Where to buy ballasts and bulbs

[RyanM]

The time has come. My lighting is so sub par its not funny. My 1 xm 10k is turning real yellow. The other is ok but all my ballasts are old. So its new ballasts and 2 new bulbs. This is the hardest thing about a reef tank in my opinion. What to do, what to do.

I run 3, the center will still be my xm10k on 1 of my best mag ballasts. But the 2 on either end is up in the air. Should I go 250 again or up it to 400. Keep it mag or go electronic. I absolutly hate making lighting purchases. I never know what to get.

Im open for everyones opinion. I need 2. My main 2.
250 or 400 and if im going to run a xm10k in the middle i can get away with a blue bulb on both ends. xm20k's? reeflux 12ks?
Also where to get them.

Help me make up my mind.

 

[drbronx]

Next time I buy ballasts i will definitely go electronic. They operate more efficiently and draw less power and run the lamps closer to their true specs. i would suggest staying with 400watt ballasts/bulbs unless considering a buer wavelength bulb. but if you are keeping with XM 10k then 400 watt is overkill. On my 75 gallon I run 175watt with VHO supplementation and my coral maintain better color their than under my 400 watt on the 125 display. NateR runs 4 175 watt 10k run off of Icecap e-ballasts with vho supplementation and has great color, PE etc. I think 175w or 250 watt 10k with vho supplementation is the best way to go. Premium Aquatics I think has the best prices on most lamps and some ballasts. Hello lights or Championlighting are ok depending on what you are looking for. You can also try reef geek but they have a smaller selection.

 

[RyanM]

Yea I was almost desisded on E ballasts and just looked and premium aquatics has 250w'ers for $119 each not bad at all. Bulbs are a different matter. I am going to keep my 1 xm10k in the middle but thought maybe about going with a bluer on either end. I dont know..maybe I should just stick with what I know..go 250 xm 10ks on both ends again..Sucks..I hate having to deside on lighting. Its not cheep and your stuck with them if you dont like them or worse your coral shrivel up and die if they arent any good.

 

[fatrip]

I would go with 2- 175watt Electrica ballast driven MH's, probibly a ushio 14k if you are goin to stick with the XM 10k in the center. i would go with the 175 esp if you are keeping the center at 250w. more than enough light for that size tank. the 14k will give you a bluer look, but not so blue as the 20's do. but deff go with the electronic. did some tests on my 175w mag and nates 175 elect and mag's...wow...his elect run between 172 and 175 watts from the wall, and the mags run at about 190-198w out of the wall. much more efficent and it runs the bulbs with less of a line drop at the bulb.

 

[RyanM]

Yea I am going to go Electronic. Me and mag ballasts have a bad history. I am pretty sure it was a mag ballast that crashed my very first tank. Was a small tank and only had 1 250w bulb on it and I think the ballast went bad. Only being 1 bulb I never noticed that the output had droped off. In retrospect I did notice but figured it was me and dismissed the dimming of the bulb. If I had 2 on it I would have been able to see the difference. If something doesnt look right dont wait to fix it or try and dismiss it. Still kills me I let that happen. Didnt find out really what happened till I set up my next tank. A 55 gallon and it had 2 250w mh's on it. I used the old ballast from my first tank and got a second one for the other side. Soon as I fired them both up together It was as plain as day the one ballast was bad. Put 2 and 2 together and came to the conclution that the bad ballast was on my first tank and that had to be why I lost all my coral. Live and learn. Good to keep in mind for all those who only run 1 bulb on their smaller tanks.


Jerry, Your tank is fantastic so its hard to ask this question but are you happy with the growth out of you 12k's? They are 400w so its not apples to apples and that scares me a little but do you like your growth? If I do go 12k's Ill still have the xm10k in the center so that will help out alot im sure.

 

[Blugobi]

So now you got me guessing and wondering Ryan. Ok need some input here...if money were not an obstacle ( and LED's are still way two exspensive!). What would be the best light set up for my 120. Currently I run (2) 250 watt XM 15's on dual PFO ballast and four T-5 with an Icecap 660. To be honest, i'm still not real happy with the color. Now I did get some good advice for a better combo of t-5's for some better color, but I'm wondering if 400watt Icecap electronic 12k, 14k or 15k would drive some better par or would Icecap electroinic 250's be enough? Any suggestions would be helpful. My tank is 95% hard corals, mainly acros, with few sps.

Geo

 

[RyanM]

Well George the one thing I can say with all certainty is there is no better bulb than the 250w xm10k for growth and a nuetral color. 2 is plenty over a 4' tank. 6' I would run 3. With that being said, I am starting to want a little bluer look. Going away from my xm10k's is almost unbarable to even think about so My task at hand is how to add more blue with out taking them away. I say 2 is plenty over a 4' tank but I run 3. The center is ojnly to give me a bluer look. I am running a reeflux 10k there now but thats not the best IMO. Jerry runs 400w 12ks reeflux and I dont think he is supper happy with them. His tank is kinda dark. Even with the 400w'ers. To be perfectly honest I think the absolute BEST way and also the way I think I have desided to go is 2- 250w xm10ks one on each end then run 2 48" true blue actinic vho's for the blue and a nice dust to dawn look. Ill flip on the vhos in the morning then turn them off at night. Turning on the 2 xm's for afternoon light. I think that is the best all around setup. Would I go 400w? no not with the 2- 250w xm10ks they are brite as the sun. Besides the heat. dont need any more of that..got enough already. I am for sure going to go E-Ballast. Those Icecap 250's are a super nice ballast and at $129 its hard to beat. Mags are ok but Im done with them. Quiet cool and more efficient wins in my book. "Plus the bulbs arent over powered. I have given this way more thought than any other thing about my tank and its time I made my mind up.

2-250w xm10ks 2-48" vho super actinics. all run on Icecap electronic ballasts. And money had nothing to do with my going this way. Coral growth and color are my only concerns.

If you do go with the 250w xm10k's and dont like them Ill buy them from you. I know youll like them that much.

As far as the xm15ks go, Ive heard nothing but bad reports about them. LMAO I have said more than once I dont care at all for T-5's.

 

[RyanM]

I can not believe it. This whole topic I have been complaining about my tank needing a little more blue. Well the reason i even started the thread was because one of my ballasts was going bad. That left a hole in the lighting in my tank when I finaly desided not to run that ballast and light anymore till I get new ballasts. It was one of my xm10ks ballasts so that left me only 1 xm10k on one side and the reeflux 10k in the middle.

I havent ordered my ballasts yet and was thinking I should do sometthing till I get them in. So I just swaped the center ballast out and put it in the other side and only running 2 xm10ks. It never stops amazing me how much a ballast effects the color of a bulb. As well as the spectrum Im sure.

After swapping ballast I have my tank back!!!! Its the color i came to Love. I always said I like the color of them but lately have thought I wanted it a little bluer. Well it wasnt me or the bulbs..It was the bad ballast. It's back.

I am still odering new ballasts and replacing the center MH with 2 vho's but I now know Im making the right decision.

If that had been my only light on the tank its possible I would have let it kill my coral. Except this time I had 2 and I could tell it was going yellow.

You are reading from a happy camper again