metal halide help

[DodgeDude99]

ok i am thinking about ditching my t5's and going 2x250w MH's over my 90.

what brand of ballast is considered the best and most reliable?
i was thinking icecap just for their reputation, but also considering coralvue's as well.

is there a preference on either DE or SE bulbs?

bulb brand and temperature is another mystery to as well.
(Radium, Reeflux, Coralvue, Hamilton)

the reflector i was plan on using was the DIY version of the Lumenarc.

any suggestions would be appreciated.

my tank has been up since October and i have yet to get any Coraline growth with the T5's. The bulbs & ballast were swapped on new years eve.

 

[DodgeDude99]

i am even considering the Odeyssea fixture and upgrading the bulbs & ballasts.

 

[smb]

I have been really happy with my Sunlight Supply blue wave 7 I think 7. It's a dual HQI 250 watt ballast. It's big, heavy, but works great.
I use the reefoptix III's with double ended 14K . I have used ushio's, hamilton's, and phoenix. I think the phoenix are my favorite.

 

[tatkinson]

Check out the CoralVue thread on the vendor experiences forum.

There are so many variables, have you checked out the lighting page that compares the output on different ballasts? Might answer some questions.... might also create more. Sorry I don't have a link but its Sanjays page, someone will know.

I run Advance mag HQIs, I think there are only a couple of others on here that do. Always been partial to them. They're dinosaurs but just keep on working. I also run them remotely under the stand so they're clear of heat and salty moisture.

HQI DE versus SE bulbs for me really came down to personal preference and general characteristics. It's hard to really compare bulbs in this hobby because you cant get any specs other than color temp for most bulbs. In the outside world HQI bulbs generally provide longer life considerably more color stability and a higher CRI.

I will say that when I switched from SE to DE my temp rise went from 4Deg to 2Deg.

Just an FYI, I think Premium Aquatics still has some ballasts on clearance, didn't pay a lot of attention but I think I saw them last week.