Whats My Best Lighting Option ?

[Aqua Essentials]

The bit i dont like about the AE units is this

The bulbs are non-rechargable. The complete light fixture is made to dispose of once the bulb is exhausted, eliminating problems associated with deterioration of electronic ballasts

Fair enough but here is the manufacturing reason. Normal T5 ballasts deteriorate after about 1 year. Most hobbyists will be unaware of this and without them really knowing, their lighting will become less and less powerful. Because you look at your tank every day, you are also unlikely to notice this gradual decline, where as the HOT5s keep kicking out light with no deterioration. Yes, they do have to be binned when they have expired but what it deos mean is that you get quality light output for the duration of it's life. I have customers who have had them over 18months and they are still working just fine.

Another factor to take into consideration is that T5 ballasts are not that cheap and can also be bulky. The HOT5s have no ballasts, just a cable with a plug so they are also really neat.

Hi Richard

What is a "normal" T5 ballast? Does the deterioration assumption differentiate between standard bulky magnetic ballasts or electronic? Is this true with T8s too?

What I'm trying to say - is it worth shelling out for a relatively expensive setup such as a T5 Arcadia overtank luminaire when after a few years the output may be less than desirable, or are the Arcadia units exclusive to this deterioration?

Have you got any figures ref. % average loss in effeciency over the year compared to the disposable HOT5?

Sorry for all the questions, I'm very interested in this for reasons I think you know!

Hi George

I would consider a "normal" T5 ballast to be a magnetic (bulky) one, and this is certainly what the manufacturers of the Relaux HOT5 would be comparing their lights with. I would also assume this is true with T8s although they have only commented about T5s.

As to whether it's worth shelling out for relatively expensive setups like luminaires, the short answer is yes. They may well deteriorate (although I am speculating here). Arcadia have never publically metioned if their units do deteriorate, but why should they? The other important factor about the Arcadia luminaire is that you are also buying into image/style - these rarely come cheap. I use an Arcadia T5 luminaire and I think they're great, look good and are effective. If it lasts more than 2/3 years, who knows, and I won't be testing for whether the power drops off much either.

For me, it's very much about how something preforms but also how it looks and like anything fashionable, after 1 year or so, things have moved on. Take the new Geisemann light units, MHT5 combo - that's what I would like now.

I don't have any figures regarding % average loss in efficiency over the year - I suspect the manufacturers do but whether they would provide you with this information is another question!

 

[George Farmer]

Are the Arcadia OTLs electronic ballast? I may e-mail them actually ref. this whole issue, it is very interesting.

Obviously the Realux are electronic, I wonder how different they are in terms of circuitry etc?

The Giesemann Infinity are lovely, but as you say mate - at a price. £595 for lighting my hypothetical 48" versus £225 for the Arcadia OTL.

 

[Puffer punk]

if its a neat and tidy look your after and T5's then go for these they are ment to be fantastic all you need to do is change the marine bulbs to plant one and your away!!!

they are 6 inches wide so you could fit 2 on your tank

http/cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vie...Y_BIN_Stores_IT

 

[craynerd]

3 x 14 watt lamps. ?? I`m not really well up on lighting but i presume this means they are not high output 24W lights?
In which case they are cheap but not giving me enough lighting. You are right, i could have two but it would look quite crowded..i think i`d rather just have the one.


The ones zig linked me to I have decided to go for. If i can change the tubes i will to something with a lower colour temp. £70 is a good price for 3 X 24W T5 tubes. I`d be interested to see, other than actual asthetics of the casing, how they differed to the arcadia luminaires?

 

[George Farmer]

Carrying on from the ballast detereoration issue -

Ballasts don't wear out like bulbs or or shoe soles, but they can eventually fail.

A simple magnetic ballast is a coil of copper wire around a ferrite core. If the "varnish" insualtion on the wire deteriorates, the coil can short internally, which will cause it to run hotter than normal and eventually fail.

An electronic balllast has solid state components and a much smaller coil because a smaller coil provides adequate impedance at the higher frequency of an electronic ballast. The coil in an electronic ballast can fail for the same reason as the coil in plain magnetic ballast. The solid state components, like any others, can fail if there is a manufacturing flaw or is "whiskers" form on the miniutrized circuits. They are no more likely to fail than any other solid state device, nor any less.

Some magnetic ballasts are preheat or rapid start and include some solid state components.

Thanks to shieber from The Aquatic Gardeners Association.