de VS. se bulbs

[sprite]

i have an aquamedic ocean light, the 250de version, can i use this ballast to fire 250 se bulbs? the ballast is a hqi mag ballast from what i read on it. if so, what bulb would bring out the best colors on sps? de bulbs just dont have enough options without running supp. lighting

[Fish_wiz2]

No HQI is HQI and SE is SE no mixing because they are different and as i recall HQI use M81 while SE use M80

[Jim_S]

Originally posted by Fish_wiz2
No HQI is HQI and SE is SE no mixing because they are different and as i recall HQI use M81 while SE use M80

Not true.

Bulbs like the Radium SE and Ushio SE are HQI bulbs in mogul housings. They require a proper M80 (hqi) ballast to run them to their full potential.

And to answer the OP's questions,

I'd go radium 250 watt SE 20k. They are awesome. Look at sanjays site. These bulbs are very nice, and made to run on your HQI ballast. you will not be disappointed.

[sprite]

the radium is the reason i was wanting to switch to a se bulb! so they will work?

[Jim_S]

Then you're in luck

[Fish_wiz2]

Originally posted by Jim_S
Not true.

Bulbs like the Radium SE and Ushio SE are HQI bulbs in mogul housings. They require a proper M80 (hqi) ballast to run them properly.

And to answer the OP's questions,

I'd go radium 250 watt SE 20k. They are awesome. Look at sanjays site. These bulbs are very nice, and made to run on your HQI ballast. you will not be disappointed.

Really? Very interesting then i take my statement back

[Jim_S]

Originally posted by Fish_wiz2
Really? Very interesting then i take my statement back

Yes, its actually pretty confusing due to the few SE HQI bulbs on the market.

[Jim_S]

Originally posted by sprite
the radium is the reason i was wanting to switch to a se bulb! so they will work?

They will work very well

While I don't run them, a local close to me does. The Radium SE on his SLS bluewave. They look great

[FranktheTankTx]

Originally posted by Jim_S
They will work very well

While I don't run them, a local close to me does. The Radium SE on his SLS bluewave. They look great

I just purchases the Ice Cap Mogul pendant & Radium 250w SE.
I still need to get a ballast... I was contemplating between:

Ice Cap 250w electronic
SLS Bluewave HQI
PFO HQI

I think the Ice Cap will give less PAR... but it's a 250w over a 36g corner... I think I'll have enough PAR for this tank.

But I was thinking the HQI ballasts will probably run the Radium better. But being that my pendant is mogul based, I would be really limited to bulbs if I went with a HQI ballast.

What do you think?

[ganjero]

Originally posted by Fish_wiz2
No HQI is HQI and SE is SE no mixing because they are different and as i recall HQI use M81 while SE use M80

You got all mixed up. M80 is HQI for 250w and M81 is HQI for 150w.

Like Jim said, HQI doesn't necessarily mean DE. You can have HQI SE bulbs.

Frank,
the ice cap will give you less PAR and run the Radium more Blue. The HQI ballast (either SLS or PFO) will give you more PAR and the bulb will look whiter.

[kdblove_99]

Yep radiums run best on M80 so that will be perfect plus its the best bulb anyways

Ushio
Aquaconnect
geissmann
are all HQI rated so can work on HQI/M80 ballast.

technically you can and people do run there bulbs like Reeflux on M80. The get way better par but the trade oiff is the bulb will lose its life alot faster

[GSMguy]

Helios is an m-80 bulb too i think

[Jim_S]

Originally posted by GSMguy
Helios is an m-80 bulb too i think

Thats what the site says, and the DE helios are HQI. However, the SE helio's are not. They are standard probe start bulbs. I know, because I run them on my M58 They've been somehow mislabeled on most sites.

Its soooo confusing, but you really should make sure you know exactly what you're getting before you pull the trigger

Frank,

If you got the radiums, get the HQI ballast. Like everyone says, it'll give a crisp blue and higher PAR.

While Icecap and such advertise their ballasts as being able to run all bulbs, its only partly true. They can run all bulbs, but only HQI ballasts can properly drive HQI bulbs to their potential.