Help me pick new Halides

[®eefer]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7644486#post7644486 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by lastin1
Are you running the 175 watt iwasaki on a 250 watt ballast?

No, he's running 250w XM 15k on the 250w ballast. He was talking about downgrading the 250w ballast so he can upgrade to the 175w iwasaki.

 

[snslarison]

That's right. The 175w Iwasaki is significantly brighter than the 250w XM in supposedly the same color rating.

Hard to believe. Just remember that your perceived "brightness" doesn’t mean the lamp is actually producing more lumens/ watt. For instance, a 175W10K will often look “brighter” than a 250W 20K.

FWIW.

 

[®eefer]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7644577#post7644577 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by snslarison
Hard to believe. Just remember that your perceived "brightness" doesn’t mean the lamp is actually producing more lumens/ watt. For instance, a 175W10K will often look “brighter” than a 250W 20K.

FWIW.

I've actaully heard that the iwasaki 175 outperforms 250's from a number of different sources. And perceived color is mainly what I'm after, which takes me back to the 20k's...hmm decisions, decisions.

 

[Crusty Old Shellback]

Tat's in T.O and Ventura carry the Helios as that's their bulb they import. Tat is the owner of TAAM/Rio.

If anyone is looking for a 150W Helios 20K DE bulb I have 2 brand new ones I'm selling. I want to go with something brighter, more around a 10-12K as I've lost some color in some of my Zoa's when switching from 175W XM 10K's to the 150W DE 20K Helios when I swapped tanks.

 

[lastin1]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7644543#post7644543 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by cooltank
No, he's running 250w XM 15k on the 250w ballast. He was talking about downgrading the 250w ballast so he can upgrade to the 175w iwasaki.

I was referring to PsychoKnight's post. The way he said it sounds like he just replaced his 250 watt XM with the 175 watt iwasaki. He further stated that he might downgrade his ballast to 175 watt.

 

[ScotchMaster]

PsychoKnight - The XM15K's are the worst bulb on the market...They are about a bright a 130 watts of powercompact...Phoenix 14K is the best I have ever used

 

[®eefer]

I just wanted to make an update...
I got my Iwasaki 14k bulbs in the mail yesterday, $75 ea. I know they still need some burn in time but I have to say, I am thoroughly impressed with these bulbs. They are MUCH brighter than my old bulbs. IMO the color is bluish white, no yellow. My tank has never looked to good, very satisfied.

 

[PsychoKnight]

Hellolights now carries the Aqua2, said they are selling like hotcakes on the arctic in winter; sold dozens in just a couple of weeks, only a handful left. Local pick up $79

Nobody offered to swap their 175 for my 250 ballast so . . .
got the 175 transformer & cap from them too, only $49. This is my 4th time swapping & adding ballast guts in a year, going from 175, to 250, to 400, then back down to 175 and adding another. I think I'll keep all my spare parts from now on. Gotta make sure I re-label the ballast housing clearly, or else, zapp.

Cooltank: relax - I know the difference between ANSI M57's and 58's

The visual brightness increase is backed up by Sanjay's test numbers, not just a quirky personal perception problem. EYE's 15K ROCKS!

Now I gotta question.
How does anyone figure out how much actinic to use? I haven't come across any guidelines or ratio to main light, seems like hocus pocus guessing to me. Stuffed 4 bulbs into the aluminum hood totalling about 300 watts of 03. Brings out the florescence, but would probably look just as nice w/ half or double as much. Anyone seen reports of growth rates or coloration, various NM spectrums of actinic, or intensity/duration levels? Do corals receive significant levels of actinic spectrums in nature, or is it a completely synthetic condition we are subjecting them to?