I bought this t5 aquarium lighting unit after some trouble with my older lights. This unit has served me well for a couple of months now and I figured I would review it for anyone else that has been interesting in trying a T5 aquarium light or the Current Nova Extreme Pro. The exact light is theNova Extreme Pro T5 High Output Lighting Fixture – 6x39W – 36 in. I have this Light over my 46 gallon bowfront reef aquarium.
The T5 lights are a high output light (HO), that run on an electric ballast. T5 lighting uses less energy and puts out far less heat then T12 and metal halide lighting. There is even talk that these bulbs can last 2-3 years without loosing that much lumen content. The T5 lighting bulbs are only 5/8″ and in the Nova Extreme Pro they come in a 10k and 460nm spectrum. This enables the reef keeper to have a dawn to dusk effect on there reef tank. I use this light on a Coral Life timer to mimic this effect.
Current currently has four sizes for these lights the 20″, 36″, 48″ and the 72″. The only difference between the four are the wattage. The 36″ has three 10k bulbs and three 460nm bulbs, each bulb containing 39watts of light for a total of 234 watts. The Nova extreme pro also has a individual bulb contoured reflector, meaning that the reflector is one big unit but it is molded to reflect each bulb individually. Having individual reflectors or countered reflectors plays an important role when choosing T5 lighting as most lower end units do not have this and the light is not as effective penetrating the water.
Having using four lighting units so far in the hobby I can say that the nova extreme pro is the quietest light I have used this far. This lighting unit is also very bright and hardly puts out any heat. In fact this unit puts out less heat than some power compacts that I have used. The 36″ unit uses two fans to keep the lights cool and comes with a splash lens for the bulbs. This unit also came with docking mounts, this is a major plus since some units charge extra for them.
There are more expensive T5 lighting units for this hobby that have individual reflectors, these lights are usually in the $500-$700 range. For the $300 that I spent on this T5 lighting unit it was well worth the purchase. This unit is a solid construction and so far as been very dependable. I am very happy with this purchase and so are my corals.
My new lighting system finally came in yesterday and my saltwater reef tank couldn’t be any happier. I had wanted these lights for a while now but I did not take the dive into buying them. When my Pc lights blew a bulb on my wedding day I had to act quick. So here’s a couple of pics of the new Nova Extreme Pro T5′s on my 46gallon tank.
Brand new right out of the box
Comes with three actinic bulbs and three 10k daylight bulbs, two fans, and a individual bulb “molded” reflector to increase intensity.
A side view of my 46gallon tank.
As you can tell, the light takes up a lot of room. So far I’m extremely happy with my purchase, my reef tank has more vibrant colors then before and with the exception of a little algae growth and a failing Crocea clam I received the light in the nick of time. More on the clam on the next blog.
With the failure of my current light fixture I decided to forgo buying new bulbs for it as it would have been half the amount of money to buy them then buying a new fixture altogether. This is the perfect time to upgrade, hopefully my corals and anemone will hold out until I receive my new lighting unit. My saltwater reef tank is starting to show signs of lighting deficiency, my galaxy coral is showing the worst wear so far.
I have been looking into the Current Nova Extreme Pro for some time, but have been reluctant to buying it since I wanted Individual reflectors. The Nova Extreme Pro has “molded” individual reflectors which is better than the average T5 lighting but is not as good as Individual reflectors. You can check out the specs Here.
The new lighting unit was ordered from champion lighting which is an online company, which just so happens to be only few hours from my house so once the light is shipped it should only take a day or so with ground ups. I will post more on the lights and the quality of service from this company when the lights arrive.
I plan on working on a few more articles in the following weeks for Brettsreef but for now I am recuperating from my recent wedding and the ton of work I encountered when I got home from my vacation.
