Are these lighting fixtures good?

[klasiksb]

I'm looking at the Nova Extreme HO Light Fixture - 4 x 24W & Lunar Lights - 24 in. for a 24x24x24 cube that will be zoa's and LPS.

Are these quality light fixtures or is there something better in that price range?

http://www.thatpetplace.com/pet/product/productInfo.web?&infoParam.itemKey=204868

[GSMguy]

short answer these are not good

[GSMguy]

http://www.drsfostersmith.com/Product/Prod_Display.cfm?pcatid=15489&N=2004+113352
the 150w viper would work for you
the 150w aquamedic
http://www.drsfostersmith.com/Product/Prod_Display.cfm?pcatid=12112&N=2004+113352

[GSMguy]

http://www.reefgeek.com/lighting/T5_Fluorescent/Sunlight_Supply/Tek_Light_Fixtures/
these would work
anything but powercompact and the cheap t5s

[labragg1]

I have one of the Nova Extreme 36" versions and i've been pretty happy with it. I'm sure they're not as good as the Tek and others, but they were also almost half the price and included bulbs.
I'm keeping mostly softies and lps--so far everything seems to be happy. I've even got a clam and a couple sps frags up closer to the top and they are doing well also.

I think about the only complaint I have with the unit is that the fan is a little noisier than I prefer--something very easy to change. :)

Like i said--not as good as some of the higher-end units, but for the price it's not half bad. HTH

[klasiksb]

GSMguy, can you give me the long answer as to why there not good? Is it a quality issue?

I know they don't overdrive the bulbs like with the Icecap ballasts, but do I really need to overdrive them keeping zoa's and LPS?

I'm really looking to keep the price down on the lighting fixture and i'd like to stay away from a halide. Plus, I don't think i'll be putting a canopy on this tank, so I need something to look decent sitting on top of the tank.

labragg1, thanks for the info. If you were to do it again, would you go with the same light? Do you have any photo's of your tank with this light running?

[labragg1]

klasiksb--would I buy this fixture again? At this point I would definitely say yes!!
I am actually in the process of downgrading to a smaller tank.
My previous tank was a 225gal with 400w MH's and Lumenarc 3 reflectors--so I was used to good quality lighting.

I recently sold the system and am in the process of finishing a smaller 65gal setup.

I bought the Nova Extreme fixture for the 65gal tank as I was planning to go without a full canopy like you.

I didn't want mh's because of the heat and power consumption--kind of overkill IMO on smaller tanks.

I currently have my remaining livestock in a holding tank and am using the Nova unit to keep the livestock happy until I get them moved to their final home. I also wanted to go ahead and get them acclimated to the t5 lighting.

Like I said--so far for the price I paid I couldn't be happier.
I'm the type of person that as long as the livestock is happy then i'm happy. :)
HTH

[labragg1]

FWIW--I probably wouldn't use this fixture on any tank that is deeper than the standard 24". Anything deeper and you would probably need the higher-end individual reflectors to get the depth penetration. Just a thought.

[cerolost]

You may also want to look on nanocustoms.com and look at the finnex fixture. It is also a 4x24w t5ho fixture and you can choose your bulbs.

[USC-fan]

i use the 36' version of this light. I did have to replace it after about 2 years of using it. one of the set of light wouldn't come on. But i was so happy with the easy setup and performance i went ahead and brought the same unit again. With the old unit i just use it in my fuge.

Like other have said the fan is a little loud.

i would rate it 9/10!

edit: i almost forgot. They are coming out with a new version of this fixture in 2 months. The new model will have a reflector for each bulb. Like the higher priced t5 fixtures. Maybe it would be worht the wait for the new models.