lighting

[camocharger]

does any body here have any experience with this product... it seems promising especially the dimming feature .... if so how long are the wires on the leads, can you place two 48 bulbs side by side ... your comments would be greatly appreciated thanks in advance

sorry i left out the link

http://www.reptilesupply.com/product.php?products_id=2288

 

[krug1313]

Please supply a link.

 

[JoshCrane1]

....what product?

 

[Professor Booty]

Let's assume they've accounted for the fact that traditional fluorescent lights don't respond to dimming well and have worked around the problem, which is perfectly reasonable.

I see one problem with it- they support only T8 and T10 bulbs. The typical sizes of the much-beloved ZooMed UVB bulbs are T12, as are most of the fluorescent bulbs available to me in stores in my area. So, if that isn't a problem - meaning you plan on using only ReptiGlo bulbs and have access to T8 or T10 bulbs if you plan to use a grow light or something, then it would probably work really well.

If you want something similar but for T12 bulbs try this - http://www.aquariumguys.com/ballast.html. No dimming feature, but it's the same super-flexible form factor. I just ordered one, we'll see how it turns out.

 

[KevinA]

Check the distance between the pins on the end of a T-12 bulb, normal florescent sold in th past and a T-10. A T-10, although very similar is smaller in diameter and the pins may be closer together. However, a 48" T-12 is 40 watts which is what the top model you posted is rated at. I would contact them to try and find out if it has the capacity to hold the larger diameter T-12 ( I thin they are 1.5 inches, a T-10 is 1.25 and a T-8 is inche.

The dimmer, while not a true controlable dimmer seems cool if it works, slowely reducing the current, but it will still have a sharp cut off. It's the nature of florescent lights, they only work with a minimum current then cant function below. It may also cause flickering when trying to dimm.

 

[JoshCrane1]

they will flicker when dimmed, and also t10 and t12 linear bulbs have the same pin diameter, but need different ballasts to run them. i just retrofitted my whole lab from t12 to t10's, didnt have to change tombstones(sockets), just changed the ballasts. but changing ballasts wouldnt be cost effective on a new fixture.

 

[camocharger]

hmmm i knew it sounded to good to be true thanks for the heads up .... greatly appreciated