ive had the same bulbs for some time now and they're beginning to look pretty dull. they're 6700k bulbs and look a little yellow, is the 6700k rating or just cause they're old. im just looking for something a little brighter and maybe a little whiter/bluer. would a 10000k bulb give me that effect. they're 65watt bulbs in a 48" fixture
replacing compact fluorescent bulbs
- Thread starter HiImSean
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Step #1) rip out wiring
Step #2) replace with T5 VHO
Step #3) ponder why you did not do this earlier
but in regard to your question, yeah 10000k is gonna be whiter
GL
HTH
Step #2) replace with T5 VHO
Step #3) ponder why you did not do this earlier
but in regard to your question, yeah 10000k is gonna be whiter
GL
HTH
the answer to your question -- without unnecessary editorial commentary -- is that 10,000K lighting would be bluer and brighter than your 6700K
You should replace your bulbs generally every 6 months. Is it a planted tank? If so, 6700k is ideal for plants. If it isn't, the lighting is purely up to your taste. You could run one 10,000k and one 6700k.
I'm confused, are you replacing compact fluorescent lamps or standard fluorescent lamps? If you have freshwater without live plants you don't need ho or vho, most fish will actually prefer less light.
its not a planted tank just SA cichlids. the tank is a 6ft tank but the fixture is 4 so it has a nice spread. i know you're "suppose" to change bulbs but i've never grown plants with this fixture so no need to. the current bulbs make taking pictures pretty difficult. i'd love some t5s but im not gonna blow $$ on that
no worries . . . w/o plants, you can replace every year or so with no problems . . . and while I think T5 is better when you have plants, it isn't necessary . . . and you can certainly run CFL with no trouble on a fish-only tank
are you saying you have to replace T5s?
my CF are costly and last a year
I've never seen t5s that need to be replaced
When do you change them??
my CF are costly and last a year
I've never seen t5s that need to be replaced
When do you change them??
The only advantage of going with t5 lamps is efficiency since there is less gas to heat than in a t8 or t12, the amount of energy being saved will take several years to cancel out the cost. I recently did a job where we retrofited about a thousand 3x3 fixtures with magnetic ballasts to t5s and electric ballasts and the pay back period was 10-12 years and the vast majority of the savings came from the new ballasts.
LOL, I light my 30" high tank with 1-2 CFL 23w bulb from Home Depot and it's bright as hell right to the bottom...
And i tested going the other way 23w with 3200k and it didnt penetrate as deep.
You want WHITE as close to 5100k as possible and you want WATTAGE!
Going higher in Kelvins does not increase light brightness, since you're going "bluer" away from normal light (rated at 5100k) so it gets dimmer (mind you it accentuates white fishes and corals nicely since it's pushing into the "black light" spectrum, but thats another story.
As an example if you're into cars, it's like a ricer car with HIDs, OEM HIDs use ~5100k BMW and such, but ricers go blue and it doesn't light up like a proper OEM HID bulb should.
And i tested going the other way 23w with 3200k and it didnt penetrate as deep.
You want WHITE as close to 5100k as possible and you want WATTAGE!
Going higher in Kelvins does not increase light brightness, since you're going "bluer" away from normal light (rated at 5100k) so it gets dimmer (mind you it accentuates white fishes and corals nicely since it's pushing into the "black light" spectrum, but thats another story.
As an example if you're into cars, it's like a ricer car with HIDs, OEM HIDs use ~5100k BMW and such, but ricers go blue and it doesn't light up like a proper OEM HID bulb should.