SunBlaze t5 fixture?

[MBasile]

Hey guys,

I would like to set up an aquaculture system in my basement and for lights I was thinking about using the SunBlaze 8x54 light from premium aquatics. Its only like $200 (without bulbs) so I was wondering if it is not a good system, has a bad ballast, or if there are any other downfalls of it. I would really prefer not to spend double or triple that on a fancy looking system because Im in college and dont have much spare change.


Thanks so much,

Matt

 

[derek4real]

nothing wrong with that. I was gonna use that if i was gonna use T5s.
I chose to use MH and a rolling system.

 

[adambirk]

i dont think those have individual reflectors and the par will really suffer.

 

[CreepySalt]

None of the commercial sites mention it but these fixtures on ebay are listed with individual German reflectors. They also have a 5 year warrantee.
Here is the quote about the reflector.

Reflectors are the best in the industry- German Polished Independent Reflectors- This will triple the intensity of the light- yes each bulb has its own reflector.

 

[MBasile]

hmmm. I wonder why it doesnt say that on the commercial sites.... seems like big selling point. someone on the lighting forum said they are crappy and not to buy one and that the reflector is garbage. Id like to see one.

 

[MBasile]

i found the "new wave" fixture on ebay that says it has 95% german reflectors and its about $100 more. maybe thats a better route. Im also curious about the ballast.

 

[stymee69]

check them out on sunlightsupply.com here is how they describe them




•Advanced reflector design offers excellent reflectivity & diffusion.
•White powder coated steel housing.
•Wire cable hangers included with every fixture. Now you can choose to hang horizontally or vertically.
•12 foot power cord & on/off switch allows for easy operation. Eight lamp model features two on/off switches to run four lamps at a time if desired.
•Louvered for cool operation.
•Run on 120 volt power only.
•3000° K (red) or 6500° K (blue) lamps are available.
•Daisy chain feature allows multiple fixtures to be plugged in together.
•5-Year Warranty.
•Fixtures include FREE Spectralux™ Lamps. Lamps packaged separately.




I was going to use them as well my only concern and the reason why i did not is because they are in a steal housing and being that they kinda need to closer to the water surface I was worried about them rusting not that that will affect your system providing that none of the rust falls off and into your tank

 

[redfishsc]

i found the "new wave" fixture on ebay that says it has 95% german reflectors and its about $100 more. maybe thats a better route. Im also curious about the ballast.

Here are the reflectors for the New Wave. I have a NW 24. (4X24).


The reflectors are nice and large, but they are obviously not parabolic.

That being said, it puts over 200 PAR at 12" deep with 2 new ATI bulbs and 2 old UVL. Not as good as true parabolic reflectors, but it's twice the PAR compared to what I got on a Nova Extreme 4X24 with a single flat reflector and similar bulbs (about 100 PAR at 12").

 

[redfishsc]

As a side note, I've always been under the impression, based on pics on the net and the lower price, that the Sun Blaze did not have individual reflectors.


I may be wrong on that. I saw an ad in the classified, with a pic of a Sun Blaze, and it definitely had individual reflectors.



If anyone has one of these Sun Blazes, post pics of the reflectors for us, like the one I posted above of the New Wave.

 

[chadfarmer]

it uses a triade ballast and has a metal case so it can rust

 

[redfishsc]

yeah my New Wave has a metal fixture, and it definitely gets some salt spray on the occasion, but honestly there's no rust to be seen on it. It has a pretty thick white paint (epoxy? powdercoat?) on it.

 

[sdime0]

I have the sunblaze 48" 4 t5's over my 55gal. I love this light can't go wrong for the price. If you have any questions just ask. Best picture of the reflector I have

 

[redfishsc]

Thanks for posting that! Those do look like decent reflectors. Better than the one on my New Wave 24. I wish I had known this when I got the New Wave 8 months ago.


Where did you get the Sun Blaze?

 

[adambirk]

just to help clarify. i see alot of people talking about rust when in all reallity metal that has been powdercoated is just as good as aluminum that has been painted. only thing is the metal is heavier. aluminum will corrode just as fast as metal will rust and in some cases faster. the only true advatage is that aluminum is way lighter. i am in the auto body industry and you would be surprised to see some of the aluminum hoods that i have seen that have the corrosion.

it is going to come down to how well you take care of the fixture. if you hang a ati powermodule over a tank and never wipe it down you will have to worry abou that corroding also.

 

[sdime0]

I got the light off ebay. from this guy

http://cgi.ebay.com/48-Aquarium-Lig...ltDomain_0?hash=item3efa15f1db#ht_3141wt_1084

As far as rust maybe some of the hardware on it might rust but the actual fixture is powder coated, I will bet it will out last the seams on my tank.

couple more pictures:

 

[MBasile]

Wow! thanks for the pictures! that looks like a really decent light for the price. Does anyone know if you can replace the endcaps with waterproof ones? also, how do people feel about putting a peice of glass under the bulbs to keep them dry?

 

[MBasile]

sdime0,how is your growth under the lights? does it seem bright?

Is the workhorse ballast a decent ballast for t-5? I have a retro that uses the advance ballast. Is there much of a difference?

 

[MBasile]

That seller on ebay doesnt say that the fixture is the sunblaze. It is though?

 

[redfishsc]

Matt, there is a difference. A Workhorse is an "Instant on" ballast, which kicks the bulbs on in 1 gazillionth of a second, where as a true T5 ballast has a more soft start on it.


There has been speculation that this can be hard on a T5 bulb, but honestly I have my doubts. We don't run our bulbs through the total length of their light-producing life, so it's probably not an issue.

I've tested the PAR from the fixture that I have that runs a Workhorse, and the PAR output is just fine. The New Wave 24 (WH 5 ballast) whipped the pants off of a Current Nova Extreme (both 4X24 with similar bulbs), literally double the output (100ppfd vs. 200+ppfd) at around 10-12".

 

[sdime0]

You can replace the end caps, which I plan on doing. As far as a cover Its hard to tell in the picture but I got a thin piece
of plexiglass that I velcro to the fixture.

Its very bright compared to my old pc's. Growth has been pretty good for me. I
have sps on the bottom of my tank that grow just fine.

I have to agree with redfish the instant start might shorten the life of the bulbs but they tend to get changed for color or par well before the bulb is close to burning out.