t5 or pc

[madman19710]

been away for a while gonna start my 30 gallon tank up again the tank is 12in deep 18wide 30 long i geuss it is a breeder tank the corals seem to love the light being so close i always used pc lights but i found coralife t5 fixtures for 35 bucks each do you think these will be as good or better than pc

[Reefland]

Hi madman19710,

Take a look in this months RHO at the Reeflections column, that tank uses T-5 only.

[marxsman]

Hi Madman,
just an opinion, I have been using PC's for about 5 years now. I do like them but keep in mind that you can only keep a few soft corals. If you ever want to hold stony coral or clams I do suggest getting metal halides. I too am upgrading to metal halides. I do get exceptional growth from leather corals and a few others like frogspwan. But if you are like most people you always want better for the inhabitants of your take and also for personal view. I have never used T5 but I was told they are better than PC's. It also depends on the watt that you plan on using and what temperature bulbs you want also and this will effect the "view". I personally like mine "2 96 watt, 1 10 k bulb and one 50/50 10k actinic but I still want halides.

[The Grim Reefer]

Not all T5's are created equall. The Coralife units I've seen are Normal Output. If your tank is only 12" tall they would be fine. Helios makes a NO T5 striplight that is 29" long that might be better suited for your tank length.