Not all lights are equal

[Ross]

With this title, I want to inform readers that not all brands or configurations of t5 light banks are equal. Price is not necessarily the deciding factor (to me). I purchased a Sunblaze (popular brand) 44 (48" nominal length) 4 tube fixture a while back and it seemed to do quite well. I mean, the light was bright and all. It's just that I noticed that only one of the 4 tubes was real bright and the others were dim. I still haven't figured out why. Maybe it's the ballast. Maybe it's the setup or tubes. Who knows. To make a long story shorter, I purchased a New Wave brand fixture which came with GE brand bulbs and has German 95% reflectance aluminum reflectors. It also is 2" wider, meaning wider reflectors. The foot-candle readings went up dramitically:

With old light setup (SunBlaze):

At bulb surface: 2800 FCs
12" from bulbs: 600 FCs
24" from bulbs: 200 FCs

With the New Wave fixture and GE bulbs:

at bulb surface: 2900 FCs
10": 1600 FCs
14": 1400 FCs
24": 700 FCs

This is a dramatic improvement. I attribute most of this to the better tubes and the better reflectors. So you get what you pay for, in my mind.

Hope these figures will help someone make a sensible decision.

All measurements taken with Sper Scientific 840020 light meter.