JBJ retro compare to customsealife
- Thread starter pikachu
- Start date
tangs_in_pacifica
Member
I've spoken with a few knowledgeable people at Bay area LFSs and they say that, while JBJ's qualityy was initially shite, it's gotten much better. Two of my tanks run Custom Sea Life and they do allright. One of my tanks has a cheapo D.I.Y. brand that's fine as well. As for the fan in the JBJ hoods, I have a JBJ fan and it's fairly weak.
IMOHO, I think that the decision to go with "four square" pins vs. "four accross" is probably about as significant as deciding which brand to go with. It seems that lately in the Bay Area most shops have switched to carrying JBJ-Style bulbs (4 accross). The JBJ-Style bulbs seem to be a bit cheaper, but that may be just my observation.
A few things to keep in mind, when deciding on PCs:
-Pin Style (4 accross of 4 square)
-DIY-Style or complete hood. One benefit of DIY style is that you can place heat-generating balasts away from the tank... (i.e. you may not need the fan as badly)
-Number of power cables... In my cheapo D.I.Y 96W set, each bulb has it's own power cable. This enables me to place each buld on a seperate timer, thereby making very bright midddays and dimmer mornings and afternoons. I've heard that most corals only need a few hours of intense light. It's also a bit lighter on the California Power bill and bulb-life.
Hope this helps???
IMOHO, I think that the decision to go with "four square" pins vs. "four accross" is probably about as significant as deciding which brand to go with. It seems that lately in the Bay Area most shops have switched to carrying JBJ-Style bulbs (4 accross). The JBJ-Style bulbs seem to be a bit cheaper, but that may be just my observation.
A few things to keep in mind, when deciding on PCs:
-Pin Style (4 accross of 4 square)
-DIY-Style or complete hood. One benefit of DIY style is that you can place heat-generating balasts away from the tank... (i.e. you may not need the fan as badly)
-Number of power cables... In my cheapo D.I.Y 96W set, each bulb has it's own power cable. This enables me to place each buld on a seperate timer, thereby making very bright midddays and dimmer mornings and afternoons. I've heard that most corals only need a few hours of intense light. It's also a bit lighter on the California Power bill and bulb-life.
Hope this helps???
