Halide Q & A - Page 34

clugo · 10/14/2014, 04:06 PM

it would probably be the hamilton 14K. the magnetic ballast won't support phoenix or radium bulbs but according to them, it will work on 95% (odd) of the other bulbs on the market.

What bulb combo do you use?

clugo · 10/14/2014, 04:26 PM

Also, what are some other quality bulbs that people are using besides Phoenix and radium?

Jeremy B. · 10/14/2014, 04:34 PM

You would still be fine firing the Radium and Phoenix on a magnetic ballast assuming that it is pulse start - ANSI Code M153. This is not the spec ballast for the Radium, but it will still supply enough voltage to the lamp to fire it up. Even a probe start magnetic ballast - ANSI Code M58, would still probably fire the Radium most of the time, but I wouldn't risk it. Going with a good electronic Select-a-watt ballast such as the Luxcore is not a bad option at all if you want to play around with different lamps. Some other good brands are:

Ushio, XM, Giesemann (extremely similar to Ushio), AquaConnect, Aqualine Buschke, Coralvue, etc..

clugo · 10/14/2014, 04:36 PM

The magnetic ballasts that comes with one of the Hamilton Cebu fixtures I'm looking at is the M 58. It would come w Hamiltons 14k bulb

sirreal63 · 10/14/2014, 04:46 PM

I am running Radium and M80. The M58 is pretty much a standard (most common) 250 watt ballast and will fire the bulk of the 250 watt bulbs still out there. Some people like the Hammy 14k, and some people do not. I ran it for a few years and liked it, but I ran the DE version. If you have doubts, get the electronic, even if it won't run all bulbs to spec, it will do the job.

clugo · 10/14/2014, 05:04 PM

So would I be ok going w the magnetic for now?

sirreal63 · 10/14/2014, 05:05 PM

With the Hamilton 14k yes you would.

clugo · 10/14/2014, 05:06 PM

and I wouldn't be compromising on the quality of light?

sirreal63 · 10/14/2014, 05:08 PM

No, it is the proper ballast for that bulb.

girish5657 · 10/17/2014, 01:33 AM

I have 16k
160 watt 2 maxspect r420r on 60 inches tank is it any problem if I continue use this lights on my tank

msderganc · 10/20/2014, 09:18 PM

I just bought a 36" Maristar 2x250w DE MH + 2x39W T5 fixture with the Galaxy electronic ballast. I plan to put it over a frag tank that is 4'x2'x1' which holds mostly SPS, but also Zoas and some LPS. I'm going to use the Phoenix 14000k bulbs, and some combination of the following T5:
Giesemann Actinic Blue
Giesemann Super Actinic
ATI True Actinic
ATI Blue Plus

I like a blue ~17000k color, but I didn't want it to be too blue, so I bought one of each and was thinking I'd mix and match one of the blue and actinics.

I have a few questions:
1. Any suggestions on T5 combination?
2. I'm acclimating from an LED fixture - how high off the water should I start? What length photoperiod? Should I use screen?
3. The corals are all about two inches off the bottom on egg crate. I was considering shading half the tank for the softies/LPS. Any suggestions?

If you can't tell, I'm concerned that this may be a little too much light for such a shallow tank.

Jeremy B. · 10/21/2014, 07:58 AM

The 14k Phoenix lamps are going to run pretty white in my opinion, especially after they burn in. I'd suggest running a couple of blue plus T5's to go along with it. The downside to T5 supplementation, especially when you only have two of them supplementing 2 x 250's, is that they're not going to be that noticeable unfortunately. Of all the "blue" T5's out there the ATI Blue Plus will have the most punch and give you the most pop in conjunction with the 2 x 250 Phoenix lamps.

A lot of your acclimation will depend on the LED's you're switching from, the intensity they're set at, and how high off the water they are now.

msderganc · 10/21/2014, 08:13 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jeremy B.

The 14k Phoenix lamps are going to run pretty white in my opinion, especially after they burn in. I'd suggest running a couple of blue plus T5's to go along with it. The downside to T5 supplementation, especially when you only have two of them supplementing 2 x 250's, is that they're not going to be that noticeable unfortunately. Of all the "blue" T5's out there the ATI Blue Plus will have the most punch and give you the most pop in conjunction with the 2 x 250 Phoenix lamps.

A lot of your acclimation will depend on the LED's you're switching from, the intensity they're set at, and how high off the water they are now.

Thanks! So do you think the actinics would be even better than the Blue Plus? They're not nearly as white.

I'm currently using a 36" Pacific Sun Metis Hyperion R2 (http://www.pacific-sun.eu/new/index....=92&Itemid=192). I'm running it about a foot above the waterline at 50% power in the Bali Sun mode.

I guess a better way to ask about the acclimation would be where do you think the light should end up? I was tentatively thinking 12-18" above the water, T5s on for ~10 hours, MH on for ~6 hours. Does that sound reasonable?

Jeremy B. · 10/21/2014, 08:27 AM

True actinics are roughly 420nm, while the Blue Plus are 450-460nm. The actinics will be more of a purple / blue while the blue plus are more of a solid blue. Because of this the true actinics are going to have even less punch, and be even less noticeable while the halides are on. While the actinics are my personal favorite color of blue supplementation, they're just really hard to run when you only have two of them in T5 trying to supplement your 2 x 250's. I'd still stick with the Blue Plus.

For acclimation over that tank I'd start the fixture around 15" - 16", and run the halides for 4-5hrs per day, maybe running the T5's an hour in front of that and an hour in back of that. I'd try to work the halides up to 6-7hrs per day at around 12" - 14" height, again with the T5's being an hour in front and an hour in back.

Keep in mind that every 3" you raise the light will have approximately a 90% decrease in light reaching the corals.

msderganc · 10/21/2014, 09:08 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jeremy B.

True actinics are roughly 420nm, while the Blue Plus are 450-460nm. The actinics will be more of a purple / blue while the blue plus are more of a solid blue. Because of this the true actinics are going to have even less punch, and be even less noticeable while the halides are on. While the actinics are my personal favorite color of blue supplementation, they're just really hard to run when you only have two of them in T5 trying to supplement your 2 x 250's. I'd still stick with the Blue Plus.

For acclimation over that tank I'd start the fixture around 15" - 16", and run the halides for 4-5hrs per day, maybe running the T5's an hour in front of that and an hour in back of that. I'd try to work the halides up to 6-7hrs per day at around 12" - 14" height, again with the T5's being an hour in front and an hour in back.

Keep in mind that every 3" you raise the light will have approximately a 90% decrease in light reaching the corals.

Thanks for the great advice! That's exactly what I was looking for.

rsaha · 10/29/2014, 03:36 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by msderganc

I just bought a 36" Maristar 2x250w DE MH + 2x39W T5 fixture with the Galaxy electronic ballast. I plan to put it over a frag tank that is 4'x2'x1' which holds mostly SPS, but also Zoas and some LPS. I'm going to use the Phoenix 14000k bulbs, and some combination of the following T5:
Giesemann Actinic Blue
Giesemann Super Actinic
ATI True Actinic
ATI Blue Plus

I like a blue ~17000k color, but I didn't want it to be too blue, so I bought one of each and was thinking I'd mix and match one of the blue and actinics.

I have a few questions:
1. Any suggestions on T5 combination?
2. I'm acclimating from an LED fixture - how high off the water should I start? What length photoperiod? Should I use screen?
3. The corals are all about two inches off the bottom on egg crate. I was considering shading half the tank for the softies/LPS. Any suggestions?

If you can't tell, I'm concerned that this may be a little too much light for such a shallow tank.

I have the 48 inch maristar running Phoenix 14K as well. I was recently looking at the spectral plots for the bulb on Sanjay's site and see that they have a huge spike at 450nm (Blue Plus spike is around the same place) and pretty much nothing at 420nm. I have been running Blue Plus for par but I'm going to try the true actinics for a while. I do find that the Blue Plus with the Phoenix tends to make yellow pop but blue tends to look washed out. I put a reefbrite on the tank this week (had one kicking around) and that helped...

msderganc · 10/29/2014, 01:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rsaha

I have the 48 inch maristar running Phoenix 14K as well. I was recently looking at the spectral plots for the bulb on Sanjay's site and see that they have a huge spike at 450nm (Blue Plus spike is around the same place) and pretty much nothing at 420nm. I have been running Blue Plus for par but I'm going to try the true actinics for a while. I do find that the Blue Plus with the Phoenix tends to make yellow pop but blue tends to look washed out. I put a reefbrite on the tank this week (had one kicking around) and that helped...

Thanks- how did you attach the led strip?

rsaha · 10/29/2014, 02:21 PM

I didn't. I just built a couple of small feet and rest that on the rim of the tank. I found a way to make it work on the Tek fixtures but for the maristar you would either need custom brackets or you would need to drill the fixture I think.

rsaha · 10/29/2014, 07:03 PM

I just swapped out my Blue Plus/Geiseman Aquablue combo for two true actinics. I should have done this a long time ago. Compared to the previous combo the blues and oranges are much more pronounced. Under the old combo things were pretty washed out in comparison. We'll see how the corals respond.

gus6464 · 10/31/2014, 02:16 PM

So I am ordering an Aquamedic T5/MH 150W fixture. I have the option of getting either the reeflex magnetic or the aquamedic electronic. I have read that the reeflex is loud and runs hot compared to the e-ballast since it runs the bulb at more wattage. I would prefer to keep the noise and heat down but not sure how good their e-ballasts are. Anyone have any experience with them? Bulb would be an Ushio 10K.

Bpb · 10/31/2014, 02:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by gus6464

So I am ordering an Aquamedic T5/MH 150W fixture. I have the option of getting either the reeflex magnetic or the aquamedic electronic. I have read that the reeflex is loud and runs hot compared to the e-ballast since it runs the bulb at more wattage. I would prefer to keep the noise and heat down but not sure how good their e-ballasts are. Anyone have any experience with them? Bulb would be an Ushio 10K.

I'd opt for the m81 option. They'll make a tad bit of noise but run the bulbs better.

Reefer07 · 11/03/2014, 08:32 PM

I am looking into metal halide lighting for the first time. Not new to reefing though and I have kept many SPS under T5 setups.
I just setup a new 90g a couple months ago and I can get one of the coralife 2x250 halide/PC combos for a steal. Have to replace the bulbs but I'll worry about that later.
It is a 250 watt ballast obviously with a 10k bulb.
Here's the dumb question.....can I run any 250w bulb in it that I want?
Also, what seems to be the consensus on the best bulb for growth? I have seen 14k setups which I really like but i know 10 will give you better. I plan on doing the 96w Power compacts straight actinic so I don't know how much this will help with that blue look.

Thanks for any input.

Jeremy B. · 11/04/2014, 09:21 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Reefer07

I am looking into metal halide lighting for the first time. Not new to reefing though and I have kept many SPS under T5 setups.
I just setup a new 90g a couple months ago and I can get one of the coralife 2x250 halide/PC combos for a steal. Have to replace the bulbs but I'll worry about that later.
It is a 250 watt ballast obviously with a 10k bulb.
Here's the dumb question.....can I run any 250w bulb in it that I want?
Also, what seems to be the consensus on the best bulb for growth? I have seen 14k setups which I really like but i know 10 will give you better. I plan on doing the 96w Power compacts straight actinic so I don't know how much this will help with that blue look.

Thanks for any input.

That fixture runs double ended MH bulbs, and yes - you can run any DE 250w bulb that you want in that fixture. Generally speaking, 10k is going to give you better growth than the more blue lamps out there due to the higher PAR. If you're trying to maximized growth and coloration both the 14k Phoenix works very well. It's a bit monochromatic (washed out), but the supplementation will help with this. It also has the highest PAR of any 250 DE lamp that is more on the blue side.

jda · 11/04/2014, 09:23 AM

The ballats on that fixture are probably not the right ones to drive most DE bulbs. IIRC, they are electronic and not HQI M80.

If you have M80 ballasts, then 14K phoenix is the way to go. Beautiful bulb that requires no supplementation.

Jeremy B. · 11/04/2014, 09:37 AM

An electronic ballast is a bit of a different animals than a magnetic ballast. An electronic ballast will vary the voltage to the lamp depending on which lamp it is, thus it will drive any double ended lamp out there with no problem. A magnetic ballast is a set voltage, depending on which ballast it is. The M81 ballast is a magnetic 250w "hqi" ballast that uses an external igniter to supply the required voltage to start the lamp, since DE lamps do not have an internal igniter in them. Running a DE lamp on an electronic ballast is just fine, however it's going to be on average 10% - 20% less light output than if you were to run the same lamp on an M81 magnetic ballast.

10/14/2014, 04:46 PM	#830
sirreal63 Go Spurs Go!!! Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Meadowlakes Texas Posts: 13,357	I am running Radium and M80. The M58 is pretty much a standard (most common) 250 watt ballast and will fire the bulk of the 250 watt bulbs still out there. Some people like the Hammy 14k, and some people do not. I ran it for a few years and liked it, but I ran the DE version. If you have doubts, get the electronic, even if it won't run all bulbs to spec, it will do the job. __________________ Jack No One has ever been seriously injured by using the search function. Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms should be a convenience store, not a government agency. Current Tank Info: Reefing the Pentagon.

10/14/2014, 05:05 PM	#832
sirreal63 Go Spurs Go!!! Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Meadowlakes Texas Posts: 13,357	With the Hamilton 14k yes you would. __________________ Jack No One has ever been seriously injured by using the search function. Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms should be a convenience store, not a government agency. Current Tank Info: Reefing the Pentagon.

10/14/2014, 05:08 PM	#834
sirreal63 Go Spurs Go!!! Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Meadowlakes Texas Posts: 13,357	No, it is the proper ballast for that bulb. __________________ Jack No One has ever been seriously injured by using the search function. Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms should be a convenience store, not a government agency. Current Tank Info: Reefing the Pentagon.

10/20/2014, 09:18 PM	#836
msderganc Registered Member Join Date: May 2013 Location: Houston, Texas Posts: 672	I just bought a 36" Maristar 2x250w DE MH + 2x39W T5 fixture with the Galaxy electronic ballast. I plan to put it over a frag tank that is 4'x2'x1' which holds mostly SPS, but also Zoas and some LPS. I'm going to use the Phoenix 14000k bulbs, and some combination of the following T5: Giesemann Actinic Blue Giesemann Super Actinic ATI True Actinic ATI Blue Plus I like a blue ~17000k color, but I didn't want it to be too blue, so I bought one of each and was thinking I'd mix and match one of the blue and actinics. I have a few questions: 1. Any suggestions on T5 combination? 2. I'm acclimating from an LED fixture - how high off the water should I start? What length photoperiod? Should I use screen? 3. The corals are all about two inches off the bottom on egg crate. I was considering shading half the tank for the softies/LPS. Any suggestions? If you can't tell, I'm concerned that this may be a little too much light for such a shallow tank. __________________ - Matt Current Tank Info: 75g SPS ReefSavvy in the Works (prior: 260g SPS heavy system, 70g prop system, 29g Biocube)

10/29/2014, 02:21 PM	#843
rsaha Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Ottawa, Canada Posts: 587	I didn't. I just built a couple of small feet and rest that on the rim of the tank. I found a way to make it work on the Tek fixtures but for the maristar you would either need custom brackets or you would need to drill the fixture I think. __________________ Current Tank: 120G SPS dominated mixed reef, BK Mini 180, 2x250W Phoenix 14K MH/2xT5, 2 x 6105 and 1 6055, Apex, GHL Profilux standalone doser calcium/alk/mag

10/14/2014, 04:06 PM	#826
clugo Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2010 Posts: 537	it would probably be the hamilton 14K. the magnetic ballast won't support phoenix or radium bulbs but according to them, it will work on 95% (odd) of the other bulbs on the market. What bulb combo do you use?

10/14/2014, 04:26 PM	#827
clugo Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2010 Posts: 537	Also, what are some other quality bulbs that people are using besides Phoenix and radium?

10/14/2014, 04:34 PM	#828
Jeremy B. Registered Member Join Date: May 2001 Location: Indianapolis, IN / Muncie, IN Posts: 8,219	You would still be fine firing the Radium and Phoenix on a magnetic ballast assuming that it is pulse start - ANSI Code M153. This is not the spec ballast for the Radium, but it will still supply enough voltage to the lamp to fire it up. Even a probe start magnetic ballast - ANSI Code M58, would still probably fire the Radium most of the time, but I wouldn't risk it. Going with a good electronic Select-a-watt ballast such as the Luxcore is not a bad option at all if you want to play around with different lamps. Some other good brands are: Ushio, XM, Giesemann (extremely similar to Ushio), AquaConnect, Aqualine Buschke, Coralvue, etc..

10/14/2014, 04:36 PM	#829
clugo Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2010 Posts: 537	The magnetic ballasts that comes with one of the Hamilton Cebu fixtures I'm looking at is the M 58. It would come w Hamiltons 14k bulb

10/14/2014, 05:04 PM	#831
clugo Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2010 Posts: 537	So would I be ok going w the magnetic for now?

10/14/2014, 05:06 PM	#833
clugo Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2010 Posts: 537	and I wouldn't be compromising on the quality of light?

10/17/2014, 01:33 AM	#835
girish5657 Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2014 Posts: 9	I have 16k 160 watt 2 maxspect r420r on 60 inches tank is it any problem if I continue use this lights on my tank

10/21/2014, 07:58 AM	#837
Jeremy B. Registered Member Join Date: May 2001 Location: Indianapolis, IN / Muncie, IN Posts: 8,219	The 14k Phoenix lamps are going to run pretty white in my opinion, especially after they burn in. I'd suggest running a couple of blue plus T5's to go along with it. The downside to T5 supplementation, especially when you only have two of them supplementing 2 x 250's, is that they're not going to be that noticeable unfortunately. Of all the "blue" T5's out there the ATI Blue Plus will have the most punch and give you the most pop in conjunction with the 2 x 250 Phoenix lamps. A lot of your acclimation will depend on the LED's you're switching from, the intensity they're set at, and how high off the water they are now.

10/21/2014, 08:27 AM	#839
Jeremy B. Registered Member Join Date: May 2001 Location: Indianapolis, IN / Muncie, IN Posts: 8,219	True actinics are roughly 420nm, while the Blue Plus are 450-460nm. The actinics will be more of a purple / blue while the blue plus are more of a solid blue. Because of this the true actinics are going to have even less punch, and be even less noticeable while the halides are on. While the actinics are my personal favorite color of blue supplementation, they're just really hard to run when you only have two of them in T5 trying to supplement your 2 x 250's. I'd still stick with the Blue Plus. For acclimation over that tank I'd start the fixture around 15" - 16", and run the halides for 4-5hrs per day, maybe running the T5's an hour in front of that and an hour in back of that. I'd try to work the halides up to 6-7hrs per day at around 12" - 14" height, again with the T5's being an hour in front and an hour in back. Keep in mind that every 3" you raise the light will have approximately a 90% decrease in light reaching the corals.

10/29/2014, 07:03 PM	#844
rsaha Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Ottawa, Canada Posts: 587	I just swapped out my Blue Plus/Geiseman Aquablue combo for two true actinics. I should have done this a long time ago. Compared to the previous combo the blues and oranges are much more pronounced. Under the old combo things were pretty washed out in comparison. We'll see how the corals respond. __________________ Current Tank: 120G SPS dominated mixed reef, BK Mini 180, 2x250W Phoenix 14K MH/2xT5, 2 x 6105 and 1 6055, Apex, GHL Profilux standalone doser calcium/alk/mag

10/31/2014, 02:16 PM	#845
gus6464 Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2009 Posts: 1,079	So I am ordering an Aquamedic T5/MH 150W fixture. I have the option of getting either the reeflex magnetic or the aquamedic electronic. I have read that the reeflex is loud and runs hot compared to the e-ballast since it runs the bulb at more wattage. I would prefer to keep the noise and heat down but not sure how good their e-ballasts are. Anyone have any experience with them? Bulb would be an Ushio 10K.

11/03/2014, 08:32 PM	#847
Reefer07 Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Connecticut Posts: 2,090	I am looking into metal halide lighting for the first time. Not new to reefing though and I have kept many SPS under T5 setups. I just setup a new 90g a couple months ago and I can get one of the coralife 2x250 halide/PC combos for a steal. Have to replace the bulbs but I'll worry about that later. It is a 250 watt ballast obviously with a 10k bulb. Here's the dumb question.....can I run any 250w bulb in it that I want? Also, what seems to be the consensus on the best bulb for growth? I have seen 14k setups which I really like but i know 10 will give you better. I plan on doing the 96w Power compacts straight actinic so I don't know how much this will help with that blue look. Thanks for any input.

11/04/2014, 09:23 AM	#849
jda Dogmatic Dinosaur Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Boulder, CO Posts: 6,256	The ballats on that fixture are probably not the right ones to drive most DE bulbs. IIRC, they are electronic and not HQI M80. If you have M80 ballasts, then 14K phoenix is the way to go. Beautiful bulb that requires no supplementation.

11/04/2014, 09:37 AM	#850
Jeremy B. Registered Member Join Date: May 2001 Location: Indianapolis, IN / Muncie, IN Posts: 8,219	An electronic ballast is a bit of a different animals than a magnetic ballast. An electronic ballast will vary the voltage to the lamp depending on which lamp it is, thus it will drive any double ended lamp out there with no problem. A magnetic ballast is a set voltage, depending on which ballast it is. The M81 ballast is a magnetic 250w "hqi" ballast that uses an external igniter to supply the required voltage to start the lamp, since DE lamps do not have an internal igniter in them. Running a DE lamp on an electronic ballast is just fine, however it's going to be on average 10% - 20% less light output than if you were to run the same lamp on an M81 magnetic ballast.