New 48" T5 Lighting, opinions.

[Jeremy0322]

I am looking at a new lighting fixture because I am not a huge fan of the PC's that I have right now, plus I am going to need new bulbs, a new ballast, and then a way to cover it from the water, so I decided to just put an extra 150 into the equation and pick up a new light. I went to eBay and this is the best thing I can find, it seems really really promising, what does everyone think?

New Light

-8 bulbs - all are 54 watts for a total of 432 watts.
-4 bulbs are 10k
-4 bulbs are actinic
-Comes with W style reflectors, which probably are not the best but it does something similar to individual I think?
-2 year warranty
-Free Hanging Kit

Opinions? I know it will be better than the 260 watt PC I have right now, but is there something better I can get for a similar cost?

 

[BigJay]

Good price if its half as good as it says it is. I do have some problems with the wording of W reflector and parabolic?? It does have eletronic ballasts but not all ballasts are created equal. Lastly its 17.5" wide! hope you have the room for it.

oh I forgot to mention it does not list the make of the bulbs. They must be extremely cheap even if they were $10(most are 15-30) a piece that would be 80 and two decent electronic ballasts would be about $200.

 

[Jeremy0322]

I looked at all of that, although looking into it I realized I dont know what alot of it means...lol. The W reflectors I am pretty sure just mean that there is 1 reflector for every 2 bulbs in the shape of a W, so wont be as good as individuals but i cant imagine they are that much horrible to keep me from buying the light, it seems like an awesome price. Its another 140 bucks more than it will cost to fix the current PC, its hard not to justify that.

 

[BigJay]

I definetly would not fix the PC and up grade to T5's if your willing. There is a massive amount of difference between reflectors though and some systems are no better the PC lighting. The reflector is what makes all the difference. I'm not trying to make up your mind for you but I'd seriously look into what your other options are. I'm the kind of guy that has to know whats in the unit before I buy it. Lots of wierd descriptors going on there without really telling you anything... but the fact they are calling it parabolic got my goat as shady. This W or this V cannot be called parabolic. Seems like underhanded sales tactics.

Parabolic reflector - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

[BigJay]

from the listing

Specifications:
W type parabolic mirrored reflector


Parabolic Reflector Highly Polished

UL Listed Components including UL Electronic Ballast >0.99 pf

 

[Jeremy0322]

hypathetically it would still be parabolic but there is really no other way to describe it other than to say its a W. This might be what it looks like..

https://diyreef.authsecure.com/shop/images/NewSLRsm.jpg

I am going to email the seller and see if I can get some more information on it. Do you have any other suggestions for something that looks better for a similar cost?

 

[Jeremy0322]

And I just emailed them asking about the reflectors, and for better pictures showing greater detail of the light. We will see what I get back.

 

[BigJay]

I'd have to see the reflector to believe it. I've seen similar claims all over the internet as a misonomer for bent reflector.

 

[BigJay]

good man. If your not educated you can't complain when you didn't get what you wanted.

 

[Jeremy0322]

Couldn't agree any more. That is why i came here before placing the order, why spend good money for useless equipment.

 

[Jeremy0322]

""Hello! I will try and get more pictures on the reflectors. It kind of looks like a w except the middle is not very pronounced on it. The bulbs are manufactured by CH Lighting in China. They are the largest producer of T5-HO bulbs in the region. They are known for actually producing the correct color spectrum unlike many we have seen in the past. It seems all to common that a 10,000k bulbs turns out to be closer to a 6,500k bulb. We have not had defective batches of bulbs from. So much of the imported goods turn out to be less than desireable even though great claims are made. According to most manufacturers recommendations, the bulbs should be changed yearly to 16 months. I will get more pics and send them out tomorrow morning unless I have any on file.
Thanks!""

This was the response about the reflectors and bulbs, and I will be getting more pictures tomorrow morning.

 

[JarsOMayonnaise]

I am interested in hearing what you find out!

 

[michael_cb_125]

I agree with upgrading to T5s. But I would be weary of a $300 8 bulb fixture.
Notice that it has no cooling fans. It WILL get hot. With 8 T5s all crammed together you will get heat build up. I have no issues with buying Chinese made lighting fixtures, as I have owned several Current-USA fixtures. But I am very weary of buying chinese made fixtures made by a company that I have never heard of.

This "It kind of looks like a w except the middle is not very pronounced on it." seems like an unprofessional statement to me. If you are selling a product, you should be able to give an accurate description.

Just remember that you really do get what you pay for. I am not bashing the light or the company, I am just throwing out a few things to think of.

~Michael

 

[BigAl07]

I have to agree with Michael here. T5 bulbs are designed to operate at a very specific temperature (not K rating but actual bulb temp) and just a few degrees to high and you get "color differences" as well as greatly reduced bulb life.

you really do get what you pay for

Oh so true! Lights and skimmer are possibly the two WORSE places to try and scrimp!

 

[Jeremy0322]

I was going to put a few fans in the canopy anyways to keep everything moving in there so I wasnt too worried about the fans.

 

[michael_cb_125]

That will help keep the temperature cooler in the canopy. But the heat issue will be found within the fixture itself. Since the fixture is essentially an alluminum box with an acrylic shield, it will hold in the heat. It a quality fixture the fans actually blow air directly across the tubes, keeping them at the ideal temp.

Another thing to consider is that no matter how many fans you have in the canopy the heat will still build up. The "pendant" style fixtures are meant to be hanging over a tank, thus allowing an unlimited supply of "cool" air. By keeping it suspended in a canopy (hothouse) you will greatly reduce the life of the bulbs.

JMHO
~Michael

 

[BigAl07]

Again I agree with Michael. The fixture has to be "Designed" to control the temp. Most fixtures have been designed so that the fans pull the cooled air from the outisde and it's channeled across the bulbs and exit the other end (or the middle etc). At MACNA they actually have IR pics showing how, where and WHY the bulbs need to be maintained at a certain temp.

If you're doing a canopy install consider open top and open back to allow heat to escape readily. My canopy was designed to be completely open in the top and back so that I could run a "Enclosed Fixture" in it. Enclosed fixtures usually are noted as "Not for Canopy Install" for these very reasons. But I designed mine to allow for that.

 

[BigJay]

I'm not going back to look but I believe this guy says its made in the USA. His response on the reflector has already sealed the deal for me. Its obviously an accordian style reflector.
I'm with you Michael on the heating issue. Theres a reason these fixtures are only found on Ebay.

 

[BigJay]

The bulbs are manufactured by CH Lighting in China. They are the largest producer of T5-HO bulbs in the region. They are known for actually producing the correct color spectrum unlike many we have seen in the past.


It seems all to common that a 10,000k bulbs turns out to be closer to a 6,500k bulb. We have not had defective batches of bulbs from. So much of the imported goods turn out to be less than desireable even though great claims are made.
Thanks!""

.

Um they are? Who are they? LOL

hes actually correct on most T5 bulbs being out of color range. I'll do him one better and say at this point there are only 3 manufacturers I even trust right now for correct spectrum.
Does he actually test the bulbs? How does he know he hasn't had a bad batch?
But I'll defend him a tiny bit here and say every model of T5 being sold commercially would have the bulbs go in the trash if i bought it.

And my friend I am not directing any of this hostility towards you. I just loathe underhanded selling tactics on ebay. I've almost been suckered in myself at times. But I also know those pretty yellow tools that looks just like Dewaults at the swap meet sell for great prices and every claim in the world says they are the same thing or better. Their called cheap knock offs for a reason.

 

[Jeremy0322]

See, this is why I put the questions out there. I want to know if this is worth the money or if there are ways to make it worth the money by making very cheap upgrades, and the responses I get make me make an educated decision about that.

I would assume it would be easy to get some air moving through the box, it would not be the first time I drilled through metal, which would get some good air flow going over the top of the bulbs and out the other side. Kind of like venting a computer, which I have done before to get better air flow through a computer.

As for the canopy, the top is semi-open and the back is fully open, and I had no intention of closing it up. I was just going to staple some netting and cover it up a little so fish cant make it out, but I desperately want that much needed open tank for the gas exchange and evaporation aided cooling. This should give you a better idea about the canopy.

There are 2 big slits in the top, one cant be seen because of the ghetto PC's, and the back is fully open.

About the crap bulbs, more than likely I would be replacing some of them to get a better color, I would like some fiji purples in there (heard wonderful things about them) and maybe some 14k's or even a 20k.

I also emailed him again and asked about the power cords. There are 4 switches for the lights themselves, but only one power cord, making it impossible to put on times. That is a deal breaker for me, but he said he would talk to the manufacturer and see how hard it would be to put another cord in. So, I will have more information about that in a little bit, but if thats a no I dont think I will consider it anymore. However, I dont think it would be hard to put a new cord in myself for half the bulbs, but we will see what they say first.