Cheap vs Expensive Bulbs

H

harial

ok so I use PC bulbs and I have been very happy with them so far(tried MH, and was not) but I use the cheap bulbs from aquatraders that are like 15 bucks a pop and always have. But I've noticed that after 2-3 months these bulbs are not nearly so bright. Having never used the expensive 50 dollar bulbs I can not really make a comparison so my question is this: If I purchase the more expensive bulbs will they stay brighter longer before burning in or is it the same on all PCs?

THANKS :D
 
@harial wrote:
ok so I use PC bulbs and I have been very happy with them so far(tried MH said:
You need to find the best quality bulbs in the price range you are comfortable with. There is no specific answer to your question, other than 'it depends on the bulb'. Price is not an indicator of bulb quality, though its usually a good starting point. For the most part, yes, the bulbs will last longer and hold their color/par. However, not all expensive bulbs are the same. Some are just priced higher and have nothing to do with quality.
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any suggestions?

When I am at the LFS all they have is bulbs that range from 45-65 dollars. I honestly am not that keen on shelling out that kind of money especially when I was told by an experienced LFS owner that they only last as long as the cheap ones but that they just keep their spectrum longer. He did not give me an estimate on how much longer. I mean if they only keep the spectrum 2-3 months longer, I can buy 3 cheap bulbs for the price of the expensive ones and get longer good spectrum exposure from that.

Do I have this right or am I just being an (cheap)idiot?
 
@harial wrote:
any suggestions? When I am at the LFS all they have is bulbs that range from 45-65 dollars. I honestly am not that keen on shelling out that kind of money especially when I was told by an experienced LFS owner that they only last as long as the cheap ones but that they just keep their spectrum longer. He did not give me an estimate on how much longer. I mean if they only keep the spectrum 2-3 months longer said:
What size do you need?
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you could always run a little experiment...

2 options

if you are looking for ones that simply are bright and you are unconcerned with par...then just shell out the money for a nicer bulb once, and you will know quickly if it stays brighter

if you are looking for brightness and par or just par...then it will cost you $59 more to buy a PAR meter and the cost of a nicer bulb and you can can compare how long your cheap bulb stays within an acceptable range and how long the nicer bulb does.

i mean, if you go this route, and you find the more expensive bulb really doesnt hold its par, then you will save yourself in 1 purchase...
 
Two things come to mine, “buy cheap, buy more often” and the old standby “you get what you pay for”. We spend a lot of money on our tanks and everything that goes in them so why cut corners on the lighting as important as it is? While price is not everything the quality of the brand usally is. While price is not everything the quality of the brand usually is.
 
yeah but if I am only concerned about the spectrum and brightness...

lets say I have a 15 dollar bulb and a 45 dollar bulb(the cheapest I found locally) and the 45 dollar bulb is great and gives out the same spectrum for twice as long as the cheap. thats great but I can still get three of the cheap bulbs for the same price as the expensive bulb and that will technically give me the same spectrum for longer.

Now i am not discounting the fact that there are way better bulbs out there than what I am using and now that I know I can get them cheaper at marine depot(why I did not check before escapes me :oops: ), I will probably go the route of nicer bulbs.

the problem is that I am a poor college student who gets 100 bucks a week(on average) from working as a freelance web designer because I can not have another job due to my school schedule and I just can not afford to shell out huge sums of money on thing that 'might' be better. I probably should not be in this hobby because of it's expense but I have tried a couple of times to get out only to get bitten by the bug a few months later.

I'm saving up for a solaris but until then, it will be cheap bulbs and nice ones from marine depot whenever there is a group buy. :?
 
Harial,

Also factor in the cost of battling possible nuisance algae issues after the cheapo bulbs shift spectrum without being noticed. :wink:

Cheers,
 
see now thats a good argument... I am having the devil of a time with some patched of hair algae even though my trates are at 0
 
another route is to go with T5's...for a little more than the price of 1 good bulb, you could have a T5 fixture ($60)...it will come with new bulbs, so you are good for a while...overall the bulbs are cheaper and last longer...so for you it may be the best route and over your 26 (im assuming this is the tank we are talking about) it would be just fine.
 
its not necessarily if thats what you have currently, you may need 2 fixtures (cheapest route) but you also have to consider that less watts and better par and longer lasting bulbs can be better. its not always cram as many watts per gallon to get the best results.

i understand money may be tight, and its hard to look at buying new stuff but you can split it up. get one fixture now, use pcs and new fixture at same time on intervals, if you are liking what the t5 is putting out, then grab the second one a couple months later, and then you can sell you pc fixture and recoup some of your cost.

im not saying this is the best thing to do, just an alternative that may work...many ways of doing this, you just need to choose the best for you. personally, i would choose T5's i went with PC's originally too and liked them alot, but in the long run i wish i would have bought T5's
 
I'm not sure I could fit two fixtures over my tank. I can barely fit one PC as my tank is a bow-front. I have about 8 inches to work with... I just looked at the marinedepot website but they did not list the specs
 
Specifications:
Model # Application 460nm T5HO 10000K T5HO Freshwater T5HO Total Watts Fan Cooled Dimensions (L x W x H)
1136 Saltwater 1 x 20W 1 x 20W n/a 40W No 18" x 4.25" x 1.5"
1124 Saltwater 1 x 24W 1 x 24W n/a 48W No 24" x 4.25" x 1.5"
1137 Saltwater 1 x 24W 1 x 24W n/a 48W No 30" x 4.25" x 1.5"
1125 Saltwater 1 x 39W 1 x 39W n/a 78W No 36" x 4.25" x 1.5"
1126 Saltwater 1 x 54W 1 x 54W n/a 108W Yes 48" x 4.25" x 1.5"

they are small...2 next to each other would need 8.5"...
 
hmmmm... I might could make it work but this will have to wait till after christmas(biggest money sucker). I hate christmas. All my money is gone and somehow I never seem to have anything to show for it afterwards
 
@harial wrote:
All my money is gone and somehow I never seem to have anything to show for it afterwards said:
Use a credit card.. you can enjoy the payments well into the new year.
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