Cheap vs Name brand t5 Fixtures

[JLight]

Hey everyone I've been looking around for t5 fixtures to put over my bowfront and was looking on BRS, Marine depot and every other aquarium sites most of us use and the price for these 36 inch fixtures to me is just ridiculous! So naturally I head on over to ebay and find a similar fixture to most of the ones I previously looked at and for a MUCH lower price. They all have similar features and all are high output. So my question to you guys is, is there much difference between light fixtures? Will a cheap ebay fixture provide the same lighting as a expensive name brand fixture?

 

[Pete polyp]

http://www.coralvue.com/t5-led-fixtures
How about name brand and cheap at the same time?

 

[Pete polyp]

And btw.... all of my tanks have the ebay fixtures on them.

 

[JLight]

Thats a cool looking fixture but of course they dont have the 36 inch 6 bulb like i want. This is the fixture im thinking im gonna go with LCD Timer 36" 234W 6X39W Fluorescent Actinic T5 HO Aquarium Light Fixture Marine | eBay

 

[Big E]

The big dfferences with the ebay fixtures I've researched is no fan cooling or moisture protection in any way. So basically they are throw aways or when connections go bad you replace with waterproof endcaps. The bulb life is going to be affected without the active cooling.

My friend turned me onto the Coralvue fixture, so I'm going to try one over my frag tank. It's hard to pass up a deal like that.

The one other aspect that is a huge deal is individual reflectors.............it's a deal breaker for me.

The link you posted looks interesting..................not sure what all it has?

 

[JLight]

Yeah it seems to have everything more expensive fixtures have. Heat I don't think will be an issue because the room the tank is in never gets over 70 degrees so I guess the last thing I'd individual reflectors. I'll Have to contact them to find out if it does our not

 

[Usctom]

I bought 4 of those coralvue t5/led. They did have a 36 6bulb for sale. They are very well built. My only complaint is the fans are loud.

 

[JLight]

Must have been out when I looked. I should call them see of they're going to be in stock any time soon

 

[Pete polyp]

Thats a cool looking fixture but of course they dont have the 36 inch 6 bulb like i want. This is the fixture im thinking im gonna go with LCD Timer 36" 234W 6X39W Fluorescent Actinic T5 HO Aquarium Light Fixture Marine | eBay

This is what I have on two tanks... I swapped the stock bulbs for ati... they do a fine job

 

[scsdukefan408]

Ive been looking for a new T5/LED combo and this coralvue maybe my next pick sweet looking...Thanks for the post pete...cept they dont have a 4bulb at 24":sad:

 

[Pete polyp]

Thats a cool looking fixture but of course they dont have the 36 inch 6 bulb like i want. This is the fixture im thinking im gonna go with LCD Timer 36" 234W 6X39W Fluorescent Actinic T5 HO Aquarium Light Fixture Marine | eBay

This is what I have on two tanks... I swapped the stock bulbs for ati... they do a fine job

 

[Keithcorals]

With cheap lights some are better than others but to a point you get what you pay for. I've done side by side test with my par meter and an ATi fixture and a less pricey fixture both with the same ATi bulbs put in the same day as the test. The ATi fixture put out almost twice the light the other fixture did. So it cost almost twice as much but it also put out almost twice the light even with the same bulbs. I do mostly SPS do for me it's worth it to get the extra output but for lps or soft coral the need for such high output is not as necessary.

 

[Pete polyp]

With cheap lights some are better than others but to a point you get what you pay for. I've done side by side test with my par meter and an ATi fixture and a less pricey fixture both with the same ATi bulbs put in the same day as the test. The ATi fixture put out almost twice the light the other fixture did. So it cost almost twice as much but it also put out almost twice the light even with the same bulbs. I do mostly SPS do for me it's worth it to get the extra output but for lps or soft coral the need for such high output is not as necessary.

Do you have those par numbers handy?

The light they were looking at on ebay has proven to be plenty for any coral I have tried under them. I kinda do wish I had a dimmable ati fixture to extend bulb life. That seems like something that in time would save some money.

 

[Big E]

I believe the Coralvue fixtures are being discontinued & that's why the low pricing. They aren't as nice as ATI Sunpowers..........not even close, but compared to the ebay fixtures you get more for the same price. I sent this first impression view to my friend as he wasn't able to fire his up right away. Mine is the 4 bulb fixture.

My impression----
--The fans are loud like the enclosed fans for the old halide setups. It doesn't bother me, but some people that are anal about fan noise might be bothered. The slots by the LEDs are where the air comes in and it's pushed out both ends.
I'm sure it keeps things cool enough for the ballasts & LEDs.........not sure about the bulbs as much because of where the entry slits are, but it should be okay. The air intake being above the water is going to be pulling moisture into the fixture, but if it's hot enough it may not matter that much.


If you look at ATI fixtures the fans pull air in from the top of the fixtures and then it's pushed out below the bulbs, which is probably more efficient & avoids pulling moisture as easily into the fixture.


---The ballasts are quick start which will wear on the bulbs. ATI ballasts are soft start, which is how T5s should be fired up. They seem to burn the bulbs at the same color temp as my other ballasts which is a crisp white with a tinge of blue.


----Overall it seems bright enough and should be perfect for a 40 breeder.


----LEDs add blue to the look.........most supplemental LEDs add a slight pop but you don't see more blue. It may be because I only have four bulbs. In a 6 or 8 bulb it may not be as noticeable. I assume with a 4 bulb you'll see some slight glimmer lines too.


Be careful with them as each diode has a reflector and they are bright beams. I should have checked them by aiming them at a wall or table to see if they have the flashlight look..............if they do, be careful about how low they are mounted or how many hours they are run.............Coralvue eliminated the dimmer pots on the new models. I wouldn't run them more than 4 hours max. I'm going to start at one hour or maybe less. It might even be a good idea only to run them when you have someone stop by for a bit of bling look and don't run them at all.


I don't know why the fans have a separate switch as I think they should be running anytime the bulbs are on.

 

[NanaReefer]

Aside from ATI being #1 IMO I'd choose AquaticLife as my 2nd favorite.
www.aquaticlife.com

 

[Asonitez]

I just picked up the CoralVue 24" 6 Bulb Fixture. Its an awesome fixture from what I've seen of my friends tanks. The ATI IMHO is nice but I like the CoralVue for the value!

 

[Dreamkeeper]

Be careful with cheap t5 fixtures and being able to get replacement parts for them. I bought a complete setup from a fellow reefer and in 4 months have had 2 out 5 ballasts go out and they are not available anywhere in the USA. Its a 8 lamp x 54w 7 wire lamp ballast.

 

[melypr1985]

This has been really helpful for me! I'm needing new light and I'm on a TIGHT budget. Thanks all for the info!

 

[DFW]

I bought 4 of those coralvue t5/led. They did have a 36 6bulb for sale. They are very well built. My only complaint is the fans are loud.

Can you tell me anything about these? I contacted coralvue, but they can't answer any questions. Are the LEDs 3 watt, and what do they drive them at? Are there individual cords so you can plug in to separate timers? Is there more than one ballast to run 4 tubes, or 6 tubes? What else should I know about them? Are the reflectors good? Thanks!

 

[DFW]

I just picked up the CoralVue 24" 6 Bulb Fixture. Its an awesome fixture from what I've seen of my friends tanks. The ATI IMHO is nice but I like the CoralVue for the value!

Can you run just 2, or just 4 bulbs at a time if you want to, or must you run 6 for it to work? Thanks! Do the LEDs have any power to them, or are they really just moon lights?