Lighting purchasing questions

[Knox_Legend]

I have been looking at buying a light fixture for my 135 because I hate the mismatched coral life pc and crappy T8's that I currently have, and am wanting to do T5's as I pretty much just want this to be a easier to maintain softie reef. I was wondering where everybody has bought their lights from either local places or online retailers? I like doing the research on finding the best price and am looking at either a 72" fixture or 2 36" fixtures at least a total of 8 T5 bulbs. Any suggestions or brands that you prefer ?

Thanks

 

[macclellan]

I think that catalina aquariums is the sweet spot for cost/quality. You'll want a 12 bulb fixture...two banks of 6. Tek if money isn't a limiting factor. Don't get two 36" fixtures for a normal 6' tank with two brace bars unless you are hanging them (good chance they'll end up in the water if two are on legs).

 

[Knox_Legend]

Yeah the Tek lights are real nice but I think the biggest they make is a 60" fixture. I will go and check out the Catalina site. That is the one problem I have is the large glass center brace in my tank which is about 18" wide.

 

[macclellan]

In that case, you could go with 2 36" fixtures, but I suspect you'll find that 1 is cheaper and a better option overall.

One thing to note about the catalina aquarium 72" fixtures is that they are single length 80w bulbs. This means less options in terms of bulb selection, but very low cost compared to twice as many half-length bulbs... replacing 12 36" bulbs is around $300! In my last post I meant a single fixture, not necessarily a single fixture with two banks of 36" bulbs.

 

[Flavum]

yeaaaa what macclellan said.

I havent been on there website in a bit but hellolights always had great prices.

 

[modifyd]

I have an Aquactinics Constellation 72" fixture I'll sell. I'm switching from a 6' tank to a corner tank if I can find one.

 

[Knox_Legend]

I was kind of thinking that two 36" fixtures would give more bulb options but the look of one fixture is pretty nice. The Catalina fixture is pretty good looking but the 60" bulbs are limiting. Then I suppose when I factor in replacing 12 bulbs every year I could just get a MH setup like a 150w or 250w pendants with a bit of T5 accent but, then I would have to find some way to hang the damn things! Modifyd how much would you want for the 72" fixture?

 

[modifyd]

Cost for the T-5 replacement for a 72" light is about the same as MH. $550 for the light with the extra legs. This fixture is a 14 bulb (36") unit.

 

[Steve W]

I had good luck at a good price on ebay. At the risk of being accused of being paid to promote them (again! which I'm not!), I bought mine (a 20" fixture) from "topdogsellers".

I was in a hurry and broke so I ordered from them based pretty much solely on price. I can't say much for their bulbs, but it's hard to beat their price on fixtures. The bulbs that come in them don't last very long. My MH bulb was basically shot after 6 months, but the fixture and ballasts with 2 (14w each) t5 actinics bulbs and a 150w MH bulb was less than $100 including shipping. I just put new high quality bulbs in it and it's working well.

It may not be what you want, but I think it's worth checking them out, especially if you're on a budget. Their shipping to me was prompt. They carry a variety of different fixtures, basically everything except LEDs.

There are several other sellers with reasonably priced fixtures on ebay as well, but I don't have any experience with them.

Steve W