T8 Bulbs?

[Sir Alex]

When my father set up the eel tank, he used an old T8 freshwater light. The bulbs haven't been changed in all the time we've been using them (about 4 years). Soo, the color is probably about 4k. :shock:

Something needs to be done, I don't want a yellow tank! Right now this tank isn't really a priority, so I won't be upgrading the lights. Instead I'll be getting a new 14k bulb. I did some research and couldn't really find any saltwater T8 bulbs.

Know anywhere I can get them?

 

[jcegt87]

if your not gonna keep corals in it then it really shouldnt matter what kind of bulbs so as long as they are white (new) and not yellow then it should be fine,you dont need special "saltwater" bulbs any T8bulbs should be fine

 

[AmberSunrise]

My local petsmart has T8 bulbs in all colors.

 

[Sir Alex]

if your not gonna keep corals in it then it really shouldnt matter what kind of bulbs so as long as they are white (new) and not yellow then it should be fine,you dont need special "saltwater" bulbs any T8bulbs should be fine

No corals, not with one 40 watt bulb.

I'll check out petco.

 

[pokerfish]

Petco definitely has T8 bulbs in all spectrums...I think they are Hagen bulbs, they come in all tempratures from very yellow to a deep blue...I used marine glo and it looked pretty good....

 

[Sir Alex]

So I got a 4' bulb at petco and tried it in the light and it was about 1/4" too short. :? Sounds like it's time to get a new fixture...

So I was looking at this: 60" T5 HO 4 Lamp 4 Lunar Light System

I don't need all the timer stuff but it's actually cheaper than the tek lights since these include the bubs and legs. I don't really care if it's not great quality caus I'm not keeping anything photosynthetic.

Any suggestions?

 

[Zissou]

How long is your tank? I thought 110's are 48" long.

That light you selected might be over kill. You can probably get away with a two bulb setup, which would be much cheaper. A 48" two bulb T5 setup can be found for less than $200.

I have the aquaticlife 36" 4 bulb setup for my 30, it's good quality. The legs are a bit hokey but they work, and the timer is just fine. My only real issue has been the moonlight LEDS. (out of the eight, only four come on).

 

[Sir Alex]

How long is your tank? I thought 110's are 48" long.

That light you selected might be over kill. You can probably get away with a two bulb setup, which would be much cheaper. A 48" two bulb T5 setup can be found for less than $200.

It's 5'X18"X2', which sucks because 60" fixtures are hard to find.

 

[Zissou]

Hmm. Do you have any way to hang the lights? Then you can just hang a 48" fixture above it (should be more than enough spread). I imagine it'd be easier to get bulbs too.

 

[Sir Alex]

How about this? Sunbeam 60" 2 x 80W T5 Fixture by Aqua Medic* - AquaCave

It's $230 total.

 

[Sir Alex]

Hmm. Do you have any way to hang the lights? Then you can just hang a 48" fixture above it (should be more than enough spread). I imagine it'd be easier to get bulbs too.

Hanging would be kinda difficult since the roof is quite high above it. But I guess it would be possible. So if a 48" is elevated it will fill up the whole tank?

 

[Sir Alex]

This one is $135 + $30 for the hanging kit.

AquaticLife T5 HO Light Link Fixture - Marine

 

[Zissou]

Hanging would be kinda difficult since the roof is quite high above it. But I guess it would be possible. So if a 48" is elevated it will fill up the whole tank?

I imagine so, it's only 6" inches of extra space on each end. I don't know how bright the tank will be, but it'll be helluva a lot more light than that 40 watt bulb in the beginning. :Cheers:

I think the light in your last link would work, assuming you could hang it.

 

[Sir Alex]

What if the wires that come with the hanging kit aren't long enough? Can I get some longer ones at Lowe's?

 

[Sir Alex]

So I found out why the bulb wouldn't fit... It's t12 not t8. So I'll be ordering this: Coralife 20,000K 40W T-12 Fluorescent Lamp - 48" : Fluorescent Bulbs