F15T8 6500k fluorescent bulb...very low price

[Fishmanic]

Eiko brand F15T8 6500k bulb for only $5.70 on ebay...it is very bright (daylight) and cheap....I just got one a few days ago...seems as bright as Zoo-Med or Life-glo aquarium 6500k blubs at 1/4 of the price. It says Halogen but it is a 15 watt fluorescent bulb.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/F15T8-D-Da...429259&hash=item4b5b2d5c5c:g:X9UAAOSwUv1cz9t4

 

[Byron]

Is this an 18-inch tube? It does not give the length in the link, but 15w would normally be an 18-inch tube in T8.

They also do not give the manufacturer so there is no way to track this down; it may be available in other lengths too?

I've tried various T8 tubes over the years. Of those I can purchase locally, the Phillips and Sylvania tubes are good but only in the 4-foot length. For years I used a 6500K and a 5000K combo over my tanks with dual 4-foot T8 and at about 1/4 or 1/5 the cost of the high quality aquarium tubes, these were well worth it. But the shorter tubes were garbage as they were no where near a comparable output.

 

[Fishmanic]

Name of them is Eiko. They are
18 inch 15 watt t8 fluorescent bulbs. To me it seems to be a bright white daylight bulb

 

[Byron]

I tracked down their website, and this seems to be the tube.

https://www.eiko.com/ProductSearch/ProductDetail?partNumber=F15T8/D

From the specs, I would think this is good planted tank lighting.

This is a US company with offices (it says) in Canada and Europe, so I may see if I can find Canadian sources and try this tube if I do. All of my tanks are now smaller since my move in May, and take 24-inch tubes so finding good tubes at much less cost than the Life-Glo and ZooMed would save me a bundle.

 

[PheonixKingZ]

Lighting is so expensive! I just use the light that came with the tank, or a Desk Clip light!

 

[Stan510]

They don't have the ability to make colors pop. They might be good if you also mix a gro lux type bulb alongside them. What grows plants well sometimes isn't worth the tradeoff to me,if I lose good color on the fish and plants. Its a visual hobby...looks ARE important.