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09-04-2006, 07:44 PM
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Sunlight Suppy Tek Light 8 bulb, 4' HO T5 fixture. REVISITED 6 MONTHS LATER
Sunlight Supply HO T5 8 bulb Tek Light Fixture     Features (qtd. Sunlight Supply):
First off, I have to say this is THEE brightest flourescent fixture I've ever seen! You can't even look at it! T5's are gaining popularity in europe, and soon they'll be giving metal halides a run for their money. And these are HO bulbs. I wonder what they'll perform like if they're overdriven (say with an Icecap ballast), or if a company begins to design VHO T5 bulbs. It looks very promising. I have to say they did a great job making a sharp looking fixture. The powder coated finish looks superb, and the shape of the fixture is sleek. Hung from the ceiling it looks good, but the back of my tank gets in the way of the cords. I had to tape the cables to the back of the tank to level out the fixture. I have to say it was quite difficult getting the fixture to hang at the right height with just the knots. I remembered I bought some hardware to level it out quicker, AFTER i got it leveled. Duh on my part. Each bulb gets it's own Tek reflector, and they're well designed. They have the inverted V shape running along the center of each reflector, much like a metal halide reflector, and they're well spaced so that even the rock at the top of the tank gets even lighting. I have to say this fixture is INTENSE! I'm only running the actinics at the moment because I'm afraid of bleaching the coral I have currently. They have the usual flourescent advantage of being able to get the exact colour you want by choosing what bulbs to load into it, and the location of each bulb. Currently, I'm running it with the actinics in the center, but when I switch it on to use all the lights, I'll scatter them a little more. There's an Advanced Ballasts sticker on the box, so it's nice to see half decent ballasts are going into the fixture. Peeking into the fixture, you can see a ballast on the front and back end of the fixture. I wish there were 4 ballasts instead to give better timing effects. Sunlight Supply exclusively sells Giesemann T5 HO bulbs. They offer the following bulbs (quoted sunlight supply): Aquablue+ 
Actinic+ (Also known as Blue+) 
Pure Actinic 
[/b]Midday 6000k[/b] 
Now, I don't have any SPS to see how well they handle under the lights, but I'm sure the system is plenty bright enough for softies and LPS, especially considering it's only 432 watts total. I find it a more satisfying setup than dual 250W metal halide lamps, especially since you can get the exact colour you need. Sunlight supply claims you can change the bulbs every year and a half, but I think for reefkeeping purposes, they'll have to be changed once a year, and probably every 9 months for actinics and blue bulbs. Sunlight Supply offers their Sun Blaze fixtures, which are about 2/3 the price, but half the quality. They lack advanced ballasts. The bulbs share a flat reflector, instead of having individual Tek reflectors. There's only a single power lead. And most important, they're not splash proof, and not warranted for a wet environment. All in all, the fixture is a great unit for soft/LPS corals and an excellent alternative for metal halide lighting. No lighting is perfect for everything, but for it's application it's great. It's intense, efficient, runs cool, and has whatever colouring you need. This fixture gives a peek into where T5 lighting is going, and it will be great to see where T5's stand years from now, next to new technologies like LED lighting. Light Output: 4/5 Value: 5/5 Looks: 5/5 Features: 4/5 Overall: 4.5/5
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Everything I put in my tank is fully dependant on me. Last edited by kwirky; 03-16-2007 at 05:31 PM. 
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