400w radium + lumatek ballist?

[buy_baff]

I tryed posting this yesterday but the thread disapeared. I need to get new bulbs soon and I was thinking about trying the 400w radiums. But my concern is if they will fire and burn properly with the lumatek ballist? Mainly because of a thread recently where people were haveing trouble with them burning pink. So is anyone running this combo? And if so how is it working out for you?
Thanks
-Bill

[stevedola]

i think youre supposed to run them in a ballast like a blue wave 3

[GhostCon1]

It's not 400w, but I have a 250w Radium 20k on a Selectable Watt Lumatek ballast, granted I have only had it for a few days it gives off a nice, crisp blue.

The ballast also has the HQI setting which I will be switching it to (highest on it) once my corals are adjusted to the brighter light.

[Nanook]

This thread has been moved to the current forum.

Your thread did not disappear, just reappeared in the proper forum....lighting.

[Tracey2]

I also have the 400w radiums and am looking at buying the lumetek ballasts, anyone?

[Gary Majchrzak]

electronic ballasts (eballasts) including the Lumatek will fire and burn Radiums

[Toadally]

Any electronic ballast?

[buy_baff]

Originally Posted by Gary Majchrzak

electronic ballasts (eballasts) including the Lumatek will fire and burn Radiums

I know they will fire and burn them. My question was more to see if they are burning the proper color. The paperwork that comes with the lumatek ballist says it will not run some german bulbs properly it says to stick to american bulbs for some reason.

[buy_baff]

Originally Posted by GhostCon1

It's not 400w, but I have a 250w Radium 20k on a Selectable Watt Lumatek ballast, granted I have only had it for a few days it gives off a nice, crisp blue.

The ballast also has the HQI setting which I will be switching it to (highest on it) once my corals are adjusted to the brighter light.

I also have the switchable ballist. What size tank do you have? How are the 250w bulbs for brightness? I am runing 250w 14k hamiltons now and I'm woried if I get the 250 20k bulbs it will seem dimmer?

[GhostCon1]

I have them 12 inches over my 70g cube (30x30x18) and I should probably lower them to get more light into the tank, but honestly the tank is so bright even from so far away I more than likely wont lower the fixture.

It is bright enough to light up my entire living room (EDIT: Exagerrated some here It's more of a very, VERY bright nightlight. Enough that I can read with only the MH on and no other lights on at night, if that helps?) and some of the outside of the house as well, I am very impressed.

The ballast also runs cool enough for me to place my hand on it for a long time, something I did not think I would be able to do.

Although I was told today that it takes awhile for a bulb to "break in" (never heard that before) and after about 100 hours or so my bulb will "settle" into a bluer state. Not sure of the validity of that statement, but I am very happy with it right now. It gives a really crisp look; almost like daylight with a hint of blue.

[buy_baff]

Thanks for the info Gostcon1! If it's not to much trouble Can you post a pic for me tomorrow so I can see how they look I may just go with the 250w bulbs.

[GhostCon1]

I'll try but the cam I have isn't something to be impressed with, I am not going to guarantee anything good will come from it!

[jakester]

I have a 400 watt Radiums running on 2 Lumatek ballast in a pair Lumenarc Minis. No complaints here! Looks great and the sps are looking as great as ever.

[buy_baff]

Originally Posted by jakester

I have a 400 watt Radiums running on 2 Lumatek ballast in a pair Lumenarc Minis. No complaints here! Looks great and the sps are looking as great as ever.

Awesome thanks for the reply! A few more good reviews and I will be talked into it LOL.

[hugo209]

im also running 250w radiums on my lumatek ballast on lumenmax elite's. and i have to say i am very satisfied with my combo. im running 3 on my 240g and get great color and light spread. one note: the box on the radiums say that they are not dimmable. {dont know why} but i tried it just to see. i found that when i switched to 175w the gave a more blue tint.. when switched to HQI the color turned more of an intense white... hope that helps.

[Gary Majchrzak]

Originally Posted by Toadally

Any electronic ballast?

wattages must match.

You must power a 250 watt bulb with a 250 watt ballast (etc.)

[Michaelf63]

I am running this combo with the switch on high and have had no problems very blue with 20k bulbs.

[Gary Majchrzak]

Originally Posted by buy_baff

I know they will fire and burn them. My question was more to see if they are burning the proper color. The paperwork that comes with the lumatek ballist says it will not run some german bulbs properly it says to stick to american bulbs for some reason.

different ballasts burn the same bulbs at different colors- it's pretty much the same with all manufacturer's ballasts and bulbs. There's a specific ballast recommended by the manufacturer to juice the 250w Radium and it's not a Lumatek. That's not to say that a Lumatek when fire and burn a Radium bulb. (Remember- there's no industry standard for lighting. In other words, one manufacturer's 10k can be much more blue than another manufacturer's 20k.)

I didn't get any paperwork along with my Lumatek ballast recommending to stick to American bulbs. Currently, I'm running Ushio (a German lamp) on my Lumatek and there's no problems. I ran Radiums on another brand eballast for 10+ years without a problem (but without their HQI ballast 250w Radiums appear to dim for my tastes.)

I'm aware of some threads on RC discussing "pink" Radiums. I'm not aware if the reason for the problem has been discovered. I'm pretty sure some of the pink bulbs were not being run on Lumatek ballasts.

[Gary Majchrzak]

Originally Posted by PaulErik

It is difficult to know what exactly is happening. It can be a few things. First thing is some of the 400-watt Radium lamps hitting the North American market now are slightly different in design. The newer batches of lamps have a slightly shorter arc tube (inner bulb) and use a different arc tube support technique. According to Radium the electrical properties are the same with the newer lamp. The easiest way to tell if you have a newer or older lamp is the arc tube (inner bulb) support. The older lamps utilize 2 stamped metal plates to hold the arc tube in place. The stamped metal plates are located at each end of the arc tube. The newer lamps utilize a wire support for the arc tube.



The Radium lamps are printed with a batch code next to the model and branding information on the glass bulb. Others I know who have run into this problem have the newer design lamps with an o3 batch code. It could be the newer lamps are more sensitive with certain ballasts but operate normally on the correct specified ballast (magnetic pulse start). When a difference is noticed with lamps they should be checked to see if they are the same lamp.

A bad batch of lamps could also be the reason. The batch codes should be recorded of the problem lamps. Another problem could be the ballasts. The Coralvue and a select few electronic ballasts were known to be sensitive to power fluctuations. This could cause the lamp and ballast to operate unstably especially since the Radium lamp is not operated according to specifications with electronic ballasts. The lamp and ballast combination could cause the system to be very sensitive. The problem could really be a single problem or even a combination of problems.

Some lighting systems can be sensitive and may require some steps to avoid problems.

1) All lamp cords and power cords should be separate and not touching each other. Cords and wires should not be coiled. The lamp cord (ballast to lamp cord) should be as short as possible. This is important with electronic ballasts but should be applied to magnetic ballasts as well.

2) The circuit supplying power should be clean and sized properly. The supply voltage during operation should be checked. This applies to both electronic and magnetic ballasts. The ideal operating voltage range can be small on some ballasts and varies by brand and type.

3) Lamps should be operated in the same operating position. The arc tube nipple (exhaust tip) should be pointed at or above horizontal and ideally in the same position as other lamps in multiple lamp setups.

4) Lamp will require a burn in period to stabilize electrically, color appearance and in light output. Usually 100 hours is adequate and may require a few on/off cycles. During the burn in period the lamp/s should not be touched or subjected to vibrations.

5) Lamps and ballasts should be matched by specifications to assure reliable, proper and safe operation. Each lamp type varies in specifications (starting current, starting voltage, warm up phase, stabilized operating current and voltage and other specs).

[Gary Majchrzak]

IME "bad" batches of bulbs are not unheard of. I experienced a run of bad Aqualine bulbs years ago. Certain brands of metal halide lamps are notoriously inconsistent in color output yet they are preferred by many reef aquarists.

[GhostCon1]

buy baff, I took some pics but they don't do any justice to how it looks in person, the pics are way saturated with blue.

[buy_baff]

Originally Posted by Gary Majchrzak

I didn't get any paperwork along with my Lumatek ballast recommending to stick to American bulbs. Currently,

I'm sure you did you just didn't read it LOL

[GhostCon1]

The more I think about that, the more I wonder if it means a bulb that is designed for 240v.

[curthendrix]

Isn't the Galaxy ballast designed to run the 400w radium to spec?

[Gary Majchrzak]

looks like I'll have to sell my Lumatek ballast if it won't light my Ushio and Radiums to spec

actually..... to date.... it's performed quite well for me with Ushio 400w 14k lamps.