Rainbow Millepora Question

-=Efrain=-

-=Efrain=-

Active member
So I got this Rainbow Millepora and according to the seller you need to have the right spectrum in order to get the rainbow colors.. He suggest 10k so I was wondering if any one has one in any other spectrum and what does it look like. I am keeping it under 250W 14K DE Bulbs..
 

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I can't say anything specificly about Rainbow Millie, but I get better contrast/more colors out of a 10K than I do with bluer lights. 10K XMs are the way to go IMO. Don't waste your money on Hamilton or Reeflux.
 
It really depends on what colors you are trying to make pop, Efrain, and what ballast-bulb combination you choose, what reflectors you use, and whether you supplement, and if so with what?

Nobody can really answer what you ask. Unless you are open to changing all of your lighting -- reflectors, ballasts and supplemental lighting.

I couldn't disagree more with Helter. For years I ran Reeflux 12K then 20K on HQI ballast with VHO actinic supplementation, using the old PFO reflectors, and reds and yellows really jumped out. Blues were very good as well. Greens were not enough for my eyes (they were for others but I have slight color deficiency). So I went with the combo you saw -- Radium 20K on HQI ballasts, with VHO actinic supplement. You saw what that did. The blue looks photoshopped. The green really jumps. Red is a bit less what it was, which my eye prefers because my eye exaggerates red.

I run 250W. Wattage matters. By many accounts the best bulb on the market is the Radium 400W 20K. I forget which is the best ballast for it. Great par and incredible spectrum. I've seen it and every time I do I seriously consider switching to 400W. But I give enough to ComEd as it is.

Like with skimmers, you will get such a range of responses, mostly people touting what they do. Which is fine. There are many ways to skin this cat.

If you haven't done so, read Sanjay Joshi's articles and then scout out different bulbs with the ballast you use in his reviews/tests. You'll get an idea of what to expect.

But first figure which colors you want more of compared to what you see now, and then go from there.
 
Although I do agree with different color pigments require different spectrums, ballast and reflectors do not directly dictate what colors your corals will be. The question is directed towards a milleproa, which a lower kelvin spectrum in my experience will indeed yield better colors on milleporas, prostratas and robustas. I think you are confusing excitation and emission colors which are completely different. A specific spectrum might excite a certain color pigment in the coral, but that same pigment might eventually disappear because the spectrum is not conducive to the coral producing that particular pigment. That is why it is very important to cover majority of the spectrum in your bulb if possible. It is for this reason that I run 2 GE daylight supps with 14k Phoenix halides. As far as Radiums go, I dont think most users consider them a true 20k since they are more of a white color.

Here is a good read on pigments if interested:
http://www.advancedaquarist.com/2009/4/aafeature1
 
None of the K ratings are really worth anything.

Ballast and reflectors make all the difference in the world, as they affect the PAR and the spectrum the bulb puts out, they affect the amount and intensity of light entering the tank rather than escaping, they affect the angle of that spread and intensity at different locations. Location of corals under different ballast and reflector combinations matters a lot too.

It all matters. It all affects coloration. It all affects growth.

I have a variety of milles high up, directly under the center of the bulbs, and they are brilliantly colored.
 
Ballast and reflectors make all the difference in the world, as they affect the PAR and the spectrum the bulb puts out, they affect the amount and intensity of light entering the tank rather than escaping, they affect the angle of that spread and intensity at different locations. Location of corals under different ballast and reflector combinations matters a lot too.
Click to expand...

Please read my statement again - these elements do not directly dictate the pigments that the coral produces. A coral wont refuse to produce a red clade because you didn't use a Luminarc reflector with a 20k Radium that is overdriven :) It all comes down to spectrum. A coral will, however refuse to produce a red clade because there isn't a sufficient spectrum for it to do so. PAR will produce different intensities of proteins (color), but rarely sway a color shift to a completely different pigment.
 
Ok, you are splitting hairs. I'm 99% sure Efrain simply cares about how the coral will appear to his eye, and that it continue to grow.
 
I agree with Fijiblue here. I have bought from this seller before and they're knowledge base is great. I would agree listen to the seller.
 
I have tried a lot of different types of bulbs.

In my personnel opinion:
XM 10K's- A bit more PAR but you sacrifice visual appeal. Washed out colors in corals. They look yellowish to me.
XM 15K's- Nice but not as much color "pop" as others
Reeflux 12K's The best all around bulb in my opinion. Great coral growth/color and visually appealing
Reeflux 20K's- Huge color "pop" and great looking bulb IMO. You have to like a little bit bluer tank. Corals grow like crazy.
Radium 20K's- Huge color "pop" and corals grew great. My second choice for all around best bulb.

The above bulbs are the ones I have used. There are others and everybody has opinions. I really have not found ballasts to be that big a deal or a little bit more PAR making one bulb better then another. I really don't believe in asking opinions on bulbs to be honest. You get too many opinions based on personnel preferences. If you are after really blue bulbs, the Radium 20K's rock, if you want massive PAR, the XM 10K's melt faces, if you want an all around great bulb, the Reeflux 12K's are da shizzel IMO. Yo, I'm ghetto like dat.


For fun I googled "best metal halide bulb reef" I got 252,000 hits. Get my point? What you can afford, grows corals the best for you, and looks great to you is the best bulb.

With all that said, if the seller got XM 10K's to color that Milli like the picture and you don't mind the look of XM 10K's and your other corals do ok, try one for awhile. BTW, the seller probably also used a ton of additional actinics, Photoshop, and an expensive camera to produce that picture.
 
Instead of sodium ascorbate I've moved on to dosing calcium ascorbate, now I don't have to dose 2-part either :jester:
 
Hey, Jeff, you probably know more on the ballast thing. All I know is when I switched from regular magnetic to HQI magnetic, the difference was huge. With the 250W Radiums, you really have to use the HQI (it is the recommended ballast and the only one they warrant the bulb on). The difference between the Reeflux 12K and 20K to my eye was extremely minor and maybe psychological. However, any Reeflux on a regular ballast as opposed to on HQI is night and day (when I say HQI I mean the M80, not electronic ballasts). Growth, color and visual appeal were all so much greater on HQI.

I would have thought electronic vs magnetic ballast would make a difference on all just based on Sanjay's general findings. But again, you have the experience on that one for sure.
 
ostrow said:
Hey, Jeff, you probably know more on the ballast thing. All I know is when I switched from regular magnetic to HQI magnetic, the difference was huge. With the 250W Radiums, you really have to use the HQI (it is the recommended ballast and the only one they warrant the bulb on). The difference between the Reeflux 12K and 20K to my eye was extremely minor and maybe psychological. However, any Reeflux on a regular ballast as opposed to on HQI is night and day (when I say HQI I mean the M80, not electronic ballasts). Growth, color and visual appeal were all so much greater on HQI.

I would have thought electronic vs magnetic ballast would make a difference on all just based on Sanjay's general findings. But again, you have the experience on that one for sure.
Click to expand...

I dont know squat :sad2:. I never put that much thought into matching up ballasts and bulbs. I may be missing out on a few PAR numbers but, hey, I don't care. I just know what I have seen. I know Sanjay has done a lot of testing but he tested PAR. In my opinion PAR is only one component of lighting. Even people that the highest PAR they can for frag grow out or whatever reason often supplement with other bulbs to help bring out certain colors. I have used a bunch of halides and a bunch of T5's in my time but I never saw the need to mix the two together. That's just me though. I like a bluer hue with a bunch of coral pop. I could use a bunch of actinics to achieve this goal but I know my corals would suffer as far as growth so I find a happy median with the bulbs I choose.
The new tank is going to have a single 400 watt Reeflux 12K over it (maybe a 20K). I will get the color I want, the PAR the corals need and the shimmer I like. It is not the best solution for a lot of other people though.
 
LMAO!!!!

He tested PAR and you are right, it's one component, but he also measured spread and spectrum -- not for all but for very many combinations.

Eye test is key on this -- as long as things are growing then you go for the look that is most pleasing to your eye. Which is why it is really hard to recommend something to anyone else.

I told Rod what I was looking for a while back and he recommended the Reeflux on HQI and it was spot-on.

Jeremy at PA recommended the Radium for more of the color I was after and I couldn't be happier with the color. There are some other things I don't like -- they are almost TOO strong and a couple corals haven't been happy right under them.

On this, beauty is truly in the eye of the beholder.
 
I could not agree more :). I don't want to look at my new display tank and think "Wow, the corals are growing like crazy but the tank looks hideous".
I'm glad my Coralvue ballasts are dimmable. My corals are used to being in a 12" deep tank at half power. I need to figure out if I should start with a higher setting or keep it the same at the begining lol.
 
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