mister crabs Posted December 12, 2008 Share Posted December 12, 2008 Hellolights has 48" 4 bulb t5 fixtures WITH bulbs for $100!! Also 24" with bulbs for 100. They look to be discontinujed tek fixtures and it says they have individual reflectors. I just picked up 2 of the 24" for my 60gal cube. Figured I would pass this along to the club so our members can get in on these deals! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SamatSLS Posted December 12, 2008 Share Posted December 12, 2008 These are NOT Tek-Lights. Not at all. They are awful Chinese knockoffs. The reflectors are paper thin mylar, and the lamps are garbage. It's pretty cheesy. We ordered one to check it out prior to getting the lawyers involved.... Sam Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
R-3 Posted December 12, 2008 Share Posted December 12, 2008 So whats the difference Sam? What ballasts are they using? I agree the bulbs probably arent that great but what else is different? Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mister crabs Posted December 12, 2008 Author Share Posted December 12, 2008 sooo...what you are saying is that I ordered crap....thanks..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mister crabs Posted December 12, 2008 Author Share Posted December 12, 2008 just curious what the price was before the "closeout" deals? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mister crabs Posted December 12, 2008 Author Share Posted December 12, 2008 * Individual parabolic aluminum reflectors create up to three times more output * Clean black powder-coat finish * Enclosed electronic ballasts * 2-TRU actinic and 2-TRU 10,000K T-5 HO lamps are included * Adjustable cable hanging system available * Venting System allows maximum air flow for cool operation * Compatible with all T5 HO lamp brands * On/Off Switch * Dimensions: 24"x11"x2.5" from the hellolights website. says they are aluminum reflectors..... mylar is plastic tho right? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SamatSLS Posted December 12, 2008 Share Posted December 12, 2008 sooo...what you are saying is that I ordered crap....thanks..... I just want to make sure that people didn't think these were Sunlight Supply Tek fixtures... Please understand how upsetting it is to find a dead ringer of a product you work so hard to make, promote, and distribute. A lot of people close to me rely on these sales to survive. Ryan, the differences are clear, just look at it.... It uses a generic ballast, no sticker on it, so I wasn't sure. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mister crabs Posted December 13, 2008 Author Share Posted December 13, 2008 dont worry....no offense taken in any way.... and yes it does look alot like a tek. for the price im just gonna pick up a couple icecap 660's and rewire anyhow. im just trying to get away from the heat of my mh Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pledosophy Posted December 13, 2008 Share Posted December 13, 2008 I don't mean to be a jerk, but what is the difference? Generic ballast? That doesn't mean much to me in terms of quality. I don't know the difference. Garbage bulbs? It doesn't come with bulbs, you can use any bulb you want. The bulbs are an add on. I'm in the market for a new light right now. Tell me why I should pay triple the price for a Tek. I feel for where your coming from, but if someone has made a widget for a third of the cost, then there widget is going to sell better then your widget. I respect that people you are close to rely on your product to survive. I rely on the sales of my product to survive, and the money I take in to survive. So what is so much better about the Tek that it's worth the extra cash for me to spend? It's not $50, it's a couple hundred. Again I'm not trying to be disrespectful, I have a Tek on my reef, have loved it. Just want to know what the difference really is. You have one, I don't. Honestly if there is not a better arguement then it's generic as to why I should pay triple the price, I'll be able to tell you the difference soon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
R-3 Posted December 13, 2008 Share Posted December 13, 2008 Heres some pics on Nano-reef.com http://www.nano-reef.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=178487&hl=hellolights&st=100 Reflectors look pretty close to the old style reflectors on the Teks. I would watch out for salt spray because just like the old Teks I bet ya this fixture pits like a mofo. Use the same endcaps also. The one switch one cord kinda sucks but can be dealt with. If I had a 2' tank I would buy one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mister crabs Posted December 13, 2008 Author Share Posted December 13, 2008 soo.... does anyone know about icecap 660's? it says on website they will fun 2 ft bulbs and up to 16ft total bulb length. does that mean I can run all 8 t-5's off one ballast if they are 24"? that would be sweet. thanks for the help Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
R-3 Posted December 18, 2008 Share Posted December 18, 2008 Dont worry about the ballasts Crabs! They seem to be good ol' Workhorse 5's! http://www.nano-reef.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=178487&st=200 Man this deal keeps getting better. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SamatSLS Posted December 18, 2008 Share Posted December 18, 2008 I don't mean to be a jerk, but what is the difference? Generic ballast? That doesn't mean much to me in terms of quality. I don't know the difference. Garbage bulbs? It doesn't come with bulbs, you can use any bulb you want. The bulbs are an add on. I'm in the market for a new light right now. Tell me why I should pay triple the price for a Tek. I feel for where your coming from, but if someone has made a widget for a third of the cost, then there widget is going to sell better then your widget. I respect that people you are close to rely on your product to survive. I rely on the sales of my product to survive, and the money I take in to survive. So what is so much better about the Tek that it's worth the extra cash for me to spend? It's not $50, it's a couple hundred. Again I'm not trying to be disrespectful, I have a Tek on my reef, have loved it. Just want to know what the difference really is. You have one, I don't. Honestly if there is not a better arguement then it's generic as to why I should pay triple the price, I'll be able to tell you the difference soon. I bought the fixture it came with bulbs. They are pathetic compared to good lamps. That's why I called them garbage. I'll create a list of differences for you.. The Tek Light uses Alanod Miro 4 for the reflectors. Our design provides the output and uniformity you've experienced with your current fixture. This one doesn't come close to providing the same output, you might as well subtract a lamp or more. Test it and let me know. They don't look like the old tek light reflectors at all. That's like saying my girlfriend looks like Jessica Alba. Yeah they are both females, but come on man. Reflectors are almost everything in the world of T5 lighting. You need to buy the best reflector possible, it makes a major difference! The fixture I bought did not have workhorse ballasts, it had no name on it. It wasn't distiguishable. AKA GENERIC. I would recommend going to reefcentral and looking up the differences between Advance and Workhorse. You'll find that Ryan is wrong again. The good ol' workhorse doesn't do your bulbs any favors over the long haul. We use Stucchi endcaps, not the "generic" ones found on this. Our contact points are stronger, and they are reliable over the long term in the conditions we put our lights in. Ever deal with arcing on a cheap fixture? We powder coat our fixtures. These look painted to the naked eye, and the job was poor. (runs) Aesthetically they look a lot worse in person. We provide a 1 year warranty, and as some of you know, if you EVER have a problem we fix it same day here in your backyard. If you do buy this fixture, no feelings hurt. I'd like you to at least provide the members of this forum with a review. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SamatSLS Posted December 19, 2008 Share Posted December 19, 2008 Oh I forgot to mention this. This thing only has one power cord, but has 2 switches. If you want to control dawn and dusk, you'll need to manually turn it on daily. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lowman Posted December 19, 2008 Share Posted December 19, 2008 Good argument Sam. In my experience you get what you pay for at least 99% of the time. You wouldn't use a knock off skimmer for your expensive fish and coral system, why would you buy a knock off, POS light fixture? Besides the fact that you are not only supporting a local manufacturer, you are supporting a local fish store too. Win/Win in my opinion. If I were to go back to T-5's, I would buy a Tek light. It was hands down the best florescent fixture I had ever owned. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mister crabs Posted December 19, 2008 Author Share Posted December 19, 2008 I wouldnt buy a knockoff skimmer either.....would just build one....skimmers are probably the most overpriced equipment out there. As for the light yah its not the best in the world and if I had the chance to grab a tek for even close to this price I would have. but after upgrading the ballast to an icecap660 on each fixture and getting some nice ATI bulbs it will work just fine. not worried about the endcaps because my tank is covered. I am not really into LE corals or high light sps so if the reflectors are a little less efficient than the TEK its ok with me. Yes the hellolights T-5 and the TEK T-5 are very different but for the price it will work for now. I just needed to escape the heat of the halides. Anyone thats been around this hobby awhile knows that yes you do get what you pay for to a certain extent. And while the TEK may be better, you have to admit Sam that this is a better fixture than the aquatraders and even the nova fixtures. As for supporting the local businesses and LFS I do as much as possible. These lights are actually the FIRST thing I have ordered online for the tank. all my LR, pumps, heaters, substrate, livestock, and even the tank itself were bought local with the exception of the tank which was built by a local club member with 10+ years fabrication experience in acrylic. I believe that everyone should spend as much of thier fish money in LFS as opposed to online because if we all start shopping online where will we be when our heaters or return pumps crap out on us and we cant wait 3-5 days for a replacement cuz the LFS have all gone out of business? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
R-3 Posted December 19, 2008 Share Posted December 19, 2008 Now don't get me wrong guys I do like the Tek lights. I think I have owned like 5 Teklights and all have worked well.For the price and what you get it is hard to beat. Its not a ATI, Giesemann, or Aquatinics fixture but they are nice. With that said its hard to beat a $100 fixture. The jury is still out on these (due to lack of time on the market) but we will see how they pan out. Crabs I think you should test the fixture out. Do a before and after with the Icecaps and whatever different bulbs you do. If you get the WH5 ballasts too in the fixture you can sell those on RC real quick. A quick note on Wh5 ballasts. Doesn't Sunlighy Supply sell WH ballasts Sam? What makes them so inferior vs a Advance or Universal? From what I have read on other forums it was mostly positive. The 8 bulb setup I got right now is WH7's and they work great. As long as they dont look like this I think you are okay http://www.dfwmas.org/Forums/viewtopic.php?t=50257 Off topic does Sunlight sell a double waterproof T5 endcap? I have seen the VHO ones before but I saw a T5 one on a tank online. How wide are they? They look sweet! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
R-3 Posted December 19, 2008 Share Posted December 19, 2008 Now heres a hell of a DIY fixture. http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=1507709&highlight=ballasts Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RoseCityAquarium Posted December 19, 2008 Share Posted December 19, 2008 I also like the tek lights. I have had great luck with them. For anyone who is interested I have a 24" 4 bulb unit, used, I'm getting rid of for cheap. Great light, barely used with bulbs. I also agree the reflectors on them are top notch Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
R-3 Posted December 19, 2008 Share Posted December 19, 2008 Heres a pic I found on the web of the dual T5 endcap http://www.sunlightsupply.com/imgutility.aspx?img=AQUA_SOCKETS.jpg&dir=images&size=c&width=365&height=300 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SamatSLS Posted December 19, 2008 Share Posted December 19, 2008 yeah, we sell Workhorse Ryan, and I know a thing or two about them. The difference is in the program start of the Advance and the instant start of the WH. You should look that up, that's where the difference lies. We sell those endcaps too, they're nice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
R-3 Posted December 19, 2008 Share Posted December 19, 2008 Yeah I know about the difference in the way they fire the bulb. I thought that over only a years time it wasnt a big issue. I wanna find some more info on it, ill look tonight. See Sam if you guys made a 5' 8 bulb Tek I wouldnt even have to worry about it! [language filter] you 5' non-conformists Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pledosophy Posted December 21, 2008 Share Posted December 21, 2008 I'll create a list of differences for you.. Now that is what I am talking about. I have used cheap reflectors in the past. The output of the light is significantly affected, even when using the same bulbs, the difference in output was amazing. Easily twice as much, some of my corals even had some issues when I upgraded from the Nova fixture. The Teks put out a lot of light. More then any other I have seen. I have dealt with arcing on a cheap fixture, also dealt with endcaps that cracked the first time I changed the bulb. The arcing was scary, the broken endcaps were just annoying. Luckily the fixture just burnt out from the arcing and didn't start a fire. Your warrant policy is one of the reasons I went with your product. JMO Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CA2OR Posted December 30, 2008 Share Posted December 30, 2008 Do you still have any of the 24" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SamatSLS Posted December 31, 2008 Share Posted December 31, 2008 Do you still have any of the 24" 24" what? Who was that aimed at? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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