# Does the brand of T5 HO bulbs matter



## Raymond S. (Dec 29, 2012)

I believe that Zoo Med is made in Germany.
True Lumen has a Flora Pink bulb which does make your tank redish but not any great deal so. The bulbs from Odyssea to me give a glair which I don't like.
I believe that most are good to grow plants in. But Corallife has lower output than most others do according to what I hear both on here and outside this forum.
I have only used them in T8 but the Zoo Med Flora sun works great on plants but has
a lower level of visible light so I usually use it/w a Zoo Med Ultra sun.
And Doctors Foster & Smith's has good prices on them.


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## Matthew RJ (Jul 4, 2012)

I'm doing a search on this forum to see what others are using, and if this question has been asked before.

Is coral life the same as aquatic life?


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## Matthew RJ (Jul 4, 2012)

I'm also looking at the Giesemann brand. They offer a range of bulbs. My problem is, I'm happy with the 2 in my aquatic life (I would change if I can get a better light for more plant growth of course).

My aquatic life has a 6000K & a Roseate bulb.
Gieseman has: Midday, Aquaflora, AquaBlue +, Actinic + , Aqua Pink, Pure Actinic, 
Lagoon Blue.

What would be similar to what I have, and would any Gieseman offer an improvement to what I have?


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## Dantrasy (Sep 9, 2013)

Tom Barr uses Wave Point (in red from memory).


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## foster (Sep 23, 2012)

I use ZooMed bulbs, and have very good success with them. Excellent color retention, good PAR at the substrate, and good plants growth, and color.


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## Raymond S. (Dec 29, 2012)

If paying $25 for a bulb is OK/w you then I do believe that the Gieseman is
usually thought of as a better bulb.
CoralLife is said to be inferior in light amount and perhaps quality as well.
I use True Lumen or Zoo Med for the $10 price but both brands work great in my tanks.


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## Matthew RJ (Jul 4, 2012)

*hmmm*

I'm always looking for a deal and best price. But I also know sometimes you get what you pay for. If the cheap made in china bulbs work fine, then that's what I really need to know. 

My local aquaponics store has bulbs for $10, but no roseate. I know what I have works, but I'm confused by all the options.


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## burr740 (Feb 19, 2014)

I do believe there are differences in efficiency between brands, although Im not sure the exact science of why. Coralife bulbs in my experience, are at the bottom of the list as far as brightness (to the naked eye, havent done any par compares). I would go so far to say they are crap. The only way I would use them is say a person had a T5HO fixture and it's just too much light for their tank. Go with some Coralife bulbs. Problem solved. :red_mouth

Ive had a couple different generic 6500K hydropinic bulbs that I really liked. Also like ZooMed's line, which are pretty economical. Also Im a big fan of TruLumen Flora. Would love to try some Geishmans, but I just cant see paying $20+ a bulb.

Im surprised the hydroponic store doesnt stock any red bulbs, since they are commonly used for flowering. My latest fixture is a quad T5HO from a hydroponic supplier, it came with what they call two "blue" 6700K and two "red" 3000K.

Here's a thread comparing a few different bulbs, specifically the ones Ive mentioned. (just pictures, no PAR values) It may be of some interest


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## Matthew RJ (Jul 4, 2012)

Sorry to keep bumping this thread, but does Coral life = Aquatic Life?

And can my Aquatic Life fixture handle more than 6000K?


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## burr740 (Feb 19, 2014)

"Aqualight" is the name of some Coralife fixtures. "AquaticLife" is a different brand entirely. Their fixtures are very nice, head and shoulders above Coralife. I would imagine their bulbs are too, though Ive never tried any.


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## foster (Sep 23, 2012)

I guess to be very blunt. Coralife, Odyssea, and any other Chinese knock off bulbs are JUNK. The spectrum changes dramatically in just a couple weeks. Just speaking from my experience with cheap bulbs.
Save yourself some grief, and $. Go with a quality bulb to start with. There have been many quality bulbs recommended so far. Any of them should work great for you. ​


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## burr740 (Feb 19, 2014)

Matthew RJ said:


> And can my Aquatic Life fixture handle more than 6000K?


Your fixture can handle any t5ho bulb in the right length. 6000K only refers to the color spectrum of the bulb. It is no different than a 12000K or a 3000K as far as working.


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## ERW (Mar 4, 2015)

*Zoo Med Flora Sun bulbs are made in China*



Raymond S. said:


> I believe that Zoo Med is made in Germany.
> True Lumen has a Flora Pink bulb which does make your tank redish but not any great deal so. The bulbs from Odyssea to me give a glair which I don't like.
> I believe that most are good to grow plants in. But Corallife has lower output than most others do according to what I hear both on here and outside this forum.
> I have only used them in T8 but the Zoo Med Flora sun works great on plants but has
> ...


Zoo Med Flora Sun says it's bulbs are made in Germany but when I looked at the bulbs it said made in China on the bulb.. I've had 3 Zoo Med Flora Sun two had writing on the bulb saying "Marineland" made in China. So what else is new. Zoo Med false advertisement.


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## Raymond S. (Dec 29, 2012)

Actually GE makes a great 6500K bulb that cost about $9 in the 18" but less in the 24/48" lengths because of volume sales of those sizes.

Mathew I would try one of the True Lumen when your bulb is a year old and needs to be replaced. The True Lumen "Flora" has a red tint to the light. I have two pictures if a 10g tank that I took, coppied and did the photo shop thing on. On one I only auto focused it and added brightness. That one looks a bit red. Then on the copy I also did auto color correct and that one looks...well like it supposed to I guess. The red one is more red in the picture than I think it looks while I view it. The True lumen gives it much more natural looking color to everything in there with no glare.
I'm suggesting to use the TL Flora/w a white bulb BTW. Use it for your Roseated bulb.
The Odyssea bulbs (6500K white and Roseated)which came/w the fixture have tons of glare. When you look at a picture in here and the top leaves are much brighter than the rest of the picture...that glare. The TL bulb doesn't do that. 
Ordinarily I won't put pictures on someone else's thread. Only links to them.
But I put both on here so you can view together.


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## aquarium hippy (Feb 7, 2013)

I used wave point bulbs befor switching to led I got excellent growth and color rendition out of a 6500 k and color wave combo.


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## Sub1117 (Sep 21, 2014)

From my research I found that different brands of bulbs have different PAR ratings. Giesemann & ATI have the best PAR output, while Oddysea has the poorest. 
If Giesemann and ATI are out of your budget, the best option would be Zoomed, which have a similar PAR rating to Giesemann and are German made as well. 
If you're looking for the best 6500k bulb, I would suggest GE Starcoats, for that bulb has the highest PAR rating with a 6500k spectra.
Also, although WavePoint is chinese made, they are still a pretty good choice brand.


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