sfiligoi lighting

Joel A · 06/01/2010, 05:38 PM

who's running a sfiligoi fixture here on reefcentral? I know that there are a few people kicking around, but i'm looking for a bit more feedback before i decide whether or not i want to purchase one.

I'm currently looking at the Stealth models, mainly because i love t5's. These appear to be everything that the ATI fixtures are, and then some. People who run the stealth's (the newer ones) also say that they are at least as good, if not better (and certainly better looking) than the ATI fixtures, but i've never seen any evidence to support this as far as PAR numbers or anything like that.

The current fixture i'm looking at is an 8x39 watt t5, with 2x 150 HQI in the middle. I figured this was a cool idea, because you've still got full spectrum t5 lighting, and if they are built like ATI the 8x39 watt t5's are probably enough to light my tank to begin with.. but then it's also got 2x150 watt HQI's, which allows me to add back that metal halide shimmer effect, and run the 150 watt radiums that i've been forever dying to try...

so what do you guys think? Do they live up to the hype/expectations? Are they worth the extra cash?

wmilas · 06/01/2010, 08:53 PM

Run away. Fast. I own 2 5 foot 12 bulb stealths. They look *Really* good when you first get them. Then stuff starts happening to them.

Let me first state that I ran mine in a fish room above mt tank. It's humid in there, but not wet dripping off the walls humid. I have a fresh air makeup and exhaust in the room.

After about 3 months the fans along the sides started going. I took the units apart to find the fans have really crappy non sealed solder joints and they rusted through. The way the fans are mounted marks them damn near impossible to replace since the are hard soldered in. I ripped the whole module out and custom made a set for each module to replace the craptastic stock ones.

At 9 months I replaced the bulbs. That's when I found out that the end caps are crappy non sealed ones. The contacts were rusting out. I replaced a few that were about to go bad.

At 14 months the first ballast went. Ther are *6* ballasts per fixture. It was a nightmare getting it out and finding a small ballast to fit. The whole design inside Is brain dead. Seriously. When the 2nd ballast went I had enough with the frankenstein mess they had become and switched to 4 lumenbrights with 400 watt electronics and VHO supplementation.

So. I spent a ton of cash and I have them sitting in my attic. One is working one has a dead ballast with 2bulbs out. They are for sale

Don't get me wrong, they are par monsters. My whole 120x36x30 tank was 300+ par at the sand. They are a nightmare to keep running and the buildnquality is very poor.

Joel A · 06/02/2010, 02:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by wmilas

Run away. Fast. I own 2 5 foot 12 bulb stealths. They look *Really* good when you first get them. Then stuff starts happening to them.

Let me first state that I ran mine in a fish room above mt tank. It's humid in there, but not wet dripping off the walls humid. I have a fresh air makeup and exhaust in the room.

After about 3 months the fans along the sides started going. I took the units apart to find the fans have really crappy non sealed solder joints and they rusted through. The way the fans are mounted marks them damn near impossible to replace since the are hard soldered in. I ripped the whole module out and custom made a set for each module to replace the craptastic stock ones.

At 9 months I replaced the bulbs. That's when I found out that the end caps are crappy non sealed ones. The contacts were rusting out. I replaced a few that were about to go bad.

At 14 months the first ballast went. Ther are *6* ballasts per fixture. It was a nightmare getting it out and finding a small ballast to fit. The whole design inside Is brain dead. Seriously. When the 2nd ballast went I had enough with the frankenstein mess they had become and switched to 4 lumenbrights with 400 watt electronics and VHO supplementation.

So. I spent a ton of cash and I have them sitting in my attic. One is working one has a dead ballast with 2bulbs out. They are for sale

Don't get me wrong, they are par monsters. My whole 120x36x30 tank was 300+ par at the sand. They are a nightmare to keep running and the buildnquality is very poor.

interesting, thanks for the info! How long ago did you buy it? I'm just wondering if things like this could have changed in the fixture over time?

Anyone else have a similar experience?

jpa14 · 06/03/2010, 01:26 PM

I first had a sfiligoi 48'' 2*400 watt with 4 54watt t5 ran that for a year but had a 6 foot tank. then i bought a 12*80watt sfiligoi t5. i have been running it for over a year without any problems at all. I think with any fixture there is always someone who will have a problem. but i have not had any.

06/01/2010, 05:38 PM	#1
Joel A Registered Member Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Masschusetts Posts: 410	sfiligoi lighting who's running a sfiligoi fixture here on reefcentral? I know that there are a few people kicking around, but i'm looking for a bit more feedback before i decide whether or not i want to purchase one. I'm currently looking at the Stealth models, mainly because i love t5's. These appear to be everything that the ATI fixtures are, and then some. People who run the stealth's (the newer ones) also say that they are at least as good, if not better (and certainly better looking) than the ATI fixtures, but i've never seen any evidence to support this as far as PAR numbers or anything like that. The current fixture i'm looking at is an 8x39 watt t5, with 2x 150 HQI in the middle. I figured this was a cool idea, because you've still got full spectrum t5 lighting, and if they are built like ATI the 8x39 watt t5's are probably enough to light my tank to begin with.. but then it's also got 2x150 watt HQI's, which allows me to add back that metal halide shimmer effect, and run the 150 watt radiums that i've been forever dying to try... so what do you guys think? Do they live up to the hype/expectations? Are they worth the extra cash?

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06/01/2010, 08:53 PM	#2
wmilas Keep magnets 9" apart! Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Lemont, Il Posts: 1,023	Run away. Fast. I own 2 5 foot 12 bulb stealths. They look Really good when you first get them. Then stuff starts happening to them. Let me first state that I ran mine in a fish room above mt tank. It's humid in there, but not wet dripping off the walls humid. I have a fresh air makeup and exhaust in the room. After about 3 months the fans along the sides started going. I took the units apart to find the fans have really crappy non sealed solder joints and they rusted through. The way the fans are mounted marks them damn near impossible to replace since the are hard soldered in. I ripped the whole module out and custom made a set for each module to replace the craptastic stock ones. At 9 months I replaced the bulbs. That's when I found out that the end caps are crappy non sealed ones. The contacts were rusting out. I replaced a few that were about to go bad. At 14 months the first ballast went. Ther are 6 ballasts per fixture. It was a nightmare getting it out and finding a small ballast to fit. The whole design inside Is brain dead. Seriously. When the 2nd ballast went I had enough with the frankenstein mess they had become and switched to 4 lumenbrights with 400 watt electronics and VHO supplementation. So. I spent a ton of cash and I have them sitting in my attic. One is working one has a dead ballast with 2bulbs out. They are for sale Don't get me wrong, they are par monsters. My whole 120x36x30 tank was 300+ par at the sand. They are a nightmare to keep running and the buildnquality is very poor.

06/03/2010, 01:26 PM	#4
jpa14 Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2006 Posts: 435	I first had a sfiligoi 48'' 2400 watt with 4 54watt t5 ran that for a year but had a 6 foot tank. then i bought a 1280watt sfiligoi t5. i have been running it for over a year without any problems at all. I think with any fixture there is always someone who will have a problem. but i have not had any.