OOOOoooh the COLORS! I didn't even realize I was colorblind... until...

[agc]

I didn't even realize how color blind I was until Mat (bc_slc) gave me an old Phoenix 14K DE bulb to check out the color in my tank.

WOW! I can't even begin to describe the colors! I thought I had brown ricordias, bluish brown and orangish brown ricordias. I thought my zoanthids were brown and my acros were blueish brown and greenish brown.

Turns out I have REALLY BLUE ricordias, teal rics, tangerine rics even an electric yellow one! I seem to have purple zoanthids and blue ones too! I have green polyped acros and blue tipped brown acros with green polyps at the base... I'm sure the acros will color up better in time.

I've been using an aquatraders 14K bulb for the past 4 months. Everything was growing like crazy, but the colors were obviously a little muted. The Phoenix 14K is really really blue, but it also seems to bring out a lot more of the coral colors.

I didn't realize how much difference a bulb can make! So, for all of you out there that have good water quality, but can't figure out why your corals don't look like everyone else's, you might want to try a different bulb.

Thanks Mat! You're the best for giving color back to my life!!

achu

 

[dailydriven911]

I also use 14k's and I love them!

 

[Snowboarda42]

I have the same bulb, its great!

 

[trido]

I used to love my 14k pheonix as well but I am afraid to go back. Maybe its just me but I didnt get much life out of them. Please prove me wrong so I can go back........

 

[DonW]

:lol: The bulb color just makes you think you have colorful corals, its really the bulb. Now if you have colorful corals under 10k or 65k then you actually have color. I love xm 20k they make brown corals look great but they are still really just brown.

Don

 

[bc_slc]

Glad you like the look of the tank with the phoenix bulb. Give them some time and you will see that the colors of the corals will really start to shift. More blues and purples. The phoenix bulbs are really a great DE bulb.

There was talk this last summer about putting together a collection of old bulbs so that members could try different bulbs with their pendents and ballasts. What ever happened to that? Would sure be nice to be able to see how a bulb will look before investing in the cost of one or more of them.

Mat

 

[aquarookie]

:lol: The bulb color just makes you think you have colorful corals, its really the bulb. Now if you have colorful corals under 10k or 65k then you actually have color. I love xm 20k they make brown corals look great but they are still really just brown.

Don

Well, the orange and green colors will be OK with those bulbs, but if you have a blue coral, the blue color does not show up as well with a yellow bulb. I know 10k is supposed to be "crisp white" but my XM 10k are yellow. It's kinda like shining blue light through a yellow lens, doesn't work very well.