Lowes or homedepot light will it work

[newreef06]

I was in Lowes the other day. They had some flood lights. Basic PC but for your yard. I was wondering If anyone used these type of lights. Also did you have good luck with them. I have a 10gallon nano. I know the coralife 1x96 watts are good. I also just set up my 55 gallon reef. So im tight on money

 

[Agu]

You're probably talking about the Lights of America PC yard lights,

LOA


They have a 6500K 65Watt bulb that works on aquariums OK. The color is a bit yellow but it's adequate for corals. It does have a history of spotty quality control though. Keep your receipt just in case.......

 

[rsteagall]

what about filters to change it to 10k?

http://lenslights.com/aqualights/innerpages/ebayad.html
http://mtigrp.com/ebay/aquarium_lights/light_comparison.gif

http://www.lenslights.com/filters/

 

[aural]

my suggestion? dont get into setting up another tank if the first thing you are going to skimp on is light. Your lighting is one of the MOST important parts of keeping a reef tank.

While a 65k home depot special could work, its going to look terrible. I've seen people's tanks that have those and it looks like their fish are swimming around in urine.

 

[rsteagall]

I've not used these flourex lights, but I did just take the liberty at contacting Len at lenslights.com. He said each filter added reduces lumens by about 20%. One filter gives you a little more than 9500k. To reach a 12000k color temperature, it would take 2 filters and he said you'd lose about 35-40% intensity.

I wish someone here had real experiences with this light they could share.

aural, I hear what you're saying... but all too many times manufacturers prey on our hobby to charge an arm and a leg for "specialized" equipment. Honestly, there isn't any reason ballasts and bulbs should cost as much as they do. This is why we do things like the "maxi-mod" instead of buying a tunze stream. I think its a great idea to try and come up with alternative light sources. Its been said that these flourex lights will take over HID lights one day. It could very well happen. I've read alot of "growers" have been using these lights with a lot of success. I'd like to hear some reef hobbists experiences with the product.

 

[aural]

for what i spend on livestock, i would never go the cheap route when it comes to light. Light is what effects the very color of your corals and fish. Personally i dont mind saving a buck or two here and there, but when it comes to what ends up being one of the cornerstones of your system, I'll take the tried and true methods.

 

[Agu]

I've used those lights and didn't like the color of some bulbs, other bulbs looked really good. (like I said, quality control is spotty) They also lose spectrum pretty quickly and figure you'll be replacing the bulb at least every six months. IME the bulbs are good for 4 months assuming it had the right spectrum to start with.. By the time you add in the replacement bulbs it's not cost effective for a show tank.

Friend of mine with a coral farm has several of those fixtures in use. He really doesn't care how the growout tanks look as long as their's good growth. He uses them to add extra light and runs them until the bulb burns out so it's cost effective for him.

 

[rsteagall]

Agu, did you look into the filters at all? The bulbs are listed for about 10,000 hours I believe. You're saying after about 2000 hours (6 months at 12 hour days) you'd want to replace them?

Again I ask... did you use any filters?