Well I need to buy lights for my tank as everything else is ready and waiting, problem is I can't decide.
Don't want to spend the money to buy the lighting and then end up needing to upgrade. Have done that before with my 90cm tank and it is hard to sell used equipment.
Which lights do I chose
1. T8 (2 X 20watts) and get two of them for 80 watts as they have great refelctors (Honeycone style) and balasts I would assume the light would be very high and i wouldn't need that much [url]
2. T5 (4 X 14) and get two of them for a total of 112watts possible though probably only use 5 or 6 tubes but would be there for future and it is T5 so better light with less heat
3. T5 (4 X 24) and get one of them for 96 watts
though all the lighting would be on one light fixtures with one power cord so I would not be able to use a timer to do a mid day light burst but would have to do it myself manually
Main problem I see with T5 is that most lights I find to fit it are 10,000 K or 7500K and options are limited but t8 light bulb/tube options are more.
What is the main advantage of the T5?
LFS suggested I use PL and 2 X 36 watts, but I heard PL generate more heat and break down faser.
Do you agree that the reflectr has a lot to due with the quality and amount of light that gets into the tank?
Option one, uses a geman made honeycone Reflector which should provide 0 deadspots, and option 2 has a standard flat reflector. Does this make a difference? Woudl 80 watts in T8 with honeycone reflector be better then 112 watts with standard reflector in T5?
HQi is out due to temperature and unwillingness to buy a chilller which will just make my house hotter!! and my fish cooler.