im confused t5 vs t8

i went to a electrical retailer the other day with the intention of getting some t5 light fittings wth the blue 65000k tubes i beleive this to be right for flowering but the retailer said he thought i was making a mistake and should buy t8 with a growlux tube as they were intended for the plant aqarium society i said i would go and have a trhink and then make my mind up so can someone point me in the right direction with a simole explanation for this newbie all point welcomed

the t8s are pretty high powered also, right now im using a t8 6500k and a purpelish gro lux bulb, seems to be doing the trick, but thats for vegetative, flowering you need more of a reddish light.... just make sure you get the 6500k(daylight) and not the 4100k (soft white)

I think you need more of a 2700k for flowering which is harder to find at a hardware store..... personally i think hps is the best for flowering !

The light is measured in nm(nanometers) vegging the plants will use the light around 450 nanometers and flowering it will use the light around 700 nanometers.

so am i right in thinking both t5 and t8 are ok for the job of vegging so long as i get the right tube in ???? i already have 2 600 watt hps for flowering

You can use the HPS for veg also.

the hps is probally better than any florescnets you can get.....

Actually the T5's are awesome and extremely efficient. Less heat and a lot of light - the right light. I've already written someone about getting some.

I have a shop light. How do I know if I have t5 t8 or t12 or what ever other "T's" there are?

thedopeman said:

I have a shop light. How do I know if I have t5 t8 or t12 or what ever other "T's" there are?

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"shoplights" are almost always t12s....a t5 bulb is about a 1/4 inch and t12s are about an 1 inch....hope that helps

go with the t5 man. here VV's journal will show you what t5s can do https://www.rollitup.org/grow-room-design-setup/33421-my-current-set-up-journal.html

i think you can get a t8 to work in a regular t12 socket..... but im not sure... i have t8s and i saw the t5s, and for less than half the price the t8s use barely any more electricity and are almost just as bright, so if your on a budget, t8s are great! im not sure how easy it is to find 2700k t8 bulbs though..... the 6500k are regular daylight bulbs i believe....

BMWEATER said:

"shoplights" are almost always t12s....a t5 bulb is about a 1/4 inch and t12s are about an 1 inch....hope that helps

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mobby420 said:

the hps is probally better than any florescnets you can get.....

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IF you use a 4' 8tube t-5, using 440 watts mixing the red spectrum and blue spectrum bulbs you will match the 600watt hid's. Read my journal its in there. The t-8's, one inch diameter bulb will do an ok job for seedling up until the first transplant and not much past that. VV

Any grow shop can get you the bulbs. $12-$16. Just tell em red or blue, there re pictures of the difference in my thread. the 6500k is not day light, you can see the difference. VV