Lighting

arron · Nov 26, 2008

Hey,
I have an interpet power compact T5 55watt starter unit which i havn't been using and would now like to put on a smaller tank than what it was on but i'm thinking 55 watt is too exessive what would happen if i got a smaller bulb ? would it blow the bulb ?
cheers
Arron

aaronnorth · Nov 27, 2008

you can use for example a 30w ballast and a 36w tube, but you will be only getting 30w still. But overpowweering will blow the bulb.

arron · Nov 27, 2008

thanks mate :good:

you've saved me the price of the bulb cos the bloke at my lfs said it would be ok but i had my doubts and thought i'd check and now i'm glad i did !!!!
cheers again
Arron

OldMan47 · Nov 27, 2008

People do what they call ODNO with fluorescents. They overdrive a bulb with too much power in an attempt to get more light out of it. By pushing 50 watts through a 30 watt normal output bulb, they get a lot more light than normally would come from a 30 watt bulb. It shortens the life of the bulb but is a way that some people go to try to get lots of light into a small space. I don't know their techniques but most forums planted sections end up with ODNO discussions so you may find something there that would give you some hints.