* Increased Intensity

* Increased Penetration

T5 - A short phrase, which has sparked much debate recently, but what are the facts?

What does T5 actually mean?

The 5 is obviously relevant, and being as so much has been spoken about how much better these are than average fluorescent tubes, then surely it must refer to an aspect of the light which is five times greater - probably the strength of its output, or maybe its effective distance, or expected lifespan.

This is the understandable, but incorrect conclusion that many people draw. What the 5 actually refers to is an aspect of the tube that your fish, or invertebrate livestock, could not care less about - its diameter.

Technically, any fluorescent tube should be referred to by the letter T followed by a number. That number indicates the diameter in 8ths of an inch, so the one inch diameter tubes that most of us are familiar with are T8 (eight 8ths of an inch), and the fatter tubes that used to be the standard, and that are still used by some are T12.

So T5 actually only means a light with a diameter of 5/8s of an inch.

So why all the fuss?

Small 12" long, 8Watt tubes have been on the market for a long time - these are only 5/8 of an inch diameter, but they don't appear to be any more powerful than a regular tube. The reason being that these are regular output T5 lamps - when talking about the new type of lamps, we should strictly speaking refer to them as high output T5's, and it is the high output part that really makes the difference - producing a light of much greater strength than a conventional tube, and as a result the energy input into the aquarium is greater.

Also, light diminishes very rapidly as it travels through water, but with T5 lamps the effective distance is significantly greater than with conventional tubes, meaning that deeper aquariums can be maintained with an illumination that is effective to the base.

Arcadia's T5 lamps

We have developed two T5 lamps for use with marine aquaria, based on our existing T8 marine fluorescents - the "Marine White", and "Marine Blue Actinic" lamps, but with all the benefits described above.

For the marine reef aquarium, this means that the choice of invertebrates that can be stocked successfully is increased.

Certain species that would at best struggle to survive under T8 lamps, can now flourish under T5 lamps, meaning that a reef can be constructed using a range of soft corals, anemones, large polyp stony corals, and Tridacna clams.

They also allow for a deeper reef aquarium to be successfully maintained, as the light that they emit penetrates the water further, and can satisfy the light requirements of animals kept further from the light source.

The Marine Blue Actinic T5 lamp produces a spectrum which peaks at 420nm - This is the ideal wavelength for enhancing the natural fluorescence that is possessed by many aquarium species.

Size range

Both the Marine White and Marine Blue Actinic T5 lamps are available in three sizes:

24Watts - 550mm -22"

39Watts - 850mm - 34"

54Watts - 1150mm - 46"

Tips on use...

It is important, when using T5 high output tubes, that they are not powered by a unit containing magnetic, wire-wound ballast such as the standard Arcadia controller. Instead, they should be lit using a ballast containing a suitable electronic circuit board.

Arcadia produce two alternative products for this purpose:

The electronic controller allows them to be mounted into the majority of existing aquarium hoods - the controller being placed outside the aquarium, with its flexible lamp holder leads attaching onto the tube, which is then mounted onto the inside of the hood.

The Overtank Luminaire range of canopies includes models that are fitted with Arcadia T5 lamps.

This gives the versatility to use the controller to mount tubes over any aquarium, using any hood, regardless of dimensions - unlike rigid baton fittings

The standard controller contains a wire wound ballast, which creates an electro-magnmetic field sufficient to ignite the tube.

In the case of the electronic controller, the ballast is in the form of an electronic circuit board, which has a number of advantages over a traditional ballast:

1) There is no requirement for a starter switch or choke, as there is in the traditional form. These starters have a limited life-span, and do require replacing periodically.

2) They are much more energy efficient.

A traditional ballast wastes a considerable amount of the energy input into it, in the form of heat. This can be noticeably felt by placing a hand on a controller that has been running for a while.

In the case of the electronic controller, there is very little wastage loss through heat. Instead the majority of the energy that comes from the ballast is converted into light from the fluorescent tube.

3) There is no "flicker effect"

A fluorescent tube lit by a traditional ballast, is not actually producing a constant light output.

Instead, the light pulses at a rate that we cannot see, and so to the human eye the light is constant.

The eyes of some species are much more sensitive than humans, and can actually perceive this rapid pulsing of light.

Although this has not been shown to be harmful, it is a matter that has caused concern among many keepers of birds who fear that this strobe effect may be detrimental.

An electronic ballast however, results in a light output that is constant, even to the most sensitive species, and so can be used by bird keepers to alleviate any worries that they may have.

Important note: In the case of the new T5 High output lamps, it is essential that they are lit using an electronically ballasted unit. Traditional wire wound ballasts will fail very rapidly.

The Arcadia electronic controller is a smartly designed unit, which is manufactured using the latest sonic weld technology.

The result is a unit which is 100% waterproof, and so even in the unlikely event of the controller being accidentally submerged, it would not be damaged as a result

What Variations are available?

The Arcadia Electronic controller range covers options for T8 or T5 lamps, in a range of different wattages. Twin lamp controllers are available for anybody wishing to light more than one tube.

Complete with Waterproof end caps.

SORRY OUT OF STOCK.

NEW IMPROVED UNITS AVAILABLE END JULY 2010