Where to buy good but cheap lights??

[90gallon4me]

I need to upgrade my 150 watt metal halides to 250 watt halides. I'm looking for a mh/t5 fixture with moon lights. Can yall help guide me to some decent lights.. eBay has a fixture that would be perfect for me but it doesn't have uv pertectant glass for the mh. My reef tank is a 110 tall and is 48" wide. Thanks!

 

[tonymission]

I have that generic eBay fixture you can find for $233 on my 90g. I would definitely change out the bulbs to Phoenix 14ks and ati or your preference t5s though. Unfortunately double ended only so no radiums

 

[90gallon4me]

I have phoenix 14k now but just 2 150 watt. I talked to the seller and he claims that the glass is not uv protectant. I always thought that was important to have. Can anybody confirm if you need the uv glass? I can always have uv glass cut and slide out the old stuff and put uv glass in..

 

[mikesmith34]

I could be wrong but I was under the impression you only need it on the double ended. I ran SE bulbs with no issues.

 

[myreefclub0070]

new cheap lights and good use cheap lights.....ARC!
patients delivers.
options depending on what your looking for ....ebay, amazon and hate to say it but china!

 

[porpoiseaquatics]

Lighting is one of the places that you don't want to go cheap on....just my opinion. As mentioned, patience is the key and the right fixture will come along at the right price.

As for UV....interestingly enough....in the LED world, they add UV chips to the fixture so why would it be bad from a MH?

 

[jead85]

if you go the diy route I have a 2x250w ballast

 

[maelstrom79]

Barry has that right.... DE and HQI bulbs release more UV than the LED units you see with UV in them. It will fry your eyes and your corals if you don't have UV glass.... SE has a protective glass cover around them

 

[morganatlanta]

I have Plusrite DE 250W bulbs that say "UV shield" or something like that on the outer glass shell. I took it to imply that they were shielded and the separate UV cover was not needed, though I do use one for splash guard purposes as much as anything.

If you need UV covers, here's one for $10
http://www.aquariumpart.com/Current_USA_HQI_Glass_Cover_for_SunPod_1058_1066_p/rcu01926.htm">http://www.aquariumpart.com/Current_USA_HQI_Glass_Cover_for_SunPod_1058_1066_p/rcu01926.htm</a>

I have a canopy so I went with a 3x250W retrofit instead of a premade fixture. I picked it up used off ebay for around $150, then added a DIY LED rail for dusk/dawn and actinic supplement.

 

[acroholic]

ARC FS Forum for good used equipment at a good price, if you can wait until you see what you need.

 

[jrhunter0000]

Ebay or Amazon is going to be your best bet when it comes to cheapest.

 

[morganatlanta]

brad;981103 wrote: If you aren't hell bent on t5s ive got a mh/pc fixture in the for sales right now

That looks like a great deal. Personally, I'd rip out the PC lights and throw in T5s or LEDs, but for $125, you can't beat it.