Is this a good fixture?
- Thread starter jay02483
- Start date
redfishsc
New member
I personally do not trust 'no-name" lights from ebay.
While they may seem to work just fine (and the ones you linked to are pretty schnazzy looking), the big question is "did they use decent components?".
All to often I have bought "slightly cheaper" products only to find out that I really got hosed in some area.
Lately I've read some about the quality of ballasts and reflectors that these no-name brands come with (they are cheaper for a reason).
You can get a pretty good MH retrofit kit and a T5 retrofit from www.diyreef.com .
Sure, it will cost more. But you'll have quality that will last and not leave you asking "am I actually running a decent light".
If anyone has used these products, I would actually like to be proven wrong on this, so please chime in. I just err on the side of caution.
While they may seem to work just fine (and the ones you linked to are pretty schnazzy looking), the big question is "did they use decent components?".
All to often I have bought "slightly cheaper" products only to find out that I really got hosed in some area.
Lately I've read some about the quality of ballasts and reflectors that these no-name brands come with (they are cheaper for a reason).
You can get a pretty good MH retrofit kit and a T5 retrofit from www.diyreef.com .
Sure, it will cost more. But you'll have quality that will last and not leave you asking "am I actually running a decent light".
If anyone has used these products, I would actually like to be proven wrong on this, so please chime in. I just err on the side of caution.
tkeracer619
New member
IME I don't trust things on generic listings. They basically say the same thing about both fixtures so they are just spewing a somewhat decent sales pitch modified for each fixture. I rarely buy anything on ebay that says "Good Luck Bidding" when its a buy it now...
The lights might be fine but I would do as redfishsc said and go with a retro setup.
The lights might be fine but I would do as redfishsc said and go with a retro setup.
luther1200
Premium Member
I also have a 36" tank, and I bought a fixture with 1 MH in the center. I was awful, the MH light is right over the center brace. It casts a big shadow right in the prime spot of the tank. Do yourself a favor and get a fixture with 2-150w. or 2-250w. Trust me you won't regret it. I wound up spending more than I wanted adding a second MH into the fixture. It would have been better to just get 1 with 2 bulbs from the start.
abulgin
Premium Member
It appears that those fixtures have internal MH ballasts, so if they suck you'll have a hard time swapping them out for something better. IME, the shells of all these fixtures, no name and name brands, are basically the same. What makes the difference is ballasts, bulbs, and reflectrs, in that order (although some would argue that reflectors are more important than bulbs). No-name fixtures are cheaper because these three things are typically of a lesser quality than name brand fixtures. However,that DOES NOT mean that you're wasting your money if you buy one or getting screwed. I have a 48" 2x250W HQI with 4x65W actinic PCs from Odyssea/Aquatraders, for which I swapped out the ballasts for IceCaps and swapped out the bulbs for better ones. It is not a "perfect" fixture, but it works great and my SPS grow like crazy. Is it as nice as a high-end unit? No. Does it work and look just like the Current fixture? Yep, and it cost me $400 less. IMO, don't fall victim to the "you get what you pay for" mantra--it's BS half the time.
