decent lighting. under $200. for mixed reef.

I use these APC LED lights from Advance auto, wired to a 12V DC wall wart for nighttime 'moonlights'. A cheap DIY alternative to pricier 'aquarium' lights, come with 8 lights, and look good too:

LED RUNNING LIGHTS by APC - Part 360426W - Advance Auto Parts



each light has about 18 inches of wire in between them and backed with sticky tape, so you can easily space them apart and stick where you want them.

Only $15 and I used an old 12V DC PSU/ wall-wart I had from an old cable modem.

 

Sounds cool....just look at the wattage, beam angle and spacing...for me I'm aiming at maybe 30 degree beam (so can penetrate the water further) with close spacing for coverage.

But back to the original post...or part of it, as it is my question too, and to further refine the question.

Which brand of bulbs are best in terms of quality of light and longevity of the bulb?

(not to take over your thread or anything just to focus back on your question.)

 

No offense taken. furthermore, I want to know more about the quality of the fixtures themselves and ballasts as well as the bulbs.

There is good advice in this thread but I think everyone is leaning towards recommending me a type of lighting orwhat fixture they want me to buy. Which is fine but I want to know which brands are good in general as well.

 

Thanks...

Yeah knowing the good brands is very useful...as is the ones that should definitely be avoided so you can make an informed decision.

 

Sorry, I didn't mean to distract with my post about LED's... but I would never make the decision to buy a light fixture just because it has nighttime LED moonlights when they can be added so cheaply in other ways, so it does tie into the original question.

 

Is there any way you could build a canopy for your 46 bow? I could see a single halide (used) with a new lamp and a pair of retro T5 end caps (used), 2 actinics (new), and a workhorse ballast (used) being put together for around $200. You would just need a nice big rectangular reflector for the halide, and a couple cooling fans but nothing too drastic.

~Will.

 

I just bought a 196 watt USA Orbit system from Pet Mountain for 212.00 This will meet your needs and looks good too. Dont buy the Odyseea stuff from EBAY, I did, and that is why i had to just buy a new fixture 6 months later. If you go cheap, you will get what you pay for. You can do alot with 196 watts on the systems that we have that will put out 4.6 watts per gallon

 

I just build my lighting system for around 350 2 months ago. Built a custom hood and i ebayed a icecap 660 balast which is quite amazing then put a 3 bulb vho system in. Pretty much a retro fit kit i pieced together and The lighting is great.