Hi everyone.

I was looking on a website and found this metal halide lamp and it is extremely cheap.

http://www.fish-street.com/product_deta ... y_code=NZD

I want to know if it is good-quality, and if anyone has ever had any experience using it before or could give me some advice about it. I'm setting up a tank and I was thinking of using 3x 24watt T5HO PowerGlo tubes, but this is far cheaper, plus costs much less to replace a single bulb rather than 3. I don't want to rush off and buy something I know nothing about and to have it malfunction or something or make annoying noises...

Joe

I sold off a few 150W halides for $40ea recently, sure they don't have a fancy mount but basically the same thing as that, you can just buy whatever bulb you want for them and you are away.

viewtopic.php?f=11&t=49351

How would I mount it though? Also, are they good quality?

Most industrial halides are pretty good quality, these ones that I just sold had phillips bits all through the ballasts so they were pretty good. The one you are looking at is around $2-300 maybe more after shipping so you would have to weigh it up how much it was worth to you, also you have no idea what quality that one is, being "cheap" it might not be very reliable anyway.

It doesn't show it very well in the pics but there is a mounting bracket behind the light, you would just adapt this onto whatever you wanted to mount it on, you could probably find an old desk lamp with adjustable bits and adapt it onto that, just just hang it from your ceiling. Obviously you would mount the ballast elsewhere and just suspend the light fitting and bulb which doesn't weigh much.

Hi everyone.

I was looking on a website and found this metal halide lamp and it is extremely cheap.

http://www.fish-street.com/product_deta ... y_code=NZD

I want to know if it is good-quality, and if anyone has ever had any experience using it before or could give me some advice about it. I'm setting up a tank and I was thinking of using 3x 24watt T5HO PowerGlo tubes, but this is far cheaper, plus costs much less to replace a single bulb rather than 3. I don't want to rush off and buy something I know nothing about and to have it malfunction or something or make annoying noises...

Joe

Just ordered the 70w version last weekend for my 60cm. Hope it's good...

I use fish-street bulbs (although via a local reseller) and for cheap bulbs they are okay.

I use fish-street bulbs (although via a local reseller) and for cheap bulbs they are okay.

Any chance of a link to the reseller? I'm in AKL but would be good to get an idea of costs.

Not allowed to post others contact details with out there permission, but I will PM you his email address.

Not allowed to post others contact details with out there permission, but I will PM you his email address.

yeah, sorry, I assumed it was a commercial/retail source. Thanks for the details, I'll tell him you sent me.

It doesn't show it very well in the pics but there is a mounting bracket behind the light, you would just adapt this onto whatever you wanted to mount it on, you could probably find an old desk lamp with adjustable bits and adapt it onto that, just just hang it from your ceiling. Obviously you would mount the ballast elsewhere and just suspend the light fitting and bulb which doesn't weigh much.

OK. Could you post somemore pics please?

The ones I had are all sold so no point in putting up pics I am trying to get more if I do I will put up some better pics.. Imagine a standard square shaped bracket with some holes in it behind the light, would be very easy to mount it onto whatever you wanted to.

Awesome! Definately much better and cheaper than the one I was looking at originally.

In the future, I may set up a 300-400L tank after I have finished this project. I was thinking of using 5 or 6 54watt T5 PowerGlo tubes, but I could get 3 150watt halides instead, and it will be far easier as I won't need to buy the T5 fittings or have a hood made for the tank! Plus I will get the rippling effect under the water and I'll get more light too!

Just wondered, do I need some sort of fan/cooling device if I'm using metal halide lighting?

I am trying to get more

Where do you get them from? Could you please post a link to the website of the company that makes them?

I got these ones off a guy at a garage sale, brought the lot because they were cheap and thought that fish keepers would want them he had them in the roof of his old shop and when it shut he stripped it out.

He said he might have more I am just waiting to hear back from him. I have no link to manufacturers or anything like that I haven't had much luck with the number that are on them, but when opening the ballasts there are phillips components all through it so assume they are something to do with it. There are photos of the number and stuff in that link above you might have more luck finding details.

Cooling would depend on how big the tank is and if they are heating the water at all.. Having 3 of them running would be like running a heater in the room so it would heat up quite a bit.