XM 10K 400W bulbs: How long did yours take to "break in"?

Nathan · 05/05/2006, 11:23 AM

What is the "break-in" time for XM 10K 400W bulbs?

(I know the standard saying is 100 hours of use, but what are your experiences with colour change during those first hours?)

I got mine last night. Plugged them in and they were white, but after 2 hours they went yellowish.

-Nathan

Nathan · 05/08/2006, 09:20 AM

I bought three bulbs.

One of them is white (from day 2), and the other two are still yellow after 40 hours of burn time.

I know that a lot of people have had issues with bad bulbs from XM, so I am just trying to figure out of I have two bad bulbs, or if this is normal (one white, and two yellow).

-Nathan

Randall_James · 05/08/2006, 09:30 AM

I had a set of 10k's from Champion were yellow for around 50 hours

SunnyX · 05/08/2006, 09:50 AM

I would wait at least a week foe the bulbs to whiten up. I had a bad bulb a few months ago, it was really dim and yellow.

Over time the new lights whitened up.

As I said, if the bulb is bad you can really tell the difference, the bad bulb will be very dim.

Also play around with the nipple position, set it between 9 and 3 pointing up.

Nathan · 05/08/2006, 09:57 AM

SunnyX,

By "really dim and yellow", do you mean more yellow than an Iwasaki? My two bulbs appear about the same colour as Iwasaki - in other words, they are more yellow than they should be but I woudn't say that they are "really yellow".

I have my nipples pointed straight up (I always run MH bulbs this way).

I will give it more time and hopefully the other two bulbs will colour up. I am just surprised that the one bulb is nice pure white on the second day... It's hard being patient when the bulbs make the tank look so sickly.

Here is a pic:

This is a close up of the side with the white bulb:

And this is the "yellow" side:

-Nathan

Nathan · 05/10/2006, 10:57 AM

Does turning it on and off periodically during the day speed up the process of burn in?

-Nathan

05/05/2006, 11:23 AM	#1
Nathan Premium Member Join Date: Mar 2000 Location: Newtown, Pa., USA Posts: 1,454	XM 10K 400W bulbs: How long did yours take to "break in"? What is the "break-in" time for XM 10K 400W bulbs? (I know the standard saying is 100 hours of use, but what are your experiences with colour change during those first hours?) I got mine last night. Plugged them in and they were white, but after 2 hours they went yellowish. -Nathan

05/08/2006, 09:30 AM	#3
Randall_James Premium Member Join Date: Feb 2005 Posts: 6,727	I had a set of 10k's from Champion were yellow for around 50 hours __________________ "It's a dog eat dog world and I feel like I am wearing milkbone underwear"

05/08/2006, 09:20 AM	#2
Nathan Premium Member Join Date: Mar 2000 Location: Newtown, Pa., USA Posts: 1,454	I bought three bulbs. One of them is white (from day 2), and the other two are still yellow after 40 hours of burn time. I know that a lot of people have had issues with bad bulbs from XM, so I am just trying to figure out of I have two bad bulbs, or if this is normal (one white, and two yellow). -Nathan

05/08/2006, 09:50 AM	#4
SunnyX Moved On Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: Michigan Posts: 4,991	I would wait at least a week foe the bulbs to whiten up. I had a bad bulb a few months ago, it was really dim and yellow. Over time the new lights whitened up. As I said, if the bulb is bad you can really tell the difference, the bad bulb will be very dim. Also play around with the nipple position, set it between 9 and 3 pointing up.

05/08/2006, 09:57 AM	#5
Nathan Premium Member Join Date: Mar 2000 Location: Newtown, Pa., USA Posts: 1,454	SunnyX, By "really dim and yellow", do you mean more yellow than an Iwasaki? My two bulbs appear about the same colour as Iwasaki - in other words, they are more yellow than they should be but I woudn't say that they are "really yellow". I have my nipples pointed straight up (I always run MH bulbs this way). I will give it more time and hopefully the other two bulbs will colour up. I am just surprised that the one bulb is nice pure white on the second day... It's hard being patient when the bulbs make the tank look so sickly. Here is a pic: This is a close up of the side with the white bulb: And this is the "yellow" side: -Nathan

05/10/2006, 10:57 AM	#6
Nathan Premium Member Join Date: Mar 2000 Location: Newtown, Pa., USA Posts: 1,454	Does turning it on and off periodically during the day speed up the process of burn in? -Nathan