Those who have t5`s...

What kind of corals and are you looking for more blue or more white or something different?
My first suggestion would be 4 blue plus 1 coral plus 1 purple plus. Or 4 blue 1 purple 1 aqua blue special this being really bright and a little whiter.
I have a 6 bulb over a 40 breeder all lps and run 3 blue plus 3 ati true actinic but not really happy with it gonna switch it up a little. And I will post a link from ati north america with some popular combos.
http://www.atinorthamerica.com/faq.php

 

On my 6 bulb T5 retrofit I ran 4 blue plus, a purple (I think it was called indigo sun) and a 10 k.
I ran 4 blue plus in the morning and evening and the other 2 bulbs v and on during the day .
I Really liked the look of it.

 

I have 2 ATI blue plus, one aqua blue special and one purple plus. Makes a nice blue appearance and I've been getting good growth on my sps.

 

I don't like the color the aqua blue special puts off. But that's just my opinion. I use the coral plus in its place. The purple plus bulb has a pinkish purple look. Helps with reds and pinks in corals. Having softies and lps if it was me I would do 4 blue 1 coral plus 1 purple plus. But the combo your running now is good to.

 

I do alot of Zoas..
I have a 4 Bulb 2 blue plus 1 purple plus and 1 coral plus....

Love the colors...

 

I have a 6 bulb T5 fixture over my 75 gallon tank. Currently I'm running 4 Blue plus, 1 purple plus and 1 coral plus. It does very well for me. I like the colors and I get great growth for everything - zoas, softies, LPS, and SPS.


I started out with 4 Blue plus, 1 UV Actinic/white and 1 GE 6500 - a recommendation from the T5 guru on Reef Central. The GE 6500 was used for growth. This was about 5 years ago. About 3 years ago, (when changing bulbs) the UV Actinic/white was switched out to the purple plus. With my last bulb change the GE6500 was switched out to the coral plus. Some difference in color, but not alot - and I still have the growth.

 

What are these blue plus/purple plus/coral plus. Im using Coral life 2 10k and 2 actinic but am wanting to switch.


Found them......


On a 4 bulb setup, what would you recommend, have a variety of corals.

 

Those bulbs are made by Ati. I posted a link above to some commonly asked questions. It's from ati north america. If you have the 30 inch coral life fixture that's the only bulbs you can use. All other companies only do 24, 36, 48 and 60 inch bulbs. Geismann , UVL, ATI, the ge6500k, korallin zucht are all popular bulb brands.

For a four bulb I would run either what Reef man is running posted above or 3 blue 1 purple. If you can only use the coral life bulbs the combo you have currently is good to.

 

Guess I should have mentioned, I made my own hood and all the wiring, installed t5 end caps and reflectors and picked my own ballasts. Running 4 48" 54 watt bulbs but for bulbs I had to use what I could find locally which were Coral Life. I have 2 actinic that come on first and run most of the day and 2 10k that come on later in the day and run for a few hours. Would like to change them all out, but debating a blue plus and actinic on one and 2 coral plus or should I do a coral plus and purple plus?

 

Either one will work fine you could even do 2 blue 2 coral plus. It's kinda what looks good to you and your corals willed you know if they don't like it. You may want to get an extra bulb to try like another blue or coral. And try it for a week and see if you like it before you change.

And be careful when you change bulbs cause you will shock your corals. I usually only change 1 or 2 bulbs every 3 days. And sometimes knock an hour off light schedule for couple weeks.

 

Thanks for the input. Watched a video that compared all the bulbs and a few combos. Look like pretty good bulbs.

 

I've got a friend that has 4 48" Geiseman blue + bulbs that he would like to sell. He recently switched to LED's. I don't think they were ever used. He's in Johnston. I'll be coming to Spring Fest in a couple weeks and can bring them for him if someone is interested.