best DE 150w and 250w bulb for SPS?

[hefeweizan]

friend of mine just asked me what would be the best 150w DE bulb to use on his tank without atinics?

Also, what is the best 250w DE bulb as well? Is it the Radium Bulb???

Mike

[30reef]

I use the Phoenix DE 250 and like it. I beleive there are some better bulbs on the market now too. I'm not due for an upgrade for a few months so I havn't kept up on the new "hot ticket" bulbs.

[drock59]

ive been looking for the "hot ticket" DE bulb for two years. Its been the phoenix but I would like to try something new.

[MeuserReef]

I use 2 150W DE Phoenix 14K bulbs on my tank and do not run supplemental actinics. I am getting good growth and the colors look great. I run them on electronic ballasts.

My bulbs are 14 months old (only 6 hrs/day) and I have not yet noticed any complaints from the corals.

I probably should change them out... (Did you hear that Santa?... I didnt think so )

[30reef]

Me too. I'm tempted to run a 400w 20K. Don't know what brand though. Is the DE lamp socket the same size for 250 and 400? I could look it up on a sponsor site but this way makes for better conversation.

Oops, this 400w spinoff makes me a thread hi-jacker. Sorry.

[MeuserReef]

I think that the 250W DE and the 400W DE bulbs use the same bulb clip.

I found this which says it can be used for either 250 or 400.
http://www.aquadirect.com/store/prod...roductid=31677

[kdblove_99]

Radiums only come in SE in 250W. I love the Radiums best bulb i have ever used.

I use run DE and like Phoenix the best of the ones i tried

[hefeweizan]

Does the Phoenix 250w DE have that blue look?...I am looking for more of a natural look to my reef. have the Giesemann 250 Watt 13000K Metal Halide Bulb and it looks to blue for my taste because it washes out alot of colors...

[DarG]

If you think the Giesemann is too blue, you're probably not going to like the Phoenix at all. They are blue. I have my own suspicions that some runs of the Phoenix are bluer than others based on differing descriptions on the amount of blue that seem to go beyond individual perceptions. But regardless, it's pretty darn blue.

[30reef]

I think the Phoenix I use is near a 20K. (Phoenix is marketed as a 14K) But I have not seen them side by side.

[nietzsche]

thats pretty weird because i have a phoenix 14k 250w and its not blue at all. was pretty disappointed. its more like a white than a blue

anyone know of any 250w mh bulbs that are blue and have great par for sps?

[DarG]

Originally posted by nietzsche
thats pretty weird because i have a phoenix 14k 250w and its not blue at all. was pretty disappointed. its more like a white than a blue

anyone know of any 250w mh bulbs that are blue and have great par for sps?

That's exactly what I'm taking about. The pair I had, had a very strong blue tint and on M80 ballasts. I mean, the toilet water reference that I had heard made sense looking at these bulbs. I wouldnt be surprised if runs of those bulbs dont consistently have the same color. I'm probably wrong because I dont read of any complaints of people with two different color Phoenix bulbs. But it's still possible. It just seems that the discerpency between peoples color descriptions of Phoenix bulbs goes beyond individual perceptions of color.

[oct2274]

Originally posted by kdblove_99
Radiums only come in SE in 250W.

not true, they do come in 150 DE and have more par on pretty much every 150 ballast then the phoenix 14k. the phoenix bulb in 150 is semi blue when you first get it and after fully burning in is very white with just a slight tint of blue. Mine have been running for maybe 5-6 months now and there is very little blue in them anymore. I do believe the 250's are much bluer from what people have said.

[DarG]

Originally posted by oct2274
not true, they do come in 150 DE and have more par on pretty much every 150 ballast then the phoenix 14k. the phoenix bulb in 150 is semi blue when you first get it and after fully burning in is very white with just a slight tint of blue. Mine have been running for maybe 5-6 months now and there is very little blue in them anymore. I do believe the 250's are much bluer from what people have said.

True the Radiums do come in 150 watt DE. But there is no Phoenix listed in Sanjays comparisons, only the Aquaconnect. So you are assuming that the Aquaconnect and Phoenix are the same bulb. I have heard that they arent exactly the same in 150 watt. Based on the spectral chart, the Aquaconnect is a pretty blue lamp and if the Phoenix is not, it would further raise the question of whether the Aquaconnect is the exact same lamp as the Phoenix. But with all that aside, assuming that they are the same, a PPFD difference of a couple of "points" isnt signifigantly higher par. Sanjay only tests one of each lamp in most cases. A different Radium bulb and a different Aquaconnect could measure with the reverse results in terms of par due to the inherent slight variations of different samples of the same bulbs.

[nietzsche]

im using an IceCap 250 electronic ballast, so im not sure if that was the reason behind the color. even when it was burning in it was still white

[DarG]

Originally posted by nietzsche
im using an IceCap 250 electronic ballast, so im not sure if that was the reason behind the color. even when it was burning in it was still white

They are bluer on electronic ballasts according to most reports and usually bluer when new, whitens up a little bit after burn-in. Like I said, I think some of the runs of Phoenix bulbs are bluer than others.

[ezcompany]

Phoenix bulb is basically a high PAR 20k bulb.

[oct2274]

all i know for 100% sure is that the 150 de bulbs burn very white on icecap 150 ballasts because that is what i run right now. It isn't even sorta blue, just the very slightest tint of blue after being run for atleast 5 months, maybe more.

[30reef]

I run mine off of an Icecap ballast and it is very blue.

[reef / aholic]

hefeweizan - 250w MH's DE

Aquaconnect 14K
Geissman 14.5K
Iwasaki 14k
Phoenix 14k
Ushio 14K
XM 10K or 14k

The Radium 250w only comes as SE!!!

[DarG]

Also ...

Helios (or EVC) 20000K 250 watt DE. No actinic needed.

[hefeweizan]

reef / aholic

250w MH's DE

Aquaconnect 14K
Geissman 14.5K
Iwasaki 14k
Phoenix 14k
Ushio 14K
XM 10K or 14k

So which one would you recommend that is not blue?

[five.five-six]

sorry, forgot what ballest you were running

[hefeweizan]

I am using a Giesemann Infinity fixture....not sure what ballast it comes with...i will take a look...