eBay light fixtures?

[Mr.Pleco]

Just curious. I read some people purchased light fixtures off of eBay so I decided to check and they have quite a few. I'm assuming the brand is HobbyLighting? They look nice and I don't see how a HO light fixture wouldn't be HO. Just wanted to see what people thought. I read through a lot of the feedback and everyone seems to be happy. Only a handful of bad reviews.

36" 78W T5 HO AQUARIUM LIGHT HOOD FISH FRESHWATER PLANT | eBay

24"/30"/36"/48" INCH HO QUAD/6PC T5 AQUARIUM SALT FRESH WATER LIGHTS FIXTURE | eBay

I know some people will immediately say no to buying them and just because it's half price means you get what you pay for lol.

But if anyone knows where to buy a 48" t5 HO fixture for cheaper let know!

 

[jlk]

I actually purchased 2 lights off of Ebay. One was an AquaMarine (sold by seabrookisland) & the other was an Odyssea (forget which seller). Both were 48" T5HO light fixtures. Functional & no complaints so far!

 

[Mr.Pleco]

I actually purchased 2 lights off of Ebay. One was an AquaMarine (sold by seabrookisland) & the other was an Odyssea (forget which seller). Both were 48" T5HO light fixtures. Functional & no complaints so far!

I actually think it was your post that I read. I figured the only thing I'd really be losing was cs.
How long have you had them?

 

[jlk]

I have only had them four mths so far (upgraded lights to delve further into planted tanks). They both take any standard T5HO bulb. I will probably upgrade the bulbs in the aquamarine fixture in the near future. My plants seem very happy & are growing like crazy! I know there are better fixtures out there but for a limited budget, these seem to work just fine!

 

[Mr.Pleco]

Nice. I have 4 fixtures right now. 2 36" Deepblue solarmax t5 HO and I replaced the blue corals in both of those. And the other 2 fixtures came with the tank from the guy on CL. They are older with external ballasts...pain in the *** and ugly. I can't put my canopy on because I want those in the front instead of the back. So I want to get a 48" fixture for the back so i'm not lighting the overflows.

I know there are better fixtures out there, I did all my research the first time around ha. Are yours quads or just 2 bulbs?

 

[jlk]

I have one quad (aquamarine) on my DT & one dual on the other (odyssea). The quad has switches for the different sets of bulbs (front, rear, moonlights) so I usually only run 2 bulbs.

 

[Mr.Pleco]

Ah. I'm not sure if I want a quad or a dual. The back of my tank is swords, red cabomba, and temple plant. I feel like a dual with 2 new bulbs would be great?

 

[jlk]

I am not an expert on plants or lighting- still learning! You will need to figure out what you want to spend & what you would like to have! Whats nice about the quads is the ability to turn on & off the different bulbs as you desire. I actually have actinic bulbs in the back (yeah, they dont do much for plants) but I like the appearance of the blue bulbs. Dont know if I am going to keep them or not!

 

[Mr.Pleco]

Blue lights are for coral and in fw they promote algae growth. I'm one of those people who doesn't mind spending for nice things but if I can save I will. I'll keep researching though, not rushing for anything