Do these lights really work?

[mista_flicksta]

I found these on Ebay but I dont know if they will work for a reef



has anybody seen these before?

Erik

[DerrickT]

Save the 40 dollars. 500W output using 63 watts. I don't know of any flourescents that give out blue spectrums like metal halides. Not that it won't keep your corals alive, but you're better off spending the 40 dollars elsewhere. However, they will work for larger refugiums.

[Putawaywet]

The first thing that pops into my mind looking at those pics is a regular PC quad installed inside of a MH pendant.

Don't be fooled by the claim of it being equal to a 500 watt light, because more than likely they are talking about incandecent lighting.

One thing to keep in mind is that watts is only a measure of what it takes to get something do it's thing. Not how well or efficiently it does it's thing.

But I do agree that they would probably be useable for a refugium or a FOWLR type of setup.

Brett

[Aframomum]

OMG!! They are trying to sell a WalMart LOA power PC for $40...are they freakin' nuts or what???:eek2: Do stay away from this auction, it reaks of trouble to me.

Here is a link for some info: http://archive.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?threadid=145058&highlight=LOA

and the companies website:
http://www.lightsofamerica.com/

Mark

[mista_flicksta]

Thank you for letting me know before I went out and sent money on somthing pointless

Erik

[Aframomum]

Yeah, it is always a good idea to check here before making a purchase just to get a yay or nay. Hellolights and Premium Aquatics are 2 decent places to get lighting supplies. There are, of course plenty of others...just do a search and you'll find them.

Mark

[Fizz71]

HD sells a version too...I wish I could find the exact one they have in that auction. The only thing my HD sells is the outdoor floodlight version and I've blown 2 of those trying to wire them into my 110. And my walmart doesn't have them either.

I acutally took a poll on those lights a few months ago.
http://archive.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=170151&highlight=loa
and another post here:
http://archive.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=169540&highlight=loa

I was surprised that some people did infact use them in their display tanks..I just want to light my fuge.

--Fizz

[Aframomum]

I grabbed mine when they first appeared (around 2001) and had it over my 10 gallon nano. It was alright but a DE metal halide would have been a much better choice. As you said, they are good for fuges but are weak on a main tank.

Mark

[mrscheider]

That is the same exact model as LOA. I got it for $28 bucks at HD and use it on my fuge too. It's definitly not bright enough for the main tank. I actually expected it to be brighter, but for the fuge, it's okay.

M.

[Fizz71]

Somewhere out there I saw a picture submitted by a person who had a bunch of them PACKED into his/her hood. I don't remember how many, but it was atleast 4 if not 6 or 8. I couldn't find the photo. Anyway..this person was quite happy with the output.

I'd be happy if I could get it to work more than once.

--Fizz

[Mondo]

Would work great for a small freshwater planted tank. I've got 4 of them on mine. No good for reef though.

[MalHavoc]

Yeah, this has come up before on RC. That's just a Lights of America, and the claim that you get that much light output is totally and utterly false. In my opinion, that eBay seller is guilty of false advertising in a huge way.

[jackson6745]

Just look at the woman holding the lights.... is that a face you can trust????:lol: :lol:

[axlerod]

you can buy them at home depot for around 29 dollars. i bought 2 of them for my refuge the first lasted 2 weeks and the second lasted 2 months i went a differnt route the third time. two strikes and your out in my book

[jackson6745]

BTW if you drill some vent holes in the hood they will last much longer. I have been using my LOA for 5 months at 20hrs per day with no problems

[Fizz71]

Originally posted by jackson6745
Just look at the woman holding the lights.... is that a face you can trust????:lol: :lol:

They probably hung the US Flag up so you couldn't see it was a trailer home. :hmm3: And to make it worse..they hung it up back-wards. Eesh.

Jackson...and others...The ones that worked/blew out..are they the ones you had to wire (outdoor lights) or the ones already wired to 110 (work light). I'm curious if there's a difference. I blew 2 of the outdoor models out the second time I turned them on. They always worked the first time...odd really.



--Fizz