Favorite 400w bulb

[Nanook]

I value the opinions here and wanted to know if you all had a favorite 400w SE bulb? I am due for a bulb change in the next couple months and am shopping. I have used Ushio 10k and find it too yellow, currently using Radium 20K and find it too blue:D

[OC CJ]

I'm interested as well. I run the 400w radium on a lumatek and it's just too blue for me.

[Jeremy B.]

Hey Dave, I just about responded in your other thread, but held off. My favorite setups....

- 400w Radiums on HQI ballasts supplemented lightly with VHO actinic

- 400w 10k Ushios on HQI ballasts supplemented heavily with VHO actinic

- 400w Radiums on any ballast mixed with 10k 400w Ushio's, or better yet Iwasaki's, and light VHO actinic supplementation

- 400w Aquaconnects preferably on HQI ballasts with heavy VHO actinic, or 400w Aquaconnects on electronic ballasts with lighty VHO actinic.


Does that give you enough food for thought? :) For sps growth and coloration in 400w the Radium, 10k Ushio, Iwasaki, and Aquaconnect are the best bulbs in my opinion. VHO actinic supplementation is a lost staple in sps keeping, that only a handful of us "old time" guys use anymore it seems.

[Nanook]

Thanks, Jeremy! I was awaiting your reply:)

I have option #1 over my current 5ftx5ft stony tank. It has four LAIII reflectors with Radiums on HQI ballast and four 110w VHO super actinic. It is a stunning look visually, but the issue I have is it is a little blue for my tastes and the short life of Radiums on HQI ballasts. If I were to change to Galaxy ballasts, the look would be even bluer I imagine.

I have also mixed both Radiums and Ushio on HQI ballasts and the Ushio's look yellow-green and too bright next to the Radiums. I have not tried the Radium/Saki combo on this tank because I know it would be even more pronounced than the Radium/Ushio combo. IF, I could throw a few more bulbs up there I could probably get away with it, but my reflector situation only lets me put four over the cube tank.

The Aquaconnect bulbs sound very nice, but they are pretty pricey! I may have to give them a try, but that would ruin me for future bulbs:lol: I read they can be run on either HQI ballasts which I have now, or on electronic ballasts, which I was going to buy to save some money.

I was looking for something in between the 10K Ushio and 20K Radium, without sacrificing the PAR. Have you seen the Ushio 14K SE bulb over a tank yet? I know it has not been tested by Sanjay, but I am thinking it might be worth a try. I have an Iwasaki on Galaxy ballast over my fuge and could use that as a testing ground for the Ushio 14K.

I have read some nice comments about the Reeflux 12K and a friend here in St Louis has them in the 250w version over his tank. They lack a little pop though and reports say they lose the bluish coloration after 3 months or so.

Thanks for taking the time to reply:D

[Jeremy B.]

Hi Dave,

The Ushio 14k is just slightly whiter than the 10k Ushio. When running them side by side I see a little more green / gold with the naked eye in the 14k, and more yellow in the 10k. When looking at the reflection of each side by side up against a white wall though the 14k looks more "white", where the 10k has slightly more of a "warm" or "yellow" color. I have never seen any par numbers reported on these lamps, but I do have a par meter here that I could hook one up and measure it. It's not going to be as scientific as Sanjay's tests, but it will at least give a ballpark figure.

The 12k Reeflux is going to be pretty close to the Radium in my opinion, but like you said with less pop. They do shift very fast as well. PAR will be slightly down versus the Radium, but not a huge difference.

I think exactly what you're looking for is what the Iwasaki 175w 15k lamp looks like. It's a true 15k, very crisp, ice white, with a ton of par. The downside.... Eye Lighting only makes this lamp in 175w. The next best thing is going to be the Aquaconnect in my opinion. The AC spikes at 450nm, however it's unique in the fact that is also has a really big spike at 415nm, which provides a ton of fluorescence. It's then balance with some warmer spikes as well.

Just out of curiosity, how much are you paying per kw/h for electricity? I want to do a quick calculation on a couple of different setups you're thinking about.

[Nanook]

Our electricity here is between $.06 and $.08 cents/kilowatt hour. So, pretty cheap overall, I just have a lot of stuff running, including the pool during the summer.

[Jeremy B.]

Here is some interesting info for you between the Radium and AC lamp between the "hqi" ballasts you have now and the Galaxy....

400w Radium / HQI Ballast 471w
400w Radium / Galaxy ballast 458w

400w Aquaconnect / HQI Ballast 536w
400w Aquaconnect / Galaxy ballast 456w

Let's say you go from the setup you have now to the HQI ballast / Aquaconnect combo, which pulls 536w per lamp, and you run 4 lamps @ 10hrs per day. For calculation purposes let's say you average at $.07/kwh from your electric company. This gives you a total difference of 320w of extra power consumption per hour. Your per day costs to operate this extra wattage would be $.22/day, $6.92/mo, or $80.30/year.

What I am getting at here, is I wouldn't be too much concerned about getting away from the 400w HQI ballasts, but rather finding a ballast / bulb combo that is the coloration you're wanting. 400w electronic ballasts, at a bare minimum, would run a lamp around 380w or so. The savings you would see by going to the electronic ballasts, are really not that much in the grand scheme of things.

Now, back to the actual bulb to take a look at. You might consider picking up both an Ushio 14k and an Aquaconnect 14k and run them on the Galaxy of PFO and see what you think about them.

[Sanjay]

I have tested the Ushio 14K.. I am way lagging on updating the database. Here is the link

http://www.advancedaquarist.com/2008/10/review/view?searchterm=None

Personally I love the Giesmann and Ushio 14KK bulbs. I am currently running 4 of the Ushio 14Ks on the penn state tank, unsupplemented with any other light. Running 2 Giesmann 14K and 1 Ushio 14K on my tank at home. All on Icecap Electronic Ballasts.

sanjay,

[Jeremy B.]

Thank you sir! :)

That spectral graph looks REALLY good on the Ushio 14k, I like it.

[MSHUR]

hey jeremy,
I didnt know that galaxy overdrive radiums to 458w...Now i see why i love this combo:)
As far as color and corals reaction this is the best combo i ever had. To be honest , i though Galaxy ( electronic) balast drive this bulb to a specs..

AQ-14 is great bulb to ,but....$$$$$ :))

[Nanook]

Thanks for chiming in, Sanjay:) I think the Ushio 14K might be the bulb to try for this next go-around. I am leery of using the HQI ballasts I have on these bulbs because the overdriven bulbs tend to shift spectrally quicker. I was planning on Sunlight Supply Galaxy ballasts, but didn't see that one tested yet. All of my cords/plugs are of the Sunlight Supply type.

Appreciate the feedback, Jeremy:thumbsup:

[ksed]

I have been tring to lool for cct rating of different depths on a reef, and could not gather any info. Does anyone know what the cct rating is approx. a 5m depth on a reef?

[BradR]

Thanks for chiming in, Sanjay:) I think the Ushio 14K might be the bulb to try for this next go-around.

+1 Read somewhere these go yellow after 4-5 months but am gonna go for it anyway. Will try and remember to take some A and B pics for comparison.

[Sanjay]

The Giesmann coral lamp is very similar to the Ushio 14K. You can see here how the Giesman Lamps aged over time. Should give you a good idea of what to expect with the Ushio 14K. I just switched out today to the Ushio 14K so I can collect some aging data on it too.

http://www.advancedaquarist.com/2008/7/aafeature1/view?searchterm=spectral

sanjay.

[Nanook]

Cool, thanks for all the great information you provide for us hobbyists!!!

[BradR]

Awesome information. So much better than anecdotal info it's not even funny. Thanks!

[Orr2003]

Awesome information. So much better than anecdotal info it's not even funny. Thanks!

+1


Its time for me to buy new bulbs. Thanks for the great info Sanjay. I will be switching from Radiums to Ushio 14k.

[dwdowney]

I have a 60” deep tank that I am trying to light. I have already purchased 5 - 400 watt galaxy ballasts. Can I use the Ushio 14k or the Giesmann? Or should order 3 XM 10Ks and 2 Radium 20Ks? I would really like to get away with Zero supplementation.

[karm40]

I'll throw a monkey wrench in. How 'bout the Hamilton 14k?

[Jeremy B.]

I have a 60” deep tank that I am trying to light. I have already purchased 5 - 400 watt galaxy ballasts. Can I use the Ushio 14k or the Giesmann? Or should order 3 XM 10Ks and 2 Radium 20Ks? I would really like to get away with Zero supplementation.

The Ushio 14k is a very crisp white to the naked eye. Sanjay might be able to post some links to the PSU tank he is running them on here? I think I would opt to go that way in my opinion.

[dwdowney]

Jeremy-
Do you think the 14ks will penetrate enough to grow zoes at the bottom of the tank?

[Jeremy B.]

If you are using a good reflector I think you would be fine with zoos or mushrooms down at the bottom of the tank, even at 60".

[dwdowney]

Jeremy-
Do you think the 14ks will penetrate enough to grow zoes at the bottom of the tank?

[Maximus]

Sorry to bump this old thread but is the Sunlight Supply 400 watt Bluewave 1 the correct ballast for the 400 watt Radium bulbs? Obviously I am looking for the 400 watt HQI ballast so I can overdrive the Radiums. Thanks.

[RichK]

I am running 400W Radiums now on DIY pulse start ballasts, but I plan on getting at least one Ushio 14K so I can compare color. I like the Radiums, but would like a bit more growth. Oh, BTW, here is a full tank shot of the Penn State tank with the Ushios:

http://www.richknechtphotography.com/Aquariums/Penn-State-500G-August-2009/FullTank1/675031311_ey5RX-XL.jpg

[Jeremy B.]

Sorry to bump this old thread but is the Sunlight Supply 400 watt Bluewave 1 the correct ballast for the 400 watt Radium bulbs? Obviously I am looking for the 400 watt HQI ballast so I can overdrive the Radiums. Thanks.

That is the closest ballast to spec we have available here in the United States for the Radium lamp.

[henrystyle]

Any updates on the 400w ushio 14k bulbs?

[Nanook]

They are my favorite 400 watt bulb. I ran the last set for a year and bought another set.

[henrystyle]

They are my favorite 400 watt bulb. I ran the last set for a year and bought another set.
I know they probably give good growth but how do they color up your acros?
Any tank pics?

[ct_vol]

Bumping this one up... Thoughts??? I'm leaning toward either the 400w Ushio 14K or 400w Radium, but I'm open to suggestion as I have no experience with 400w bulbs... Lumatek Switchable Electronic Ballasts...

[Pseudo69]

Radiums

[Nanook]

Radium's on electronic ballast aren't my cup of tea. I think they're too blue and the PAR is lacking compared to overdriven on HQI ballast. On a pulse start ballast they look nice and have decent PAR. The Ushio is a great bulb but it's a little too white for my taste on my tanks as it makes the room too bright.

[ct_vol]

Radium's on electronic ballast aren't my cup of tea. I think they're too blue and the PAR is lacking compared to overdriven on HQI ballast. On a pulse start ballast they look nice and have decent PAR. The Ushio is a great bulb but it's a little too white for my taste on my tanks as it makes the room too bright.

So that means you aren't happy either way? ;)

[Jeremy B.]

Even on the "turbo" or "hqi" setting of the Lumatek 400w ballast the Radium is still a bit blue. If you can find a Son Agro 430 ballast here in the US grab that and run the 400w Radium. That's the ballast that PFO used in their "400 HQI" ballast for years, and it makes the Radium look amazing!

I have a few of these ballasts stashed away in our warehouse that I don't think I'll ever be able to part with. ;)

[ct_vol]

So.... Stick to my 250w bulbs? :)

[Jeremy B.]

I still favor 400w bulbs, but that's just my craziness old school mentality for an sps tank. I'm back to using a 400w Radium over my 45g cube at home.

[Nanook]

I have two dual SLS Bluewaves with the 430 Son Agro. They run at 9 amps each though:(. 9x120 is a lot of electricity, but they give the insane acro coloration and growth.

[ct_vol]

Hmmm, I have 4 x 54w T5's for actinics on this tank as well... How about 2 x Ushio 14K 400w and 2x ATI Blue+ 2xATI True Actinic? Or I could go 4x Blue+...

I've been running 250w XM 10K's with those actinics for growth, but it was time to change bulbs, so I threw in some 250w Radiums... Forgot how much Radiums made colors pop. I want Radium coral coloration w/o the Windex background look and decent growth... Possible??? Or can I not have my cake and eat it too?

[Jeremy B.]

Yes, very possible, go with 400w Radiums. ;)

[henrystyle]

Son Agro 430 ballast


I have a few of these ballasts stashed away in our warehouse that I don't think I'll ever be able to part with. ;)
Part with 2 of them bro. let me know.

[henrystyle]

Even on the "turbo" or "hqi" setting of the Lumatek 400w ballast the Radium is still a bit blue. If you can find a Son Agro 430 ballast here in the US grab that and run the 400w Radium. That's the ballast that PFO used in their "400 HQI" ballast for years, and it makes the Radium look amazing!

I have a few of these ballasts stashed away in our warehouse that I don't think I'll ever be able to part with. ;)
Were these Son Argo 430 electronic or magnetic?
Anything special with them or would any 430w ballast do?

[Jeremy B.]

These are big magnetic ballasts, sent you a PM.