MH bulbs

[Sushi Reef]

where is the cheapest place to find bulbs?


also i need to know what K to get... on my 75

i will have to 2 VHO supplement
and i like it to be more blueish

anyone have pics of there 75 tanks and type of lighting used??!?!

 

[Brenden]

The cheapest place will depend on the brand bulb you want. As far as the burn temp..it is strictly preference. Since you are supplimenting it with antic I would do a 10 or 14k depending on the wattage of the antic and how muck blue you like. Another thing to consider in bulb selection is type corals you plan to keep. Do you have 250W fixtures?

 

[Krish]

I agree with Brenden...If you will be using supplemental lights, I'd go with something like a 10K XM (very good par as well as crisp white color) and then use the VHO's to add in your blue to your liking. I bought all my bulbs from one of the sponsors Premium Aquatics ( www.premiumaquatics.com )

 

[Sushi Reef]

this is the supplement lighting i will have

ARO AS220 VHO ballast
2-46.5" URI VHO Super Actinic R Bulbs

it's a new reto i'm getting from DIYreef.com

there will be 2 250's
i thought that the 10K's and only 2 VHO would not be enough to get the blue i want.. but then agian i dont know what it looks like

i'm looking to keep rics zoas and sps .. maybe throw in some lps for the hell of it

 

[Krish]

Yeah...That's the thing. I've never used VHO's so I couldn't say. From a personal experience, the 20K XM's are really blue, the 12K reflux I have now, I put side by side with one of my 20K's when I had my 75gal and couldn't tell which bulb was which. The 10K XM I have which I'm not using, is pure white! I can see any little particle floating in the water with it!

Here's something you may enjoy. Let the page load and change up the brands and spectrums and find what you like

http://chrismorris.ca/250wcolour/

 

[mfinn]

If you want 250 watt 10k XM se's I have 3, never used.

If you want something different, I've always found great deals at www.diyreef.com

 

[prbhasson]

I have an all vho setup on my 75 and at first was running 2 of the uri super actinics on a 4 bulb setup and changed to 1 Actinic and the rest are 10K. Uri's Super actinic are very blue to me and it made the tank look darker than I liked. Hope this helps with your decision. I think you should go with the 10k"s for your MH and you should be good...

 

[Sushi Reef]

thanks guys that does help a lot.

finn how much you want for 2 of them?

 

[mfinn]

thanks guys that does help a lot.

finn how much you want for 2 of them?

I sent you a pm

 

[twilliard]

that is 2 Hamilton 14K 250W on IC ballasts with 3 4" 110W Super Actinic blues on an IC 660

 

[Sushi Reef]

that looks pretty white... no?

 

[twilliard]

Too white for me, I am looking into 20K lamps

 

[spongebob lover]

i have a Hamilton 175 14k and mine is blue, so wouu..... i can't believe how much difference a wattage can make :shock:

 

[spongebob lover]

ohh yeah this is where i get my bulb from .... i don't know if they're any cheaper but i like the service .

http://www.hamiltontechnology.com/index.shtml

 

[Sushi Reef]

how accurate is this image?
the hamilton 14k look much bluer(is that a word) in this image then in twillards pic and he has supplement lighting... can i expect the xm 10k's to be blinding white? i heard the XM 15k's are no good quality wise.
what are my options?

 

[twilliard]

Oh and my lights are 7" off the water
That is the site I used to gauge my lamp purchase. The Hamilton lamps stayed a good blue for about 4-6 weeks then turned white as in the pic.

I tested that buy putting a NEW 14K hamilton in next to the old one and thats how long it took to change color.
I will follow this thread to see if any one else posts pics of their color.

 

[Sushi Reef]

oh thats some good info

thanks

 

[spongebob lover]

well i'm probably useless in this but hey... here's my Hamilton 14k 175..... i know i know is not the same wattage but still .

 

[Sushi Reef]

thats a nice blue... how old are those bulbs?

 

[twilliard]

that is a nice color
Maybe the "whiteness" of the 250's is just seeing the intensity of the bulb?

Or do you think the K changes slightly with wattage?