Anyone use MH bulbs on eBay? Price too good to be true? - Aquarium Advice

cmor1701d · 12-22-2007, 04:16 PM

It's time for me to order new MH bulbs for my annual New Years Day replacement. I have been under the impression that MH bulbs should be good for 12 months or more before the color spectrum starts shifting too much. I was all set to order a set of Ushio bulbs from HelloLights whenI decided to check on eBay. I found these 150W HQI 10K DE METAL HALIDE BULB LAMP MARINE REEF for $9.99 ea. plus $10.00 shipping. The seller told me the bulbs should last 6 - 8 months if I used them 10 hours a day.

Thoughts?

They are listed as:
150 watt HQI DE Metal Halide Aquarium Reef Bulb 10,000k (kelvin)
*Brand New in the Box*
*High Quality & Long Life*
*T7 RX7S Base*
*Horizontal Burn Position*
*(DE) Double-Ended Metal Halide bulb*
*Distinct Blue Tint Full spectrum light*
*Blue ocean depths effect*
*Replacement lamp for any 150 watt Double-Ended HQI Metal Halide M81 Ballast*
SAME COLOR QUALITY AND PERFORMANCE AS
Coralife & ReefLux & USHIO Brands
Best For Reef Aquarium Setups [Retail price $50-$70]

**roka64** · 12-24-2007, 12:13 PM

I'm kind of curious now, but does your lighting have the:
Double-Ended HQI Metal Halide M81 Ballast
Specifically the M81 Ballast?
I don't know too much about the specific ballasts or if that is simply a standard...?
It looks like the seller has a good business, only a very few amount of negatives, as opposed to positives.

cmor1701d · 12-24-2007, 01:55 PM

The M81 ballast is an ANSI standard, so most fixtures are M81 compliant.

He does do a lot of business. I think I'll order a set and see how it goes. I can get 3 bulbs for just slightly more than the price of 1 brand name bulb.

Thanks Scott.

**roka64** · 12-24-2007, 02:10 PM

Anytime and thanks for the info!

ccCapt · 12-26-2007, 04:50 PM

I bought 2 175 14K SE bulbs from Greatdel for like $10 each. The bulbs had a 60 day warranty. One lasted about 45 days and the seller replaced it. The other bulb lasted about 3 months.
I've been using metal halide bulbs for almost 20 years and NEVER had a bulb actually go out. I always just replaced them after 12 months. These 2 bulbs would not fire after a relatively short time. They did have nice color, but I don't know what kind of PAR they have.
Back to name brand bulbs for me.

timbo2 · 12-27-2007, 11:58 AM

I have purchased the 175 watt SE type bulbs from trustdeals and they are awesome. Have not had any problems. I wish they were around when I had to pay the $70 a bulb. Everyone has their own opinion, but for the money, these are great to me.

cmor1701d · 01-02-2008, 02:03 PM

Thanks Timbo. I bought 3 of the 150w DE from trusdeals and I agree that thy are awesome. I expected to see a difference from my 1 yr old bulbs but these are so much brighter (subjectively).
I just wish I had a meter to check PAR throughout the tank.

If they last they are the deal of the year.

12-22-2007, 04:16 PM	#1
cmor1701d Aquarium Advice Addict Community Mentor Join Date: Feb 2003 Location: Belle Mead, NJ Posts: 3,927 Images: 43	Anyone use MH bulbs on eBay? Price too good to be true? It's time for me to order new MH bulbs for my annual New Years Day replacement. I have been under the impression that MH bulbs should be good for 12 months or more before the color spectrum starts shifting too much. I was all set to order a set of Ushio bulbs from HelloLights whenI decided to check on eBay. I found these 150W HQI 10K DE METAL HALIDE BULB LAMP MARINE REEF for $9.99 ea. plus $10.00 shipping. The seller told me the bulbs should last 6 - 8 months if I used them 10 hours a day. Thoughts? They are listed as: 150 watt HQI DE Metal Halide Aquarium Reef Bulb 10,000k (kelvin) Brand New in the Box High Quality & Long Life T7 RX7S Base Horizontal Burn Position (DE) Double-Ended Metal Halide bulb Distinct Blue Tint Full spectrum light Blue ocean depths effect Replacement lamp for any 150 watt Double-Ended HQI Metal Halide M81 Ballast SAME COLOR QUALITY AND PERFORMANCE AS Coralife & ReefLux & USHIO Brands Best For Reef Aquarium Setups [Retail price $50-$70] __________________ Click here to Vote for Aquarium Advice on AquaRank . Vote EVERY day! Click Here for a list of commonly used acronyms and abbreviations. ____ Cmor

12-24-2007, 01:55 PM	#3
cmor1701d Aquarium Advice Addict Community Mentor Join Date: Feb 2003 Location: Belle Mead, NJ Posts: 3,927 Images: 43	The M81 ballast is an ANSI standard, so most fixtures are M81 compliant. He does do a lot of business. I think I'll order a set and see how it goes. I can get 3 bulbs for just slightly more than the price of 1 brand name bulb. Thanks Scott. __________________ Click here to Vote for Aquarium Advice on AquaRank . Vote EVERY day! Click Here for a list of commonly used acronyms and abbreviations. ____ Cmor

01-02-2008, 02:03 PM	#7
cmor1701d Aquarium Advice Addict Community Mentor Join Date: Feb 2003 Location: Belle Mead, NJ Posts: 3,927 Images: 43	Thanks Timbo. I bought 3 of the 150w DE from trusdeals and I agree that thy are awesome. I expected to see a difference from my 1 yr old bulbs but these are so much brighter (subjectively). I just wish I had a meter to check PAR throughout the tank. If they last they are the deal of the year. __________________ Click here to Vote for Aquarium Advice on AquaRank . Vote EVERY day! Click Here for a list of commonly used acronyms and abbreviations. ____ Cmor

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12-26-2007, 04:50 PM	#5
ccCapt SW 10 & Over Community Mentor Join Date: Mar 2004 Location: Northeast PA Posts: 1,875 Images: 3	I bought 2 175 14K SE bulbs from Greatdel for like $10 each. The bulbs had a 60 day warranty. One lasted about 45 days and the seller replaced it. The other bulb lasted about 3 months. I've been using metal halide bulbs for almost 20 years and NEVER had a bulb actually go out. I always just replaced them after 12 months. These 2 bulbs would not fire after a relatively short time. They did have nice color, but I don't know what kind of PAR they have. Back to name brand bulbs for me.

12-27-2007, 11:58 AM	#6
timbo2 Aquarium Advice Regular Join Date: May 2007 Location: Jacksonville, FL Posts: 52 Images: 2	I have purchased the 175 watt SE type bulbs from trustdeals and they are awesome. Have not had any problems. I wish they were around when I had to pay the $70 a bulb. Everyone has their own opinion, but for the money, these are great to me.