Replacement bulb help

thowell64 · 12/19/2007, 03:58 PM

I would like to put some new bulbs into the OuterOrbit fixture I have on my tank. I currently have the dual 150w X 10k bulbs the fixture came with and was looking to change them to possibly a 14k to augment bringing out the colors in my tank. This fixture is my first venture into MH. I love what it has done for my tank and realize it is probably not the best solution or system, but it has done a good job thus far.

In the tank are various sps, lps and soft corals - all growing very well -- like everthing else, just looking to make things better if possible.

I appreciate the help as I have had no direct experience with any other types of bulbs other that what is in there right now - and I know the ones from the factory are not so good.

SuperAWE · 12/19/2007, 04:37 PM

Check these sites out for some different lamp temps and par values:

http://www.cnidarianreef.com/lamps.cfm

http://www.coralreefecosystems.com/ltg_bulb_color.htm

ALso check out this TOTM, he uses 12k reeflux with no supps.
http://www.reefkeeping.com/issues/20...totm/index.php

thowell64 · 12/19/2007, 04:51 PM

while I appreciate the links, it seems that they do not cover the light type that I have to use in the OuterOrbit as most of the lights outlined are not the double ended type, nor are they 150w

I guess what I am specifically looking for is the best possible set of bulbs for what I have. Also, I am willing to sacrifice some growth for color if neccessary.

SuperAWE · 12/19/2007, 05:26 PM

They may not be your exact wattage but it will give you an idea of the color of what each manufacturers bulb of said temperature will be. It may not be exactly precise to your 150 DE but it can give you a general idea.

If you are looking for more blue the maybe try the 12-14k's at first. If those aren't blue enough, move towards the 20k's. Though your PAR will drop off dramatically.

10k will give you more growth and as you move towards 20k growth slows down but some colors start to really pop.

What bulbs are you using for the supplementals?

DarG · 12/19/2007, 06:16 PM

Those 10K bulbs arent all that bad in terms of PAR. They are plenty bright enough, just a little bit yellow. You can go to Aqualine 10000 bulbs which are a little bit brighter visibly and whiter as well (measure about 11000K with the glass shield). But they are not blue. If you want blue, you will take a hit in par.

There is the Aquaconnect 14000K which has relatively good par for a 150 watt DE bluer bulb. They are expensive. Phoenix 14000K may or may not be the same exact bulb. If it's as blue as the Phoenix 150 watt version, it's pretty darn blue to my eyes. Too blue. And you have electronic ballasts in your fixture which tends to run them bluer.

The new Iwasaki 20000K Aqua2 looks promising for a 150 watt DE. There is an Iwasaki 50000K de 150 watt that has been out for a good while and it is a nice bulb. Not nearly as blue as the 250 watt Phoenix I refer to above. As far as 150 watt DE bluer bulbs go, it has decent par, in line with the Aquaconnect. The new 20000K Iwasaki is supposed to be brighter according to Iwasaki's spec sheet. An Iwasaki dealer measured the par and relayed to me that it wasnt signifigantly brighter. So, maybe look at those two if you want to go bluer. The 20000K is supposed to be bluer than the 50000K (which is a misleading K value, it's definitely got some blue in the output but it isnt ultra blue).

Giesemann and Ushio have some 14000K (and higher) 150 watt DE's. I dont know anything about them in terms of par or color but again, blue bulbs in 150 watt DE dont have a whole bunch of output.

If interested in Iwasaki's, check out coralreefecosystems dot com and email them. Best prices on Iwasaki bulbs that I can find and he carries them all. Has a good selection outside of Iwasaki as well and Steve is a good guy.

thowell64 · 12/19/2007, 06:18 PM

thank you very much -- the outer orbit has the 2 150 MH with 4 T5s (2 on each side - 2 seperate actinics to cover spectrum)

Yes, I was thinking of the 14ks as I thought it would blue it up a little, bring out the colors and still provide some decent growth

I will have to go through the information you sent I guess to try to determine which bulb would be the best fit -- I don't mind spending the money for good bulbs, I just don't want to spend good money on less than bulbs

DarG · 12/19/2007, 06:32 PM

Those Aqualine 10000 bulbs are easily blued up. I had the same fixture and ran those bulbs with a couple of ATI Blue + and 2 UVL super actinics and had plenty of blue. Could use 4 ATI Blue + and have even more blue. But it depends on how blue you want it, how much blue is enough is a very individual opinion. You could go with the bluest bulbs and then whiten them up with the T5's. You would get the par from the T5's and the halides so you should be ok there but you would lose the dawn/dusk capability because of the whiter T5's.

oct2274 · 12/19/2007, 06:43 PM

don't go with 10k if you want more color..........Two of the best bulbs over 10k and that still have good output in 150 DE are the Radium and phoenix 14k. both of those bulbs will help bring out the colors in your tank. The phoenix will wash out some colors, but can be offset with suppliments. The radiums would be my first choice, but they do cost more. check sanjay's bulb charts. BTW, the information about the phoenix bulbs being blue isn't correct with 150's, especially on electronic ballasts. I run phoenix 14k's right now on icecap ballasts and they are far from being blue. They were a bit bluer when they were new, but as time goes on they get whiter and whiter. Right now mine are bright white with just a tint of blue after about 6 months of use. There was a thread here just this week with people confirming the same thing with their phoenix 14k 150's as well. They get whiter as time goes on.

DarG · 12/19/2007, 07:34 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by oct2274
don't go with 10k if you want more color..........Two of the best bulbs over 10k and that still have good output in 150 DE are the Radium and phoenix 14k. both of those bulbs will help bring out the colors in your tank. The phoenix will wash out some colors, but can be offset with suppliments. The radiums would be my first choice, but they do cost more. check sanjay's bulb charts. BTW, the information about the phoenix bulbs being blue isn't correct with 150's, especially on electronic ballasts. I run phoenix 14k's right now on icecap ballasts and they are far from being blue. They were a bit bluer when they were new, but as time goes on they get whiter and whiter. Right now mine are bright white with just a tint of blue after about 6 months of use. There was a thread here just this week with people confirming the same thing with their phoenix 14k 150's as well. They get whiter as time goes on.

Meant to write IF it's a blue as the Phoenix 250 watt version. IF, being the operative word. But thanks for the input on the bulb, that helps alot.

There really isnt any reason to go with a blue halide with 4 T5's unless one really wants a blue tank. I had that fixture and ran it with the AB 10000K's. It was not hard to color up a white halide like the 150 watt AB with the 4 T5's in that fixture. But if one wants to go really blue, then bluer halides + blue T5's would be the way to go. The Aqualine Buschke bulb is around 20 ppfd higher than either of those blue bulbs, radium or aquaconnect / phoenix.

12/19/2007, 03:58 PM	#1
thowell64 Premium Member Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: osprey, florida Posts: 246	Replacement bulb help I would like to put some new bulbs into the OuterOrbit fixture I have on my tank. I currently have the dual 150w X 10k bulbs the fixture came with and was looking to change them to possibly a 14k to augment bringing out the colors in my tank. This fixture is my first venture into MH. I love what it has done for my tank and realize it is probably not the best solution or system, but it has done a good job thus far. In the tank are various sps, lps and soft corals - all growing very well -- like everthing else, just looking to make things better if possible. I appreciate the help as I have had no direct experience with any other types of bulbs other that what is in there right now - and I know the ones from the factory are not so good.

12/19/2007, 06:43 PM	#8
oct2274 Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Plano, TX Posts: 2,347	don't go with 10k if you want more color..........Two of the best bulbs over 10k and that still have good output in 150 DE are the Radium and phoenix 14k. both of those bulbs will help bring out the colors in your tank. The phoenix will wash out some colors, but can be offset with suppliments. The radiums would be my first choice, but they do cost more. check sanjay's bulb charts. BTW, the information about the phoenix bulbs being blue isn't correct with 150's, especially on electronic ballasts. I run phoenix 14k's right now on icecap ballasts and they are far from being blue. They were a bit bluer when they were new, but as time goes on they get whiter and whiter. Right now mine are bright white with just a tint of blue after about 6 months of use. There was a thread here just this week with people confirming the same thing with their phoenix 14k 150's as well. They get whiter as time goes on. Last edited by oct2274; 12/19/2007 at 06:54 PM.

12/19/2007, 04:37 PM	#2
SuperAWE Registered Member Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Tallahassee, FL Posts: 245	Check these sites out for some different lamp temps and par values: http://www.cnidarianreef.com/lamps.cfm http://www.coralreefecosystems.com/ltg_bulb_color.htm ALso check out this TOTM, he uses 12k reeflux with no supps. http://www.reefkeeping.com/issues/20...totm/index.php

12/19/2007, 04:51 PM	#3
thowell64 Premium Member Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: osprey, florida Posts: 246	while I appreciate the links, it seems that they do not cover the light type that I have to use in the OuterOrbit as most of the lights outlined are not the double ended type, nor are they 150w I guess what I am specifically looking for is the best possible set of bulbs for what I have. Also, I am willing to sacrifice some growth for color if neccessary.

12/19/2007, 05:26 PM	#4
SuperAWE Registered Member Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Tallahassee, FL Posts: 245	They may not be your exact wattage but it will give you an idea of the color of what each manufacturers bulb of said temperature will be. It may not be exactly precise to your 150 DE but it can give you a general idea. If you are looking for more blue the maybe try the 12-14k's at first. If those aren't blue enough, move towards the 20k's. Though your PAR will drop off dramatically. 10k will give you more growth and as you move towards 20k growth slows down but some colors start to really pop. What bulbs are you using for the supplementals?

12/19/2007, 06:16 PM	#5
DarG Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2006 Posts: 5,515	Those 10K bulbs arent all that bad in terms of PAR. They are plenty bright enough, just a little bit yellow. You can go to Aqualine 10000 bulbs which are a little bit brighter visibly and whiter as well (measure about 11000K with the glass shield). But they are not blue. If you want blue, you will take a hit in par. There is the Aquaconnect 14000K which has relatively good par for a 150 watt DE bluer bulb. They are expensive. Phoenix 14000K may or may not be the same exact bulb. If it's as blue as the Phoenix 150 watt version, it's pretty darn blue to my eyes. Too blue. And you have electronic ballasts in your fixture which tends to run them bluer. The new Iwasaki 20000K Aqua2 looks promising for a 150 watt DE. There is an Iwasaki 50000K de 150 watt that has been out for a good while and it is a nice bulb. Not nearly as blue as the 250 watt Phoenix I refer to above. As far as 150 watt DE bluer bulbs go, it has decent par, in line with the Aquaconnect. The new 20000K Iwasaki is supposed to be brighter according to Iwasaki's spec sheet. An Iwasaki dealer measured the par and relayed to me that it wasnt signifigantly brighter. So, maybe look at those two if you want to go bluer. The 20000K is supposed to be bluer than the 50000K (which is a misleading K value, it's definitely got some blue in the output but it isnt ultra blue). Giesemann and Ushio have some 14000K (and higher) 150 watt DE's. I dont know anything about them in terms of par or color but again, blue bulbs in 150 watt DE dont have a whole bunch of output. If interested in Iwasaki's, check out coralreefecosystems dot com and email them. Best prices on Iwasaki bulbs that I can find and he carries them all. Has a good selection outside of Iwasaki as well and Steve is a good guy.

12/19/2007, 06:18 PM	#6
thowell64 Premium Member Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: osprey, florida Posts: 246	thank you very much -- the outer orbit has the 2 150 MH with 4 T5s (2 on each side - 2 seperate actinics to cover spectrum) Yes, I was thinking of the 14ks as I thought it would blue it up a little, bring out the colors and still provide some decent growth I will have to go through the information you sent I guess to try to determine which bulb would be the best fit -- I don't mind spending the money for good bulbs, I just don't want to spend good money on less than bulbs

12/19/2007, 06:32 PM	#7
DarG Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2006 Posts: 5,515	Those Aqualine 10000 bulbs are easily blued up. I had the same fixture and ran those bulbs with a couple of ATI Blue + and 2 UVL super actinics and had plenty of blue. Could use 4 ATI Blue + and have even more blue. But it depends on how blue you want it, how much blue is enough is a very individual opinion. You could go with the bluest bulbs and then whiten them up with the T5's. You would get the par from the T5's and the halides so you should be ok there but you would lose the dawn/dusk capability because of the whiter T5's.