Metal Halide Q&A

how about blueline i see a used one for a decent price on ebay and its a double ended bulb it seems like so its probably hqi

 

It is best to change them every 6-12 months. the bulbs do have a large effect on growth and color of corals. If you go any farther than 12 months, the spectrum usually shifts pretty far and becomes ineffective.

 

i am very surprised that the reeflux does not run well on the coralvue ballast... do you have a kill-a-watt meter to measure how much it is pulling? even if it is underpowering the bulb it should not be flickering though.

 

well blueline is not the best and I have never used them so i cannot say if it is worth it or not. I will warn though that you pay for what you get... so i would be weary about going with off brands for lighting. You dont want to have to re-spend the money again on a quality ballast a few months down the road.

 

thanks for the info, ill keep my eyes open for a good deal on a good brand....for now ill just keep running my pcs

 

just wanted to add that i bought the 20k odyssey lamps from ebay .. on my current outer orbit fixture (magnetic ballast) and have had great results... its a perfect spectrum in my opinion....

and i have had ice cap and aro ballast before with radium bulbs...

just wanted to say that some of the cheap bulbs do perform i have had them for about 4 months and they burnt in nicely

 

on the other forum im on i found someone willing to sell a 250w icecap ballast for 75....do you think thats a good price or should i drive them down a little bit?

 

you cant see spectrum. You can see kelvin which is just a combo of all the spectrums blended together into one final color... however this does not mean that the specific wavelengths are really good.

In my experience, I have found these bulbs to have high spikes in the blue to still give the 20k look but then they also have high spikes in the far end of the spectrum to give sps trouble growing and staying colorful, while promoting algae growth.

But as always, these are just suggestions that I offer and should not be set in stone. I also do not mean to disagree with anyone but only like to voice my opinion based on experience and research.

 

icecap for 75 is pretty decent... as long as they are working and are not malfunctioning. watch out for the shipping price also

 

hes nearby so i would be picking it up, but is 75 fair or should i drive him down a little?