Just added MH - not as bright as I expected

[Ripside]

I just added 2x175W MH lighting, using 10K bulbs and a PFO dual 175 ballast. It was a used setup off eBay.

I'm surprised that the tank doesn't seem nearly as bright as it did with my compact flourescents with 4x65K.

Is it because of the color of the 10K lights putting our more blue than I'm used to from the PC fixture, or could the bulbs be old and need replacing?

I do LOVE the ripple effects I'm seeing - just gorgeous!

[Ripside]

Update - I forgot that the setup is at least 10 months old, and was used when HE got it.

Do MH bulbs produce that much less light as they age?

[Cosmo^Kramer]

Did you let them run for a few miniutes? MH's need to warm up to get to full intensity.

[TKByrnes]

yea they need to be replaced. usually about every 10 months. I just got mine and its almost too bright to look at (according to my fiance) I love and and look at it all the time! also I love the EVC 14k bulbs. oceanencounters.com has them and they arent that expensive.

[rigleautomotive]

metal halides working properly are much briter visually .so either balast or bulbs not right.try another bulb first.

[Ripside]

These are bright enough I do feel like I was looking at the sun when I accidentally glanced at them directly (for a microsecond).

Yowza. Spots are starting to fade at last.


TKByrnes - I'll check that place out.

I'll order a new bulb. On that - does the rule "you get what you pay for" apply to MH bulbs? They range from $25 on eBay to over $100 from the big fish suppliers...

[Ripside]

TKByrnes - that took me to a resort website ;)

[rigleautomotive]

some bulbs are junk.XM or blue line.is what i use.some are hard starting and some are much bluer than advertized.i used to use ushio but they changed them and i do not like the color of them anymore.

[GuidoReefer]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8104591#post8104591 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by rigleautomotive
metal halides working properly are much briter visually .so either balast or bulbs not right.try another bulb first.

I agree either the bulbs or ballast isnt right, bc I just upgraded from PC's & T5s to 1-HQI 250w AquaMedic 20k Pendant and 2-55w acntic PC's and its brighter than 6 bulbs all together, i always had a horrible yellow tint to my tank with PC's and now with the 20k using an AB bulb wow crystal clear white/with blueish tint...brings out the color of the corals like you wouldnt believe!!!

[JR719]

I suggest replacing the bulbs first. Generally you will only get around 8 to 10 months out of them depending on how long per day you run them.
There should be a noticable difference, brighter, than the PC's you had. 10K's should be much brighter.....
Be sure to get the correct bulb for your ballast (pulse, electronic blah blah). Check your ballast specs for info, and if that does not work, check the website.

[Ripside]

Well, like I said, the guy had these for 10 months, and they were used when he got them, so the bulbs could be 2 years old for all I know. Ordered 1 bulb to try - if that makes a difference I'll get the 2nd.

Thanks guys!

[seattlerob]

If you have corals in your tank currently, be aware that when you install the new bulb you may want to take into consideration light intensity shock that the corals may experience from a sudden jump in intensity. I believe many people will either shorten the lighting period for a while & slowly increase, or use layers of window screen material to cut the intensity & then slowly remove layers.

If you don't currently have any corals, then nevermind ;)

hth,
rob

[Ripside]

I moved from 260W of PC, plus 64W of T-5, to the 350W of MH alone. These bulbs are pretty weak I think, too, so I'm pretty sure my light levels actually went DOWN with the MH's.

I've added 2 of the 65W PC bulbs from my Jebo fixture (it was really really easy), that has clearly raised the light level from where it was previously, but not by a large margin. I SHOULD have 6.4watts per gallon now, double what it was, but its just a marginal increase. New bulb should be here next week.

I'm aware that I don't want to shock the corals (I have 6 GSP colonies, some big shrooms, zoos, people eaters, and xenias). I'm keeping an eye on them. After 3 hours they're all out and happy. I'll keep watching them closely.

I need to update my siggy with all that info.

When I add the new bulb, I do expect a jump in intensity (I hope or my ballast must be weak). I'll probably run short light cycles to be safe, if I see a big increase in the output. If that does increase output, I'll add another bulb after several days.

[Ripside]

BTW - pics of the canopy are in this thread:

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&postid=8105845#post8105845

More work to be done, but its up and running.

[Ripside]

I added a 175w 14K bulb. Its a lot more purplish than I hoped, and isn't quite to my liking. The 10K was closer to what I wanted, I'm running 2x65W PC actinics, so overall, its a very, very bluish-purplish look.

BUT, the good news: the new bulb is probably 15-25 percent brighter than what I got with the setup.

So that was it.

Old bulbs. I'll probably order another 14K, even though I don't really want more purply looking water. I might go with a 10K, maybe a new 10K on one side will offset some of the purple on the other.

[Ripside]

Example - unretouched photo - its exposure is very dark, intentionally, the PC's are forcing the lighting to be off, but you can see the difference big-time here:

http://usera.imagecave.com/scott/fish2/DSC01090.JPG