best ballast on the market and se or de?
 

well i want to setup either a 250 or 400 watt metal halide system but which ballast is the best to go with the ice cap or the one's that are dimmable and go from 250 to 400 watt? last question I have always used SE bulbs in the past but that was years ago which is best should i setup for SE or DE? so bottom line which ballast and which bulb , I really want to try radiums by the way done with the growing bulbs like 10k ushio's and ready for colors...help i am perplexed and need clarity..

so if i want to go with radium type bulbs single ended is the way to go and the ballast for that task is the dimmable units made by Lumatek DIMMABLE 250W / 400W Metal Halide Electronic Ballastis that correct i can go from 250 to 400 if i so choose to with radiums on board?

Id get the dimmables, you can't beat their versatility. The ballast you are referring to goes 250, HQI, 400 and Super Lumens. You could run the 250w Radium on either the 250 or 250 HQI setting.

is there a special reflector that can handle both wattages also with proper cords ? if i change from 250 to 400 wouldnt want to melt the reflectors

Most reflectors are built to handle 400Watts. They use the same socket. Just switch the ballast and bulb and you are done.

However... Radiums only come in SE in 250W, and DE in 400W. I don't know of any reflector that allows you to switch between SE & DE.

sweet thanks for the input..

Galaxy is an excellent selectable ballast as well. I bought 3 brand new that I'm now selling cheap. Let me know if you're interested.

gallaxy 250 run radiums real nice.

Radiums come in 400 se

Radiums are also available in 150w DE

If you are going to run 250 Watt Radiums, don't bother with an electronic ballast. It will underdrive that bulb.

I have used both electronic and HQI ballasts with Radium 250 watt and by far, the HQI ballast is much better for PAR.

Not to mention, magnetic ballasts tend to last a very long time. During the same time I have had M80 HQI ballasts, I have had 3 MH Electronic ballasts bite the dust.

I had good luck with 400 watt radium's being powered by coralvue ballasts.

Galaxy 400 watt and Radiums is tough to beat unless you can find a PFO 400 watt HQI. Best part of Galaxy Ballast is you will get a white light with hint of blue like the PFO, but a much longer lamp life of 10 months to a year as opposed to 6 months on HQI. Magnetic Ballasts and older electronic ballasts like Icecap tend to run the bulbs more blue with less PAR. I'm so glad I went with this combo like others have suggested. Great PAR without sacrificing coloration.

check here:

http://www.advancedaquarist.com/2009...rchterm=radium