ge energy smart 6500k bulbs ...pics

[nemesis7]

i went to lowes and got 8 of their 6500k energy smart screw in compact flourescent daylight bulbs and installed them over my 70 gallon reef. they are in my opinion just as good as the 6500k metal haides i used to have over it. i was running 2 250 watt mh, and watched my energy bills go through the roof. with these new bulbs I am getting the output of over 800 watts and only using 192watts . less heat more light less cost. any thoughts or comments? please show me your set ups if you use anything similar.

i 'm reposting with pics. may not be pretty but i am rebuilding tank after 2 year abscence.

[Racing1]

Doesn't look too bad to me. If you put some type of reflector above them it will help put more light into the tank. You could also put a couple of 40 watt Actinics using the ballast and ends from a 4' shop light to help the color and still keep the energy bill down. Good luck with your setup.

[nemesis7]

thanks im working on getting new actinics they are on order . i also have reflectors on order from my lighting supplier.

[Pmolan]

Good thought... Im tagging along for this one.

[Theexp]

I have similar lighting on a freshwater planted tank. I made a 10 gallon hood, using, some old reflector, some sockets, and the compact flourescent spiral bulbs. The only problem with your setup now is very little light is being reflected into the tank. Thats peoples main complaint for spiral bulbs.

[nemesis7]

well i thought the same about little lite getting to the tank thats why ordered individual reflectors that increase light downward by 80 percent. my only thought that with 8 bulbs with the equivilant of 100 watts a piece i may have to much light . any thought on that.

[rcypert]

Your not really getting 800 watts of output. Your getting more efficiency out of those bulbs compared to Halogen house bulbs. Thats what it means you have the equivalent of 800 watts of incandescent. That is nothing compared to 500 watts of metal halide. So I doubt you have too much light. Like mentioned above add some actinic fluoro tubes. Then it should be just right for softies and maybe some LPS or really easy SPS.

[nemesis7]

ok so each bulb according to specs gives off 1600 lumens so 1600 times 8 bulbs is 12800 lumens . i do plan on adding actinics as soon as the bulbs come in. my question is how many lumens do i really need for a 70 gallon reef?

[jman77]

hahhahahhah ,,,

where's that ghetto thread at ?

[nemesis7]

hey the ghettos got two kinds of reefer i prefer this one.

[edwing206]

Originally posted by jman77
hahhahahhah ,,,

where's that ghetto thread at ?

Ummmm..... Ok.

[jman77]

playing bro....dont be so serious

[aninjaatemyshoe]

First off, compact fluorescents are right off the bat far less energy efficient than metal halides. CF lights run about 60 lumens/watt. Metal halides run anywhere from 90-110 lumens/watt. Then you have to figure in the fact that most metal halides incorporate rather efficient reflectors (which your setup does not have with the compact fluorescents). So all in all, I wouldn't be surprised if your 192 Watts of CF lighting gave off less light than what you'd get from a single 70W MH setup. You really can't tell how much difference there is from eying it alone.

The statement that you get 800+ Watts out of 192 Watts of CF lighting comes from a comparison between compact fluorescents and incandescent lighting (which is just about the least efficient light source you can find). Certainly, they are a great solution for home lighting when compared to incandescent and halogen. They don't need external lighting ballasts to run, are fairly cheap considering the energy savings, last longer, and so forth. But in our hobby, compact fluorescents are under-performers. Simply put, T5s and MHs make compact fluorescents look like incandescents.

If you really want to save energy costs and simultaneously manage a successful reef tank, get one of those 250W MHs you used to use and hook it up to a light mover. Look up the light rail 3.5 or the agramover. These will do wonders for your tank and can effectively accomplish with one bulb what would otherwise take 2 bulbs.

[nemesis7]

sorry jman77 if that came off bad was trying to sound witty , guess that backfired.

[nemesis7]

well i traded the mh and fixtures at the lfs 2 years ago when my son was born. so the cost to build a new one plus what i have already spent on this new system id spend more than the wife would like. the light rail is cool and if i still had the mh i would give it a try but 142 dollars for a refurbished one is just to much money right now. i'm restocking and rebuilding slow ,so as not to incur the wraith of the wife.

[aninjaatemyshoe]

Best to start with saving up for the right equipment before buying the livestock. Though, I imagine you could keep soft corals under that lighting.

[RichConley]

Originally posted by aninjaatemyshoe
First off, compact fluorescents are right off the bat far less energy efficient than metal halides. CF lights run about 60 lumens/watt. Metal halides run anywhere from 90-110 lumens/watt. Then you have to figure in the fact that most metal halides incorporate rather efficient reflectors (which your setup does not have with the compact fluorescents). So all in all, I wouldn't be surprised if your 192 Watts of CF lighting gave off less light than what you'd get from a single 70W MH setup. You really can't tell how much difference there is from eying it alone.

One thing to note here Ninja, MHs dont hit that 90-110 watt mark until you start hitting the 175-250w range. The smaller bulbs are less efficient, and 70w bulbs aren't any more efficient than CF bulbs.

The "most metal halides incorporate rather efficient reflectors" is a little far fetched. Most MHs are running on crappy spider reflectors and such. If most people were using lumenarcs, I'd agree.


As to what you can keep, I've kept pocillipora, stylo, and some other easy SPS under NO fluoros, so I dont see why he couldnt if he kept water quality high.

[aninjaatemyshoe]

A reflector is better than no reflectors.

[BrassMonkey]

looks ok. it works.

however i think you will be mutch happier with a t5ho 2 bulb retro kit when you can.

more color options and light to show off that hard work.

and you can still expand as you go. maybe if you want to keep coral in the future.

[edwing206]

Originally posted by jman77
playing bro....dont be so serious

It's cool man. If you knew me in person, I don't take things too seriously. So whatever.

[kuramura]

I'm using on the refiugium works great

[60Cubed]

Without the atinic flouros, your color will suffer.

[nemesis7]

going to get actinics this weekend will post pics when i get it set up

[cayars]

I'm doing something similar on my prop tanks which I keep crocea and SPS corals in at a depth of 24" (125 tank).

I'm using the 100 watt version of the lights with reflectors and also have some actenic lighting on them.

This setup has worked great for me and I really like the look of the tanks with 6500K lighting better then 10K-20K which always look to blue to my eye.

I've like the look so much that I put a few 65w (lower wattage) bulbs over my 265g reef just to improve the color. It had a mix of 2 10K bulbs and 2 20K bulbs previously. The 2 65w 6500K lights really made the tank look brighter but didn't really take away from the fluorescent look of the corals under the 20Ks. I'm really happy with the new balance of light in this tank also.

Oh using this style of PC bulb allows easy placement over the tank where you need it and costs a lot less then typical long fluorescent PC tubes sold in the hobby. The typical cost of PC has been one reason why many people have moved away from them as they are just to expensive to replace. With these bulbs you can use them in other parts of the house of flood lights. It's nice to recycle your bulbs and get additional use from them!

Carlo

[Musho3210]

you know you can buy bulbs with refectors built in them? Those flood lights, so each bulb will get its own reflector.