Reeflux 12k

[zapata41]

ok so what is the concensous (sp?) on the reeflux 12k and 10k bulbs. i am thinking about going with them, am currently using xm 10k 400w.

so how are they looking.


pics please

Tim

[znut Reefer]

I like the 10K's. They make the blue acros look great! You may want to try a mix of 10K and 12K. Theres one guy on here that swears by them. Said he won't ever use any other bulbs.

[panosb]

I am going to switch from a 250W DE Phoenix to a Reeflux 10K 250W DE bulb, supplemented with 2 24W T5 pure actinics (by Giesemann) next week...So, I am soon gonna have concrete results!

Hope my change proves gainful! :)

[benf]

You should ck out DaddyJax pics...he has a mix of the 10 and 12k reflux bulbs...very nice!!

[djc1026]

I like the look of my 175 Reeflux 12k. At first they were pretty blue but after about two weeks, I'm either adjusted to it or they've whitened up some. At any rate, corals are noticeably responding to the lights by coloring up and new growth. I replaced 10 month old Venture 10k bulbs.

Dave

[MSHUR]

Tim,
I have try this bulbs on HQI and M59 ballast..
12k on HQi looks very similar to Radiums.On M59 looks dim ..me no like it:)
10k looks nice on HQi ,but i notice pinkish color.BUt corals love it,purple/blue colors popps and looks neat.
I have run RF-10k next to XM-10k and xm looks brighter but more yellow IMO
I have one 12k bulb f/s ,if u wanna try it.

mike

[NewSchool04]

I'm using a 12K DE 250 w/ with HQI ballast and love the color. This is by far my favorite bulb that I've used.

[Ceak]

NewSchool04

got any pics?

What other bulbs have you tried?

thx

[mmotown]

I once had 3 14k Hamiltons. I switched to 12k Reefluxes and my tank is a beautiful ice blue. I have VHO's that I run in the evening time. I don't even need the VHO's while the 12k's are on. You couldn't make a better decision...:smokin:

[the_anti_honda]

What does this bulb look like in comparison visually (side by side or over the same corals) and performance wise to the RL 10k?

[DaddyJax]

Here you go! 10k RL
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v201/DaddyJax/IMG_3084.jpg
10k and 12k mix
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v201/DaddyJax/IMG_3086.jpg
And full tank 12k
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v201/DaddyJax/IMG_3077.jpg
Sorry I couldnt find the close up of just the 12k but it burns bright blue.
I have also noticed that they do not like Magnetic ballast as much as Electronic ballast. Mine are all fired on Icecaps.
Hope this helps.

[the_anti_honda]

Do those pictures have any supplemental lighting?

[DaddyJax]

Nope. I dont use any actinics. No need imo

[DaddyJax]

Here are my Blastos
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v201/DaddyJax/IMG_3398.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v201/DaddyJax/IMG_3394.jpg

[the_anti_honda]

Thats ridiculous for no actinics. I have been going back and forth between these bulbs and 13k Megachrome..

I assume its 12k top and 10k bottom?

[vidrine7322]

i just put my 10k's on the other day . . . very impressed. Very crisp white, my sps has crazy polyp extension now also

[jt_redmist]

DaddyJax,
Those are some amazing blues. Very nice tank. I assume you are running 250w SE? How's growth for you with the 12K Reeflux? I'm currently running 14K Hamiltons, but the growth is poor.

TIA,
JT

[MSHUR]

Daddy,
Very nice tank,and colors are great!!! What ballast are u using for RF-10k?

mike

[DaddyJax]

Thanks, the growth is good as I have two other tanks and one is only 12k and it has good growth. The blues are much more with the 10k.
I am using Icecap ballasts.

[NewSchool04]

Great pics Daddy! I just tried taking pics of my 12K tank and I'm having a real hard time getting the pics to look like real life. I'll get some and post tonight.

How do you like the 10K bulb by itself? Do you find it too yellow?
My cube that I have the 12K over has a lot of blue corals, Cali, ORA tort, a blue stag and they look good, much better than when I used Phoenix 14K but not popping. I might try the 10K just for kicks I just think it might look extremely yellow compared to my T5 tank right next to it. It's amazing how the light from one tank can distort your view of another.

[benf]

Well, i decided to order the 250w 10k's...I had the Phoenix 14ks and then switched to the Ushio 10k's all within the past 2 months and from what i have heard and seen the Reflux bulbs should be the bulb to stick with.

If anyone is interested, i ordered mine from http://jandls.com/ cause i have been very happy with the corals i got from there. Good prices as well!

[DaddyJax]

It doesn't look yellow at all to me but I would say that blue suplementation is needed. I use the 12k while some people use actinics.

[zapata41]

very nice pics there. so any pics of the 400w on m59 ballast.

also how does the bulbs compare when fired on mag ballast vs. elec

Thanks
Tim

[NewSchool04]

[QUOTE]<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8602788#post8602788 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by DaddyJax
The blues are much more with the 10k.

Do you mean the blues stand out much more?

[NewSchool04]

Here are some pics of my 12K 250 w/ HQI Ballast. I'm terrible with the pics but I think these are close to real life.
Click the pic for a larger view:

http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y222/NewSchool04/th_CIMG3691.jpg (http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y222/NewSchool04/CIMG3691.jpg)

http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y222/NewSchool04/th_CIMG3696.jpg (http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y222/NewSchool04/CIMG3696.jpg)

http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y222/NewSchool04/th_CIMG3697.jpg (http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y222/NewSchool04/CIMG3697.jpg)

If anyone has an ID on the second pic, I'm all ears.

[DaddyJax]

I meant that the blue acros are more colorful when they grow under 10k RL.

I dont have any Mag ballast. Sorry

[fishnugget]

I use 3 Reeflux10k 400watt SE. Use 2 URI Super actinic. Coloration white/blue. Growth great.

Sorry no pictures

[zaireguy]

where is the place place to order reeflux bulbs?
thanks

[GraviT]

I've been running 10,000K, 250w, SE ReefLux bulbs for about 3 months now and am very impressed with my SPS coloration. I have corals that have been brown for years that are really starting to show some insane colors!

I use Coralvue electronic ballasts.

[benf]

Zaireguy...you have a pm

[zaireguy]

right back at you

[cediss]

I have been running 175 watt 12K reeflux for about a month and love the color it produces. It's a crisp electric blue color. Maybe they will still shift color so I'll have wait and see. It is on magnetic ballasts so may not be as bright as electronic but my tank and corals seem to be responding well.

I also run 400 watt SE electronic ballasts. One has a Coralvue 10K on one side of the tank and the other has a coralvue 400w 14K. So far I am liking the mix of 175w 12K reeflux with the 400w 14K, but I need to eyeball things for a while longer to see which side has the best results.

[dippin61]

went from a 14k 250w SE hammy to the 10k reeflux bulb..

yuck yuck yuck. way to yellow for me.. prolly cuz of my ballast.. pfo mag ballast.

now i have 2 bulbs i have to get rid of :p

[DaddyJax]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8622518#post8622518 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by dippin61
went from a 14k 250w SE hammy to the 10k reeflux bulb..

yuck yuck yuck. way to yellow for me.. prolly cuz of my ballast.. pfo mag ballast.

now i have 2 bulbs i have to get rid of :p I have heard this before. Mag ballast run them yellow.

[KH971]

Here is a pic of 10K 400W reeflux's brand new on Ice Cap elec ballasts. The second pic is them after 5 months. Still getting good growth and blue's are very good.The only differnece is that the dining room lights are on when I took the pics. I use VHO actinics.
http://i147.photobucket.com/albums/r307/kh971/P1010170.jpg


http://i147.photobucket.com/albums/r307/kh971/Tank/Tank005.jpg

[jamal-188]

How do these compare in color to XM 10k's?

I"m going to be using 2x54w T5 Blue Blus but can't decide what to use for my 150w HQI bulbs...

[DaddyJax]

I used XM 10k before these and the RL are brighter and white while the XM's were more yellow. The corals responded very quickly to the RL after switching them as well. I burned the XM's for 6 months when I made the change.

[KEEPERZ]

DJax- have you ever run the10 or 12k on a pfo hqi ballast? I've been running them this way for aboout 8 months to a year and have really liked the look and the growth from both bulbs. I know I am pushing the bulbs harder with this type of ballast, but I would hate to make any concessions by using the recommended e-ballast-watcha think?

[DaddyJax]

I have never used Mag ballasts myself. I would think that they would last longer but you should keep using them if you like them. If you did go with an E ballast I would say that Icecap would be best imo. I have an older Coralvue ballast I use on one of my tanks and it is a slight bit different but I still get outstanding colors and growth. I am recieving a new Coralvue ballast soon and I will let you know how that looks.

[Ti]

sanjay got par data on these?

[MiddletonMark]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8604722#post8604722 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by DaddyJax
I meant that the blue acros are more colorful when they grow under 10k RL.
They sure can pop ... I've got a hoeksmai that just GLOWS blue under the 10k, on IceCap.

I mix with a radium on HQI, like it a little better mixed than alone - but a nice 10k color on my IceCap ballast too. I'm happy with my 10k SE.

[NewSchool04]

so you run both a 10K Reeflux and a 20K Radium MiddletonMark? Gives a nice mix?

[MiddletonMark]

Yup, though I only overlap the bulbs a couple hours ... 3' tank.

3 hours-ish of just 10k reeflux + actinic, 3 hours of both 10k RL + 20k radium + actinic, 3 hours of just radium + actinic. I like the variation, it seems like running both a full photoperiod washes out colors IMO.

Also run VHO super actinics. Taking photos on my camera is hopeless [flourescent-photos :lmao:] ... but I sure like the look, results.

[GMFett]

I switched from Double ended Hamilton 14k 400 watts TO 3 Lumenarcs Reeflux 12k 400 watts. They rock but they did dull out a bit. I am thinking about adding three more. The color is intense with less red than most 12ks.

[NewSchool04]

what do you mean they dulled out a bit GMFett? How long did that take (to dull)?

[dukes707]

so what i'm getting from all this is that the bulbs look great if run on an e-ballast, or an HQI ballast. but what about running them on a standard m58 ballast. anyone with input on them. do you get the same white color with blue pop as with the other ballasts?
any par readings on the 12k RL bulb, on any ballast. checked sanjay out, and he only has the 10k's on file. par aint that great btw. not bad, but aint great either compared to say the pheonix or the XM's. but i guess you gotta choose, growth or asthetics. always comes down to a subjective decision is suppose

[NewSchool04]

I didn't see the Reeflux on Sanjay's list dukes. Can you post a link, thanks.

[dukes707]

umm...comes up as a pop up in a separate window. but when you go to his site, search performance data by ballast. i chose to search 250w standard mag ballast unsheilded. coralvue reeflux 10k is on there, you just gotta look. if you click on the bulb link it will give you the readings for that bulb for different ballasts. hope this helps.

[NewSchool04]

That's odd, I looked it up using HQI ballast and no information on the Reeflux bulb, looked it up with standard mag and the site lists the Reeflux bulb and all all analysis with every ballast.

[zapata41]

well after taking a look at sanjay's site i am gonna have to stick with my 10k xm on m59 ballasts. with par on teh reeflux is worse than my 20k xm. Unless sanjay had some huge error in his testing i am not seeing how the reeflux is that much better of a bulb. or does it have some special spectrum that makes up for it's lack of par

Tim

[dukes707]

honestly i think it is the color spectrum that it hits that makes it so popular. i run the 10k on my 150wDE on an E-ballast and it gives off a nice white color and the blues look awesome, greens look pretty good as well esp. the flourescent greens. par wise i would stick with xm's but it tends to have a yellow hue to it. not very realistic looking IMHO. if you supplement with varied spectrum actinics i think you can pull of somthing close to true life colors, but if its just the xm's then expect a yellow tint. like i said before par isnt great, but it aint bad either. i think i will mix the RL 10k in my 150 de with the RL 12k in my 2x250's, mixing the spectrums gives off a really pleasing color spectrum. not too blue and not too white. KH971 posted some great pics of the 10k's. my 150 de's looked the same over my 40g when i had them on there. i also supplement with 4x39w t5 actinics...am pleased with the color and growth aint bad either. -Francis

[dukes707]

the RL 10k spikes at somewhere between 420nm and 450nm really hard, which explains the major blue tint people talk about. so yeah i guess the color spike makes up for the lack of par.

[fishnugget]

I am confused. I use 3 400watt 10K Reeflux with 2 URI Super Actinic. Color is very white. Slight blue ting. Are you saying that my growth will not be nearly as good as other bulbs? I am looking for asthetics as well as growth. I had Hamiliton 10k with same actinic. Growth was great but color was too yellow.

Are there better alternatives to my concerns? I like a natural look. Not too yellow.

By the way, I only currently use Hamilton Magnetic ballasts.

[the_anti_honda]

panosb -

Do we get to see those pics soon?

[DaddyJax]

I guess I am a little confused as well. My last bulbs were XM20k and they were 5 months old when I switched them out to the RL10k and there is no way in the world that the 20k par was in the same ballpark as the 10k. It look like I went from 175w to 400w. I am not trying to start anything I am saying that there is something wrong if that is the results.

[the_anti_honda]

Good thing I don't worry about PAR numbers..

These worse things in life then having low PAR..

Ok so do we have pictures of DE both in 10k and 12k? Well more pictures now..

[good one]

tagging along. I use 12K single ended Reeflux and luv the blueish tint rather than running actinics the whole day. I do supplement actinics for one hour before the halides come on and then one hour at the other end, but they're off the rest of the time.

I'm getting decent growth but out of the usual suspects. Slimer, pocillapora, and blue tort, oh and stylophora (neon green).

check out my gallery for some recent pics (yesterday)

I also have great moon lights. In case anyone is interested. I'm using Philips 6ft blue led rope from target that cost $10. comes with mounting brackets and a 6' cord. The moonlight effect has never been better. I'll post some pics if anyone is interested in another thread.
(Sorry off topic alittle)

[Psionicdragon]

Ask and you shall receive!

(not really, but here you go)

1) http://www.advancedaquarist.com/issues/may2005/feature.html

is the reeflux stats

2) http://www.advancedaquarist.com/issues/mar2003/feature.htm

Reflector stats especially Lumenarc

I have been using my 10k for awhile. I recently got some sps and for a week now, i see some really nice growth. The blues coloration on the corals are deep as well as the green. HOWEVER, the pink is washed out as brown/whitish.

One bulb burns a crisp white. Another bulb is kinda yellowish. Both of these are on the coralvue ballast (ballast that caused a lot of trouble with my ACII).

3) http://www.personal.psu.edu/sbj4/aquarium/articles/MetalHalideLamps3.htm

IMHO, if I wanted growth, I would just get a 6500k Iwa. Thats my personal choice. (oops wrong bulb, i meant xm 10k)

I want to try the 12k bulb, but no stats from Sanjay about them. I think hes busy with his new tank :P.

When do I need to change my bulbs if I run them 3 hours a day every day?

[good one]

sorry should have mentioned they are 250watt 12K SE

[good one]

[i]<When do I need to change my bulbs if I run them 3 hours a day every day? [/B]

I run mine from 4:30p to 10:30p and get about a good 8 months out of them

[Psionicdragon]

what kind of ballast? electronic or magnetic?

[good one]

magnetic dual ballast

[asmodeus]

Ok i have a dual PFO pulse start ballast that im running 2 14 K coralvue bulbs looking for a bit of a whiter /light blue tini the 12K reeflux bulbs will they work on my pulse start ballst...


mike

[zapata41]

now i see all these spectural analysis but still am not cinvincing myself that i should switch from my 20K xm to these bulbs. i know par isnt everything but the 10k on mag 400w is very low in ppfd. i started this thread to help convince myself that i should 86 the 20k xm and 10k xm and go to the 10k reeflux. sure the spectrum might be nice but i just cant seem to get over the low ppfd from the bulbs. that and the 10K xm on m59 ballast run a 170ppfd and a color temp of almost 12k. very nice IMO.

ok well lets keep the pics coming, i am very close to buying some new bulbs, not that my curent 20k xm's are spent, but i ned to try something new.

Thanks

Tim

[shelburn61]

I have been running the 250w 10k for a year now. Great bulb, but the pink hue is starting to bother me so I am starting to wonder again. I am pretty sure though, that the 12k will be horrible on PAR numbers as they tend to be: usually worse than 14k or 20k...

With the reeflux 10k blues do pop compared to xm 10m, but other colors not so much. Greens and yellows have not been great for me, but that may be related to other issues....

The thing that led me to start the other thread was the big 420nm peak which you usually see in 20k bulbs and the claims that 20ks bring the best color. The reeflux still has the 420nm peak with very good PAR numbers.
Good read: http://www.reefs.org/library/talklog/s_tyree_060202.html

If you are going to run a reeflux do it on an electronic ballast.
Start with Sanjay's site, and you can pretty much figure it out for yourself from the PAR numbers and spectral plots... http://www.reeflightinginfo.arvixe.com/index.htm

All that said I have an AC 14k in the mail...

[gavin123]

the color is great, 250 watt 12000k reeflux
http://i114.photobucket.com/albums/n245/gdoggav/IMG_4028.jpg

[Shooter7]

I ran 12k reeflux 250w's on my 120 from the beginning of this year. In May I started adding some SPS frags. In Aug I noted that I was still at a standstill with the frags that I had added, but I was also starting to note the color of the lights being off and one side being lighter than the other. Even my softy corals were not looking happy. I decided to try a switch, so sometime in Oct I changed out my lights to Ushio 10k's with actinic supplements and my growth has really jumped. I have mille frags that now have multiple new branches starting all over them and other corals that had no color before are now showing some nice colors. I'm not fond of the much whiter color of the tank, as I was much more happy with the overall color of the 12k's, but I want some growth and color out of my corals and the 12k's didn't seem to be fitting the bill for them. Just my observations on my tank...ymmv.

[aurora]

I run 3 400W 12K reeflux on my 300G....love the color and will order it again next year.

[cediss]

I run 2 -175W 12K Reeflux and 2- 14K 400w coralvue. Too early to comment on growth as have only had this combo less than month. I wanted to show comparison photos, but the camera misrepresents the intensity some. Below are 175w 12K reeflux and 1 40w actinic followed by 400w 14K plus previous mentioned combo. the 14K and 12K combos are brighter in person, but aleast the color is fairly accurate in each photo.

http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/71059Tank_bulb_comp_12K.jpg
175w 12K w/actinic


http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/71059tank_bulb_comp_14K.jpg
175w 12K w/actinic plus 400w 14K.

Sorry for grainy pics, but shrinking pics is the main prob there. Also note there are very few SPS. Had a large wipe out a few months ago and haven't been able to restock yet!

[portjeffski]

I have been using reeflux 10k 250w SE since March, and the color is nice and white. Good coral growth and bright colors on sps corals.
ReefExotics has a good price on Reeflux bulbs and free shipping on purchase of two or more.
http://www.reefexotics.com/index.htm

[the_anti_honda]

Another site I would recommend getting them from http://jandls.com/ I have had a great experience dealing with them as a whole and there prices are cheaper.

Two big thumbs up.

[wentreefgirl]

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v298/wentreefgirl/DSCN1554.jpg
250W 12k reeflux here. On standard ballast. Non magnetic.

[benf]

wentreefgirl
Are your bulbs SE or DE and how many?

thanks

[PaintGuru]

400W 10K Reeflux on standard PFO ballast. 2-24" VHO actinic supplementation (I don't think they do THAT much).

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v627/cseubert/tank2.jpg

[wentreefgirl]

Maybe im dumb but whats the difference. Mogul style. Not 2 ended.

[benf]

the mogul style is like a regular screw in bulb socket opposed to the push in double ended.

[PaintGuru]

How much "bluer" are the 12Ks compared to the 10Ks? It's time for me to replace bulbs and while I like the look of the 10Ks, I find myself wanting a BIT more blue (not much though). I'm wondering if I should try the 12K to see what happens. These would be run on a standard PFO ballast. Thoughts?

[tanya72806]

i used them and was not to happy with them they were too pink to me

[PaintGuru]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8848382#post8848382 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by PaintGuru
How much "bluer" are the 12Ks compared to the 10Ks? It's time for me to replace bulbs and while I like the look of the 10Ks, I find myself wanting a BIT more blue (not much though). I'm wondering if I should try the 12K to see what happens. These would be run on a standard PFO ballast. Thoughts?


Ah nevermind, it looks like the 12Ks won't fire on a standard PFO. Now it is between the 10K and 20K XMs.

[Naperville Reef]

DE 150w Reeflux 12k on a Sunlight Supply Blue Wave 3 magnetic ballast

http://i126.photobucket.com/albums/p86/robharbour/IMG_3661-1.jpg

DE 250w Reeflux 12k on an IceCap electronic ballast

http://i126.photobucket.com/albums/p86/robharbour/IMG_3716.jpg

[NewSchool04]

I really like the look of the electric ballast Naperville. Better than my 250 DE Reeflux w/ HQI ballast.

[Naperville Reef]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8848799#post8848799 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by NewSchool04
I really like the look of the electric ballast Naperville. Better than my 250 DE Reeflux w/ HQI ballast.

i do as well. i switched from phoenix to Reeflux bulbs (with a magnetic ballast) and saw incredible improvement in the coloration of my SPS. problem was i did not love the look of the coloration of the bulb. so i switched to the ice cap ballast with the hope of getting the blue hue i was looking for and i am thrilled with the look.

[NewSchool04]

How long have you been running the electric ballast and what have you seen comparing growth, color, etc?

[Naperville Reef]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8848932#post8848932 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by NewSchool04
How long have you been running the electric ballast and what have you seen comparing growth, color, etc?

the biggest difference in the coloration came when i switched from the DE 150w Phoenix 14k bulb to the DE 150w Reeflux 12k (both being run by a magnetic ballast). after a few months the colors really started to pop. pink mille, purple monti, blue tort, etc.... all noticably brighter and deeper in color. problem was i did not like the overall look of the bulb.

i switched to the electronic ballast and upgraded to a 250w bulb a few days ago with the hope of getting the same coloration of the SPS and getting an overall blue hue from the bulb. the coloration of the bulb is exactly what i was hoping for and the SPS, well, obviously a little too early to tell if the SPS will continue to improve in color.

will post a follow up in a few months with my observations.

[NewSchool04]

sounds good, I'm thinking of switching ballasts but dreading the electric work (wiring) I'll need to do.

[Naperville Reef]

the wiring is simple. i replied to your post in the CMAS forum with an explanation

[zaireguy]

got 10k reeflux coming from ebay I got them for 48 each will let you all know how they do

[KH971]

Bump

[Zoom]

Any pictures of the 12K reeflux 250W on the IC ballast ?

[javatech]

You can get them at http://www.reefexotics.com/reeflux.htm with free shipping if you buy two or more
Im looking at geting them too my bulbs are 1 year old and looking bad

[good one]

that's where i got mine, great customer service and quick response to email. thumbs way up!

[Naperville Reef]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9181327#post9181327 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Zoom
Any pictures of the 12K reeflux 250W on the IC ballast ?

look at the picture above

[good one]

here is mine with 2 x 250w mogul base with a dual magnetic ballast

http://i174.photobucket.com/albums/w100/goodone_2007/TOTM2.jpg

[good one]

here is mine with 2 x 250w mogul base with a dual magnetic ballast. these are 12k reeflux

http://i174.photobucket.com/albums/w100/goodone_2007/TOTM2.jpg

[Zoom]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9188313#post9188313 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Naperville Reef
look at the picture above
Sorry i need SE bulbs.

[UnderwaterExotic]

SO then a good combonation would be Reeflux 12K Bulbs on Coralvue Balalsts is what you are saying?

[jwithem26]

this is with 250 watt 12k reeflux on icecap electronic ballast with 2-110 watt vho super actinics

http://i159.photobucket.com/albums/t152/jwithem/100_1080.jpg