[NATIVEVAMAN]

There is a big debate about the efficiency of t 5 reflectors going on now.tek lite (sunlite supply) seems to be a distant second best. The tek lite also gets bad reviews for reflector stains that cant be removed.Other manufacturers are so bad they dont get mentioned in the debate.
The winner hands down is the ice cap slr(single lamp reflector).The consensous here is that the Ice Cap reflector is the best on the american market.
If you go back to the diy site you can see a tek lit retro kit. the ballast in it is a long thin thing. I dont think the ice cap ballast will fit in a tek lite system since that ballast is in both diy and factory made fixtures.The ice cap ballast is shorter thicker and wider .Also tek lite adds always say "famous make' ballast.I find that scarey.
All this tells me that if I want the best fixture on the market I will have to build it.
It is my personal opinion that these diy fixtures will equal or surpass MH in performance without the heat.
The currnt acceptable minimum for return flow is 10X the the tank capacjty with many opting for 20 and 30X. Just dont make the return pump so large it sucks the sump dry lol.
A lot of reefers are useing simple reflecters and 50 to 75 watt 6700k flood lite bulbs from lowes. If algea growth is the plan you could do that with a flash light lol.Remember to run your sump lighting only when your main tank lights are off.
I am sure there are those who will disagree with me ........but I have to tell you the same thing I told my sweety. The only time I ever made a mistake was when I thought I had made a mistake lol.