Product Review - Verilux Refugium Bulb

[Reefd Up]

Gary (OhioReef) - can we get a Product Review forum?  I would really like to see more people review products.

So, I was shopping for refugium bulbs for the 150g, and happened upon the Verilux flood light.  It's a full-spectrum daylight compact flourescent.  Sweet, I thought.  It was a bit expensive, but figured it was worth a try.  

I got it home, plugged it in, and wow...very bright, clean light.  I was much more impressed with it than the usual 6500 K bulbs I usually buy.  I'm not sure how exactly full spectrum versus a 6500 K bulb will encourage growth though.

Well, the bulb didn't even last an hour.  It quit working.  UGH!  I was really satisfied for a whopping hour.  Not sure I'll buy again.  Please note, 1 hour << than the advertised 10,000 hours!!!  LOL

The bulbs are about $25 on the website, and $15 at Menards

PAR 38 Outdoor Flood, 23 Watt Full Spectrum Compact Fluorescent Light Bulb (CFL) - CFSPAR38VLX




Nikki

[cyberwollf]

I love the << (much much less than) operator  second only to my favorite iff (If and only if)...  man, thats kinda sad....

[UD Flyer]

Wow, one hour with a claim of 10,000, not good. Maybe its worth a second try if they replace the bulb? I would return it and write a letter to the manufacturer, usually when I write a letter they do more than they should to accommodate the inconvenience of the product going bad.

[ohioreef]

I'll work on a product review board, Nikki

[TechGuy]

Wow, good job Nicki. Yay! Woo!

[Reefd Up]

Wow, one hour with a claim of 10,000, not good. Maybe its worth a second try if they replace the bulb? I would return it and write a letter to the manufacturer, usually when I write a letter they do more than they should to accommodate the inconvenience of the product going bad.

Yeah, I will probably try it again if they replace it & I don't get my money back. 

It's still cool...but I don't know if it's worth spending $15 on instead of the usual $6-7.

[ohioreef]

Done.   

[Reefd Up]

Yay!  Thanks!  I think frequent product reviews will really help everyone make informed purchases...I know I've made some bad ones in the past!

[Reefd Up]

We exchanged the bulb for a different one (same brand).  So far this one has outperformed the previous bulb by several times over.    I'll post pictures at some point.  So far I'm happy.

[Reefd Up]

So, a follow-up about this bulb.  I have to say, I'm really impressed.  I'm growing Gracilaria, Chaetomorpha, and Halimeda macroalgaes in my sump (both red and green algaes), and both colors have great growth.   

I also think it's pretty cool that I'm growing green and pink coralline algae in my sump instead of the usual pink.  

So far, I'm sold on this bulb for refugium lighting since I'm growing several types of algae.  I wish someone with more lighting experience than me (like Sanjay) would review something like a full-spectrum bulb.  

[HUNGER]

so the buld in the pic is that the one that you took back or the one you have been useing

[Reefd Up]

The bulb in the picture was the one I took back, and replaced it with the same bulb.  The new bulb works great...the previous bulb was a defective one I guess.

[HUNGER]

o ok

[stickboy_107]

Just out of curiosity, I was wondering how far away from the water the light is. Also, what kind of schedule are you using? Like how long do the lights stay on, and what time of day do they turn on?

[cyberwollf]

Just out of curiosity, I was wondering how far away from the water the light is. Also, what kind of schedule are you using? Like how long do the lights stay on, and what time of day do they turn on?

I do 12hour on/off cycle opposite of your main lights. Will also help with pH swing. That chaeto I gave you grows quick

[Reefd Up]

Hmm...I'd guess most of my refuge lights average about 5" above the water.  There's not a lot of room under my stands (we tend to build them short since I'm short).

I run my MH's on my 10g and my 55g tank for 6 hours per day (if they're on longer than that, it's just for aesthetics.)  The sump light runs on a reverse schedule, so the fuge light is on for about 18 hours.  As far as timing...not really sure.  I have two broken timers...so I usually just flip them on whenever I get home and turn them off when I go to bed.  

The 150g tank's MH's will probably only run for 6 hours a day, with T-5's running for about 10 hours...and the fuge light on the remaining time (14 hours).