# Odyssea t5ho lighting so cheap is it worth it?



## Travis.808

Gonna start a 40g breeder want to know if odyssea lights are really all that bad. Does anyone use them with no problems? Other lights cost more than double I want to know if I should risk getting these lights on the cheap.

http://www.aquatraders.com/36-inch-4x39W-T5-Aquarium-Light-Fixture-p/52304p.htm


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## singolz

Travis.808 said:


> Gonna start a 40g breeder want to know if odyssea lights are really all that bad. Does anyone use them with no problems? Other lights cost more than double I want to know if I should risk getting these lights on the cheap.
> 
> http://www.aquatraders.com/36-inch-4x39W-T5-Aquarium-Light-Fixture-p/52304p.htm


bump for you man, I'd like to know as well. or something within this ballpark in terms of budget. I'm setting up a 45 long and want to find some decent fixtures and decent prices

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## D9Vin

I use an oddysea from evilbay for about a year, no problems, I love it.


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## JustLikeAPill

I got one years ago, and it started smoking so I threw it out. 

You get what you pay for. Granted mine was PC, but others have had similar experiences.


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## singolz

JustLikeAPill said:


> I got one years ago, and it started smoking so I threw it out.
> 
> You get what you pay for. Granted mine was PC, but others have had similar experiences.


I've read the newer generations have more of the kinks and bugs worked out. however, I've read it doesn't put out much power at all. as if it were NO instead of HO. some one claimed 50 par from 4x54 20" from substrate. which would be low-mediumish lighting. can any verify these claims?

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## fishyjoe24

I know the have inproved, the reflectors are just a single reflector, and not not each bulb having it's own reflector that could be why some one was saying only 50 par.. also it's no so much you need this or that spectrum... it's getting the right bulbs and the right mix to get down to the substrate. I'm finding out that coralife colormax, and coralife 6,700k don't do much as far as par goes... there is a guy that did some research and says that plants need no green waves and just the red and blue. but most bulbs made for plants have a high green peak which they should have a low green and high red and blue peak in the speactrum...


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## singolz

fishyjoe24 said:


> I know the have inproved, the reflectors are just a single reflector, and not not each bulb having it's own reflector that could be why some one was saying only 50 par.. also it's no so much you need this or that spectrum... it's getting the right bulbs and the right mix to get down to the substrate. I'm finding out that coralife colormax, and coralife 6,700k don't do much as far as par goes... there is a guy that did some research and says that plants need no green waves and just the red and blue. but most bulbs made for plants have a high green peak which they should have a low green and high red and blue peak in the speactrum...


walstad purposes the exact opposite in her book. I'd love to hear more input on this however. also, does it really make tht significant of a difference using a reflector on each bulb, compared to the single? also can anyone verify if the fixture actually does put out less power than advertised?

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## Travis.808

Thanks for the feedback everyone. I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas. Is there no one else running the "newer" t5ho setups? I'd love to run tek lights but my wife wouldn't be to keen on the price tag attached.


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## JustLikeAPill

If you don't want to pay for a TEK light (totally understandable lol) this is another good fixture. I had one a couple years ago and it performed well, but the fan was loud (but worked great otherwise!)

http://www.marinedepot.com/lighting..._nova_extreme_t5_high_output_ho_lunar-ap.html


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## Travis.808

Thanks, I did check those out and if the cons on the odyssea outweigh the pros I will probably get it but an extra $150 would be nice to spend on hardscape and plants. Anyone else on running odyssea's?


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## freshyleif

I have a two bulb T5HO of the older make and have been using it for about two years. It works ok but I think that the light output would be better if the bulbs had there own reflectors. I think that if I had been willing to spend more up front on a better light I could have used a lower wattage light fixture. Just my opinion but a one time cost of paying more for a light fixture (if more efficient) is still less than the repeat cost of eletricity.


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## doubleott05

had mine for a year and it works fine


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## Left C

Travis.808 said:


> Gonna start a 40g breeder want to know if odyssea lights are really all that bad. Does anyone use them with no problems? Other lights cost more than double I want to know if I should risk getting these lights on the cheap.
> 
> http://www.aquatraders.com/36-inch-4x39W-T5-Aquarium-Light-Fixture-p/52304p.htm


I can toss in a little bit of info about using an inexpensive fixture. I am using a 4x39w T5HO fixture that I got for $69.98 shipped over my 40 breeder. My fixture has a single reflector that is bent into a "V" shape for each bulb. Since the 40 breeder is rather short (16"), this fixture with its no-so-good reflector is working out very well. My plants are growing terrific without any algae problems. I have glosso, dwarf hairgrass, Christmas moss, Fissidens fontanus, various crypts, petite nana and Echinodorus (Helanthium) angustifolius in the background. All of these are easy plants. I am using a mixture of new and origional Amazonia Aqua Soil plus pressurized CO2. My bulbs are Giesemann Midday 6000K, Current-USA 10,000K, ZooMed UltraSun 6700K and a Giesemann Aquaflora. I only run two bulbs most of the time.

The reason that I am posting this is that I believe that because a 40 breeder is not very tall, you can use a 4x39wT5HO fixture with a no-so-good reflector with plant friendly bulbs and do well. If you can, use the new Amazonia and a CO2 source (pressurized or Excel) for more help in having a very nice tank. I have read several good reports concerning Odyssea's T5HO fixtures. They aren't problematic like their PC fixtures.

Another suggestion is that Catalina can custom make 2 or 3 bulb 8" or 12" wide T5HO fixtures with one, two or three ballasts. Many people are going this route with their 40 breeders, 50g, or 65g 36"x18" footprint aquariums. I think that the pricing for these custom fixtures starts at around $120. These Catalina fixtures have good reflectors, but not excellent ones like TEK, ATI, etc. Catalina's customer service is said to be excellent.


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## flwrbed

i have a 36 HOt5 and an old 48 PC. my cousin runs the same old PC and we have had no issues. the stock bulbs kinda suck but i think the light is fine. 

i wish they had better reflectors but they seem to do ok for most plants. 

for the price i dont think you can go wrong


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## Travis.808

Thanks everyone for the info still sorting the pro's and con's. I have to be really budget conscious on all my purchases because flat shipping to the US for some reason never includes the 50th state. Left C Could you post a working link to the $69.98 shipped lights?


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## Left C

Travis.808 said:


> ... Left C Could you post a working link to the $69.98 shipped lights?


I got the fixture so cheap because of a typo. The real price was $259.99 and it was advertised for $59.99. This company honored their typo. There is another person on the forums that got the same deal.

The fixture is the early version of the Nova Extreme that JustLikeAPill posted. It doesn't have individual reflectors like the new version does. http://www.marinedepot.com/lighting..._nova_extreme_t5_high_output_ho_lunar-ap.html

I posted my info because it is basically a poorly designed T5HO fixture somewhat like the Odyssea. This not so good fixture is working well for me. Maybe the Odyssea will work for you.


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## bosmahe1

The otherside of the coin is, buy a high quality fixture with high quality ballasts and high quality reflectors just so, you have to raise it 12 to 16 inches to minimize algae. 

My Nova Extreme 4x39 watt T5HO light just died a month ago. I had it for two years and it was plenty powerful enough to grow everything just on two bulbs.

I replaced it with an 8 inch wide, 3x39 watt T5HO fixture. Since it has better reflectors, I run 1 bulb for 10 hours with a burst of all three bulbs for about an hour and a half. If I run even two bulbs for 8 hours, I have a hard time fighting bba algae. So, I don't know how much you really need to spend to grow plants sufficiently. I don't want to raise the lights because I don't want the light spill into the room and frankly, I don't like the conduit and cable look. And yes I blast CO2 fairly high and dose with an EI daily routine.


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## Travis.808

Caved... Got myself a set of sunlight supply 4x39 watt tek light t5 HO's. Thanks for all the advice, I figured I'd get a set that would be long term reliable.


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