Interpet T5 Compacts

[daza]

GODDAMMIT!

I've been using a 24 watt and a 36 watt Interpet T5 for a few months now and have only just seen this thread.

After reading all the above I thought I should have a good look at mine - and I just cracked the 36 watt tube trying to remove it from the damn connector!!!!!!!

Pulling the tube out has left the plastic inside the connector and I've had to get the pliers on it, which has come out in pieces.

The black plastic/rubber connector has also gone brittle and burned like some of yours above.

I can see the 24 watt one looks similar but I won't be touching that!

All the damage is on the under (reflector) side, which is why I hadn't seen it before. The only problem I knew of until now is that heat had distored one of the plastic brackets, which I replaced with a tie wrap.

I shall add some pictures soon.

Interpet - expect a letter soon!

I have been thinking for some time about going from planted to a lower maintenance rockscape, I think this has made the decision for me!

edit... Here are the pics...

How they were mounted:

The underside, after unmounting them:

The cracked tube:

What was left of the tubes after the plastic was left behind in the connector! :

The plastic left behind in the connector:

Damn things.

 

[Ste_J]

For all of you who have been following this Thread

Spoke to Interpet again today to advise of the latest happenings with my control gear.

Basically Interpet sent out a replacement single 55W for me last week which I have been running 10hrs per day since. I had also bought a new 55W double and this has been running for just over 1 week.

The double unit has started to show signs of melting on one of the 2 rubber ends, this end cap has claimed the life of one bulb already. The replacement single has started to melt on both sides of the rubber housing and it is getting tricky to remove the tubes - 4 days usage

The heat has also started to burn my hood which having spent many an hour between sanding and varnish I am not happy about

Interpet have now requested that I send both units back for testing and are sending a postage sticker to me as I type. This would leave me high and dry for lighting but I have just bought a double 55W ballast which should arrive in the morning [Not Interpet]

Long and short is that originally the tubes were causing the unit to over heat, this was because of the lack of air flow into the rubber housing - new Interpet tubes now have a groove down the middle of the ceramic to improve airflow. Since I am using the new tubes [gold lettering not black] it would appear that there is still a design flaw. The worst part for me though is that if you were unaware of this then you wouldn't notice it until you needed to change the tube and by this point there's a cance that your tube would be so melted in that it would need to be removed with pliers.

I'll update when I have sorted this out with Interpet which hopefully wont be too long. I will not be getting a direct replacement this time from them so hope they work it out pretty quickly


Ste

 

[zig]

Ok well i have decided to go with the ASL unit as linked above and HERE I came to the decision based on a few things, first of all from users of this system there are no reports of overheating meltdown of the component parts, it comes with Purpose designed T5 reflectors, there are 2 switches on the unit so each lamp can be controlled seperatly, which will be great for going away etc and just useing one lamp, both lamps can be controlled seperatly via timers.

I just placed the order today so i will let you know and hopefully post some pics when it arrives just in case this may be suitable for others and could be another option.

 

[George Farmer]

Ok well i have decided to go with the ASL unit as linked above and HERE

Neat. Much better than the Interpet option.

 

[AndyTaylor]

Better check my single and twin 36's then, i guess........

 

[zig]

Neat. Much better than the Interpet option.

Hopefully they will be George, you know yourself if i knew then what i know now etc all of this could have been avoided, but its Interpets fault at the end of the day, these Interpet units should not be on the market, bottom line.

I went for the 55 Watt version so it will give me 2.75 WPG and with the correct reflectors its exactly the amount of light that i want, not to much and not to little, and being able to control each lamp will be a big benifit for me, something i couldnt do with the Interpet convertagear.

Better check my single and twin 36's then, i guess........

Andy im sorry i ever recommended them to you but as i say if i knew then what i know now......

The Interpet units are guarenteed for 2 years so you allways have the option of a refund if things go awry, i will let you know how i get on with Aquatics online as regards the refund.

Anyway hopefully these work out and are not as shoddy as the Interpet units, the test of time will only reveal that i suppose, but from reading on another forum where a couple of other people own these units they have had no problems after ownership of over a year each.

These wont be for everybody but will suit me fine as my tank is only 30 inches long, i was limited in my choices, even overtank luminaires would have been either too big or too small as the tank sits in an alcove and the width was limited and i wasnt sure if i really wanted to deal with the evaporation issues associated with an open top tank.

 

[Ste_J]

Hopefully they will be George, you know yourself if i knew then what i know now etc all of this could have been avoided, but its Interpets fault at the end of the day, these Interpet units should not be on the market, bottom line.

Zig, The worst part is that after speaking with Interpet this week they don't appear to have a clue about the potential scale of this fault. Both of my units have to go back for testing although I am strongly being to suspect that the tubes have a large part to play in all of this - that with shabby rubber used for the housing.

 

[AndyTaylor]

Not to worry about the recommendation, zig.....you weren't to know. Problem is now i've cut so many holes in the hood that I may not be able to change them out but we'll see..........

 

[Ste_J]

Zig, Could you do me a favour when you get the new unit? I'd like to know if the ASL tubes run cooler than the Interpet ones, Would you let me know your findings?

Cheers

Ste

 

[JohnBaker]

Hi Guys : this is John Baker from Aquatics Online. I have been following this thread re. Interpet T5 Compacts with interest, and I have to say, with some concern. I have passed this forum link onto the Interpet product manager for them to take note, and added the suggestion that they officially post a reply to this thread. I'm told however that this can't be done without "Company" authorisation, which apparently is in hand.

In the meantime, I would like to assure anyone who has a problem with these items which were purchased from us, that if you are not happy with it, return it to us, with your details and note of what you want us to do (refund,replacement,part exchange against different product etc) and it will be sorted, and your return postage refunded. As Interpet are fully aware of the problem, I would also suggest that these items purchased from elsewhere should be returned to the retailer who supplied them for an exhange or refund..this shouldn't be a problem as Interpet will reimburse the retailer for faulty items

Interpet today have uplifted all my existing 36w & 55w compact tubes and are sending me the "new" modified tubes which has a cooling indent at the business end. They also assure me that these new ones have been on test in extreme heat conditions for the past 6 months and are now OK. (Why on test for 6 months already? Did they know there was a problem 6 months ago? Don't know the answer to that one!!)

I have also looked at the ASL compact tubes and would suggest that as the tubes are almost indentical to the Interpet versions, the reason for them not overheating in the ASL fittings is that the rubber cover on the ASL connections only covers about 1/3rd of the hot end of the tube, allowing heat to escape, whereas the Interpet connection covers the whole pin connection end of the tube. So it is quite likely that ASL tubes fitted to Interpet units will suffer the same problem.

I had thought about suspending the products, but now that revised tubes are being made available soon (few days, they said) I think we should continue selling them, if only to find out from you guys if the problem is fixed...that's if anyone is going to be brave enough to buy them after all this!!

Hope this clears up a few things?

 

[George Farmer]

Hope this clears up a few things?

Thanks John. Let's hope Interpet take their customer relations just as seriously.

 

[Ste_J]

Hi Guys : this is John Baker from Aquatics Online. I have been following this thread re. Interpet T5 Compacts with interest, and I have to say, with some concern. I have passed this forum link onto the Interpet product manager for them to take note, and added the suggestion that they officially post a reply to this thread. I'm told however that this can't be done without "Company" authorisation, which apparently is in hand.



Interpet today have uplifted all my existing 36w & 55w compact tubes and are sending me the "new" modified tubes which has a cooling indent at the business end. They also assure me that these new ones have been on test in extreme heat conditions for the past 6 months and are now OK. (Why on test for 6 months already? Did they know there was a problem 6 months ago? Don't know the answer to that one!!)



I had thought about suspending the products, but now that revised tubes are being made available soon (few days, they said) I think we should continue selling them, if only to find out from you guys if the problem is fixed...that's if anyone is going to be brave enough to buy them after all this!!

Hope this clears up a few things?

John, Thanks for posting I'm sure its appriciated by all

It would be great to hear from Interpet on an "official level" as so far the service that I have recieved has been 1st class from their customer services department, If this level of customer focus comes from top down then I'm sure that any "company response" would benefit us all.

Good to hear about the replacement tubes and I really do hope that this solves the current issue, this way I'll get my units back and sooner and will just need to get some new tubes to replace the older type - Would be very interested to see some details about these tubes as I am currently running what I believed to be the newer type [Indent down the middle and Gold lettering - Older style can be seen on the box, black letters no indent]

As to the previous tube history and the 6 month test issue, I did originally have trouble obtaining my single 55W some 10 months ago due to an "over heating issue" and most places were without stock - could this explain why they have been testing for so long? Hopefully they were testing inside a hood type construction to replicate conditions.

In the interim I have bought a double 55W ballast and some 2G11 fittings to ensure that my plants have at least some light whilst Interpet investigate my Units. Still using the gold lettered indented tubes though so I'll keep an eye on how hot they get over the next day or so - I have moved the placement of them so I can compare burn marks if required


Ste

 

[hunterm8]

do you think we will be able to get our tubes replaced for new ones I only got one about a week ago to replace a broken tube now it looks like i will have to get the new hopefully improved ones!

 

[Ste_J]

do you think we will be able to get our tubes replaced for new ones I only got one about a week ago to replace a broken tube now it looks like i will have to get the new hopefully improved ones!

Time will tell, I first called them about a broken tube last year and they were once again very helpfull and arranged for a replacement in the form of a credit note - unlucky for me my LFS wouldn't except it etc but Interpet agreed to send one out even though this was not the usual way of dealing.

I'd really like to see these guys sort this one out for the best as it's rare that you find a company who offer good after sale service, maybe this is due to their size or it's just that they have focus in the right areas.

For the time being I'll stick with their product whilst the problems are being sorted out - wonder if they need an "in life" tester??

 

[Ste_J]

Interpet today have uplifted all my existing 36w & 55w compact tubes and are sending me the "new" modified tubes which has a cooling indent at the business end. They also assure me that these new ones have been on test in extreme heat conditions for the past 6 months and are now OK.

I had thought about suspending the products, but now that revised tubes are being made available soon (few days, they said)

John, Have you got these tubes yet? If so what are the changes that have been made to the tubes?

Ste