look for someone to do it for you) but they may have new products coming or perhaps something in LED that will suit
 
No idea on pricing but you can see the Arcadia Classica LED in this journal from Mark Evans
- it's definitely low impact
(as it's been out a few years you may be able to get one on good price, I believe they have a new unit out now)
 
The Arcadia looks great, right top of my budget at £250 but if that unit would cover the whole tank and produce strong plant growth it could be the perfect unit for me.

Does anyone else suspend their setups??
 
I have leds suspended. Can't recommend the lights though.22487cc45cbac535a2e8a7c532d0b014.jpg

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Chrispowell said:
Righto, I have been looking at the aps ones so I can save some money and use it on the hardscape materials..

http://www.allpondsolutions.co.uk/a...t5-fish-tank-lighting-four-tubes-black-or-si/

Would this one work well for my tank? Also does anyone know if it can be suspended??

Thanks
Click to expand...


That light unit can't be suspended, it sits on the rim of the tank. As your tank is 4ft, it'll be too small.

http://www.allpondsolutions.co.uk/a...-t5-aquarium-four-tubes-thin-lighting-system/

This is the light unit that I have, and it comes with all the fixings and fittings so that you can suspend it.



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Chrispowell said:
Righto, I have been looking at the aps ones so I can save some money and use it on the hardscape materials..

http://www.allpondsolutions.co.uk/a...t5-fish-tank-lighting-four-tubes-black-or-si/

Would this one work well for my tank? Also does anyone know if it can be suspended??

Thanks
Click to expand...
check the dimensions... you have 4 nice bright HOT5's concentrated in a 24cm wide unit - which means the lamps are placed even closer together than that ...

Now make a scale drawing & place this unit over your 60cm wide tank ... areas of intense light + areas of signiificant shade
- which can work just fine IF you're very good with your aquascape & stay within the constraints placed by light design

Buying 2 of these would give you better/more controlled light distribution - check with the seller as to actual placement of the tubes within the unit, confirm that unit can be suspended (likely need additional kit) ... as you raise the light unit above the tank, you'll get a wider "arc" of light but also PAR reaching substrate will decrease.

I'd sooner spend the $ on getting a light system that doesn't limit hardscape/planting & then look at landscape stone for hardscape - there are numerous journals with some very nice (quarry) cheap rocks
Wood can also be "found" depending on local area - again there are some good journals with locally found wood

But there are also some stunning rockscapes where planting is minimal & with mosses & buce's & other low light plants, lower light is beneficial.
 
alto said:
Buying 2 of these would give you better/more controlled light distribution - check with the seller as to actual placement of the tubes within the unit, confirm that unit can be suspended (likely need additional kit) ... as you raise the light unit above the tank, you'll get a wider "arc" of light but also PAR reaching substrate will decrease.
Click to expand...

Alto, thankyou for the detailed reply and also for everyones patients in helping me. I have no problems with getting two of these units and running one directly behind the other, this should (even at quite a low height) give me a really even coverage over the tank?

Obviously this would mean I end up with 8 T5s over the tank, and from the previous replys I will only need a maximum of 4... Does this mean Im throwing money away by never using 4 of these bulbs or could this work well over time to maybe have all bulbs on for a short period during the day? Would this bring out strong red growth?

Thanks once again, look forward to your replys
 
You need to contact the seller (manufacturer) - ask for technical assistance rather than sales etc (you may need to insist or just begin asking very technical questions about spectra & voltage & current 😉)

& find out details on
- how/where the lights are arranged in the unit
- separate power for each set of T5's
- which lamps are paired in the 4/6 T5 units
- individual reflectors for each T5 bulb

Ballast - electronic (I'd assume rather than magnetic) - dimmable? power output re is it under/over driving the bulbs?

I have a rather nicely designed (bought several years ago) 4 x T5 luminaire, each lamp has individual Giesmann style reflectors, paired T5's are 1 & 4, 2 & 3 (so midday "burst" works very well with this unit ... though I've yet to run all 4 T5's), the T5's are spaced equally across the luminaire (I looked at so many 4 x T5 units where all the bulbs were jammed together & then empty space 😕 )


If possible go out & look at various lighting options ... you don't want to buy T5 & then decide you dislike the solidness of the fixture (this is where LED shines - footprint on these lights can be so minimalist)
 
Chrispowell said:
I'm more confused than when I began
Click to expand...
😀

Tank lighting (like everything else about your fish/plants/filter/heater/CO2/fertilizers at al) is really a personal choice

I've had my current T5 luminaire for some years (US made knockoff of a Giesmann so very functional but definite compromise on the finish & heft), when I decided to upgrade lighting on my 90cm tank, I'd intended to just get a current version of my older unit ... except none of the T5 luminaires I looked at were even as well designed as my old one (manufacturer only produced aquarium lighting short term), anything remotely modern was all LED & T5 replacement tube displays were facing extinction (I really like my Giesmann tubes, when I can't get them anymore, I'll likely switch over to LED on this tank as well)

So reluctantly I started reading up on LED, sent out some emails/calls to manufacturers - Kessil was highly recommended by local shop & stood out in responsiveness to my queries.
I did the shop rounds to see/touch every light option ... finally bought the Kessils at the Boxing Day Sale
They are such a great light system for working on the tank & I like being able to alter spectrum & intensity (these use a "cluster" LED so you don't see the individual blue, green, red etc LED's which I like ... I have a Current USA Satelite + Pro which has the linear LED array - impulse buy as it was on good price & I'd considered it as a replacement for my T5 luminaire - now I know that I'll put a Kessil on that tank instead 😉 )

(for lighting technical details Advanced Aquarist has several articles, also read about PAR vs PUR - TMC Aquarays shine in the PUR)


T5's & LED can grow plants equally well, the rest is all esthetics & personal preference.
If you have a deep/tall tank, you need to look for high intensity LED (minimum 1 watt ... but the 1.2w SMD's didn't come close to same depth penetration as my T5 or Kessil) & good reflector design on the T5's.
I'm in Canada so not that familiar with your local options (aside from a few brands) - my best suggestion is to get out to a shop (even if you need to do a roadtrip) where you can really get a feel for what's on offer, you should get to play with the (LED) remotes too 🙂

I spent significant $$$ on the Kessils (~1.5 X my initial budget), there's no doubt the fish & shrimp much prefer the slow on/off of the LED (my T5 is not dimmable), I love the spotlight effect of a single, dimmed Kessil
 
Chrispowell said:
Righto, I have been looking at the aps ones so I can save some money and use it on the hardscape materials..

http://www.allpondsolutions.co.uk/a...t5-fish-tank-lighting-four-tubes-black-or-si/

Would this one work well for my tank? Also does anyone know if it can be suspended??

Thanks
Click to expand...
Can be suspended if your ok with DIY Chris fairly simply.B&Q adjustable shelving brackets or wide decorative wide hanging basket brackets(4screws /plugs) against a back wall or just plain shelf brackets, or ss or chrome piping screwed back of cabinet and formed at 90 degrees.The luminaire then rests on top,fraction of custom made costs
 
I have the Ati sunpower dimmable x 4t5 a few months now and I have to say that it is the best piece of equipment I have bought to date. Ive been messing around with co2 and flow for years trying to get the correct balance and growth that everyone else had with no success until I bought this and never adjusted anything and within weeks everything just took off! Pearling like mad and lush plants.
 
Only if you had too big of a gap between them.

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