xm bulb break in period?

[futureeyedoc]

Hey, I was hoping some of you that use XM halides out there could help me out.....

So the spectrum on my current brand 150w halide bulb (in a hang on the back current fixture) over my 24 nano started going out. Started getting unusual algae growth in sheets all over the sand, etc... Definetly from the bulb being old (proly 13-14 months old)...

So I ordered a brand new double ended 150w XM bulb, the new 15,000k spectrum one after much research. It's supposed to be one of the best in terms of both par and appearance/spectrum....

However, I've had it up and running for most of the afternoon/evening today and it's really dissapointing at this point.... It's very blue/purple, which I expected to a point, but almost the appearance/color of when my old 14k current was still warming up in the morning....
On top of that it doesn't look nearly as bright as the current and I'm pretty sure it's supposed to have way more Par....

So those with experience with XM bulbs... is there some sort of break in period of weeks or days? or what's going on? Any ideas?

 

[JR's Reef]

100hrs for most bulbs. Dont expect much from the 15k from all that I have read they are 1 of the worst bulbs for par(per Sanjays site) I run them 1 timr yrs ago and hated them. there dim not the best color and slowed down growth on everything in my tank.

 

[futureeyedoc]

hmmm weird, I realize traditionally 15k's are not the best, but the XM is supposed to be different and the best out there....I forget the exact PAR ratings, but that same place you were listing has them as almost twice the par of a 14k current bulb if I remember correctly...

Although it doesn't look that bright, the color is already improving for sure....All the corals have opened and colored way back up today and the lights have only been on for proly 4 hours....

So I think it is just a break in thing.... Obviously not going to be as bright as a 10k or 14k..... I'll let you know how it works out....
As expensive as the XM bulbs are, they should be singing to the corals for me....

 

[JR's Reef]

:lol: Yeah they are prob alot better than the current bulbs. The 20k has better par than the 15. You should see some improvments over the bulb you had. XM bulbs are one of the cheaper better bulbs out there. I run radiums now and there bout $90 each.

 

[The0wn4g3]

It should look blue in the beginning, and joey08's got it on the 100 hours burn in. I would usually tell people 2 weeks.
The XM is going to give out greater PAR than the Current, whether it looks like it is or not. It should also keep its original spectral output longer. We ran 15k XM's on all our 12, 24, and 29 gallon nanos with great results.
What makes the XM SE bulbs so great is that they are specifically designed to be fired by a magnetic ballast. The cheap XM SE will hold its own or surpass expensive bulbs in this regard. Fire it on an electronic ballast, and it will lose a good portion of its PAR. As for XM's DE bulbs, I'm not sure if that fact still holds, as I'm pretty sure most DE fixtures come with electronic ballasts now. Either way, it's still a step up from the Current.