Is the light output from these two bulbs a big difference?

[HornetMech242]

I am looking for a 250 watt single ended bulb that will give me good PAR for SPS coral and give me a slight blue look so i dont have to use actinic. I looked at the XM and Coralvue Reeflux 10000k bulbs. On Sanjay's lighting site the ratings are.

XM PPFD: 115 CCT: 11543

Coralvue PPFD: 86 CCT: 15953

As i understand PPFD is the same as PAR and CCT is the amount of blue in the bulb. I read that using actinic with the XM bulb is common. If i go with the Coralvue, is that a big difference in light output? I can read the numbers but since i dont know the unit of measurements very well it does me no good.

If you have any experience please tell me about it.

Chris

[HornetMech242]

I really thought someone would of chimed in by now.

[DarG]

The Reeflux is bluer and there is a signifigant enough difference in par. But the Reeflux may be plenty depending on how deep the tank is, how high the lights are placed, water clarity ...

I think that the Reeflux would provide plenty of light if installed in reflectors that provide full spread for the area you are trying to cover. But I am no expert in the technical side of exactly how much light everything needs to thrive.

So, if nothing else, consider this a bump :-)

[joebo1717]

The reflux 10k's are not going to give you a blue look on their own. There is a huge thread on here about the 10k's with photos. I believe if you wanted the bluer look you should go with the reeflux 12k bulb. Either way you will get a good amount of growth

[HornetMech242]

i was lenaning towards the reeflux 12k after i did more reading after i posted this. Its going over a 24" deep tank in Lumenarc III reflectors to cover a 2'x2, area.

[drrich]

I really don't know what everyone is talking about with a "blue look" without actinic supplementation.

I just yesterday changed to reeflux12K, 250hqi on a giesemann fixture, and the bulb is not blue at all. It is quite white to yellow in my eyes. With actinic supplementation it looks fine, but without, it would look awful.

I think the only true bluish bulbs that could be used without actinics are the 20K radiums. In a 400w mogul version, those look great on their own.
Maybe my eyes are the problem, though, because the pictures of this months tank of the month look great with those bulbs and no supplementation, but who knows how photos are enhansed.

Rich

[kinerson]

IMO all the lamps on Sanjay's site that have a cct rating of 0 is a blue lamp that may not need actinic supplementation. The reason the cct is 0 is because of the fact the the color is so blue it's hard to get an accurate reading. There is different levels of blue in this catagory however. Some may be an ice blue while others much deeper.

[HornetMech242]

hmmmmm. I dont have enough room for supplement lighting in my canopy. Here are pics of it.

Canopy (http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=1212718)

Chris

[kinerson]

The XM is going to be pretty white without supps. I'm kinda dealing with a similar situation. I think I'm going to jump from a standard magnetic 250w ballast to the HQI 250w ballast and run a SE lamp. The ballast will overdrive the lamp reducing the life by about 20% but shooting up the PAR. This allows the "bluer" lower PAR lamps to be used with increase PAR. The Hamilton 14k and the happy reefer both look good. PPFD about 100, just not sure how blue they are running on that comdination.

Greg

[HornetMech242]

I am thinking of selling the L3's and get the L3 mini. They are a little bit smaller so i would be able to fit T5's with it to make up the blue. Would this be a good idea?

[raddogz]

I went from mini's to L3's. I want the entire tank lit i.e. every corner. I liked the 12k reeflux 250w for overall coloration.

[jmaneyapanda]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=10837818#post10837818 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by drrich
I really don't know what everyone is talking about with a "blue look" without actinic supplementation.

I just yesterday changed to reeflux12K, 250hqi on a giesemann fixture, and the bulb is not blue at all. It is quite white to yellow in my eyes. With actinic supplementation it looks fine, but without, it would look awful.

I think the only true bluish bulbs that could be used without actinics are the 20K radiums. In a 400w mogul version, those look great on their own.
Maybe my eyes are the problem, though, because the pictures of this months tank of the month look great with those bulbs and no supplementation, but who knows how photos are enhansed.

Rich

Rich, it takes more than 8 hours of burn to "burn in" the bulbs. just wait, you'll see....