Halides without actinics?

eses · 03-03-2002, 01:04 PM

I've been searching the net about material on halides. I am putting two 250w halides above my 75G ... already discussed in another post awhile ago. What I need to do now is choose bulbs.

From what I've seen I think I would be happy with 10K or 6.5K Iwaski and two 110w VHO actinics.

But, I'm also running into a decent amount of opinions of people who don't use actinics at all, and run just 10K or 20K bulbs. I don't know if this is supposed to be serious, or just cheap skates taking the easier/cheaper route.

Has anyone here done this and been happy with the results? Could you still have anemones and other actinic loving inverts with this kind of light setup?

I'm not really looking to save the extra money, but I figure if I can do well enoug with just the halides and be happy; why not keep it simple.

Thanks

Northman_with_reef · 03-03-2002, 01:10 PM

I keep a 40gal with one 150W HQI lamp from Aqualine, and all the animals in my tank love the light...

Ironreef · 03-03-2002, 01:45 PM

I like to have actinic not so much for the extra light but for /day/night effect. When halides come on they slowely light which is nice not sudden brightness. But when they go off it will go to bright so sudden dark. I prefer everything suttle. But running halides maybe just fine. I would use 10k not the 6.5 if not using any actinic. JMO

eses · 03-03-2002, 06:13 PM

Thanks for your input. I do like having the tank shut down slower, so I think I will then keep my existing actinics as I do have two 32w PC fixtures that would have been left overs. If that doesn't work out for me I can always purchase VHO's later.

Also, when you say the halides come on slowly do they just take awhile to warm up and then its suddenly full output, or do they glow brighter and brighter until they peak? If thats the case, how long does it typically take for yours to come full on?

Ltspd · 03-03-2002, 06:34 PM

When I ran the 6500k Iwasaki's I had to run (2)96w pc actinic's to balance out the (2)250w 6.5k halides to get them to suit my taste. I now run (2)250w 10kk HQI's and (1)150w 10kk HQI and only use (2)40w NO actinic's to balance them to my taste. IMO you still need some actinic's with the 10kk's, but not as much as with the Iwasaki's. I also like the hour before and after my haldies as a blue time.

Halides take about 5 minutes to come up to full color and intensity.

R1 · 03-06-2002, 12:41 PM

I'm running a 250w 65k Iwasaki with four 3' 95w super actinic. I was running a 10k with two 50\50 and two actinicc. I would say go with the 65k and the actinic it looks much better. I will try to post a pic of the 65k set up. I don't know if it will work.

Ironreef · 03-07-2002, 09:03 PM

depends on the 10k. IMO there a big diff between 10k =color AB bulbs have almost same par but more light in the 400-500 range

eses · 03-14-2002, 11:34 AM

I didn't want to start a whole new thread for this, so I figured I would just post a quick update for anyone who cares.

I received my 250w ballast and bulbs yesterday, and was able to install them in the canopy. My first opinion is, dang, MH lights are HUGE. I wasn't expecting them to be so large, but it makes sense. The mogul socket is 4" deep, which was almost bad since I have a 8" hood. The lights are a bit above 4" from the water. I do have eggcrate keeping the fish from jumping into the lights.

Intense. These lights are far more intense than any VHO/PC setup I've seen of similar wattage. I bought 12,000K bulbs to start and I think I am happy with them. They are blue, almost bluer than what I was running before (10,000k+actinic PC's) but not overly blue.

I only ran them 3 hours yesterday, but with the single 5" fan in my hood they didn't appear to overheat the hood at all..it actually felt cooler inside than it did after 3 hours of running my PC's with the same fan.

Everything looks 10 times better, the corlas immediatly perked up. Some mushrooms I've had for ever that don't really open really opened up after only 2 hours. My green "daisy" pollups were much fatter looking .. and it was much like flicking a on switch on the Xenia. It stretched out up towards the light as if the tank hasn't had any light on it for the last several months.

This is the first "miracle" upgrade I've seen in reefing yet. I wasn't expecting any instant satisfaction from it. I knew my corals would appreciate it more, but I didn't realize how quickly and how much.

Anyway, thats all I had to say, and in my opinion MH are now on the list of required items to have on your reef tank.

03-03-2002, 01:04 PM	#1
eses Council Join Date: Nov 2000 Location: Seattle Posts: 270	Halides without actinics? I've been searching the net about material on halides. I am putting two 250w halides above my 75G ... already discussed in another post awhile ago. What I need to do now is choose bulbs. From what I've seen I think I would be happy with 10K or 6.5K Iwaski and two 110w VHO actinics. But, I'm also running into a decent amount of opinions of people who don't use actinics at all, and run just 10K or 20K bulbs. I don't know if this is supposed to be serious, or just cheap skates taking the easier/cheaper route. Has anyone here done this and been happy with the results? Could you still have anemones and other actinic loving inverts with this kind of light setup? I'm not really looking to save the extra money, but I figure if I can do well enoug with just the halides and be happy; why not keep it simple. Thanks

03-03-2002, 01:10 PM	#2
Northman_with_reef Stonehammer Productions ™ Join Date: Dec 2001 Location: Norway(Scandinavia) Posts: 461	I keep a 40gal with one 150W HQI lamp from Aqualine, and all the animals in my tank love the light... __________________ They said aquariums would be relaxing......(yeah right) Saltvannsforum My LFS

03-03-2002, 06:34 PM	#5
Ltspd Governor Join Date: Aug 2000 Location: Arden, NC USA Posts: 2,767	When I ran the 6500k Iwasaki's I had to run (2)96w pc actinic's to balance out the (2)250w 6.5k halides to get them to suit my taste. I now run (2)250w 10kk HQI's and (1)150w 10kk HQI and only use (2)40w NO actinic's to balance them to my taste. IMO you still need some actinic's with the 10kk's, but not as much as with the Iwasaki's. I also like the hour before and after my haldies as a blue time. Halides take about 5 minutes to come up to full color and intensity. __________________ Paul C Timing has an awful lot to do with the outcome of a rain dance.

03-14-2002, 11:34 AM	#8
eses Council Join Date: Nov 2000 Location: Seattle Posts: 270	Update. I didn't want to start a whole new thread for this, so I figured I would just post a quick update for anyone who cares. I received my 250w ballast and bulbs yesterday, and was able to install them in the canopy. My first opinion is, dang, MH lights are HUGE. I wasn't expecting them to be so large, but it makes sense. The mogul socket is 4" deep, which was almost bad since I have a 8" hood. The lights are a bit above 4" from the water. I do have eggcrate keeping the fish from jumping into the lights. Intense. These lights are far more intense than any VHO/PC setup I've seen of similar wattage. I bought 12,000K bulbs to start and I think I am happy with them. They are blue, almost bluer than what I was running before (10,000k+actinic PC's) but not overly blue. I only ran them 3 hours yesterday, but with the single 5" fan in my hood they didn't appear to overheat the hood at all..it actually felt cooler inside than it did after 3 hours of running my PC's with the same fan. Everything looks 10 times better, the corlas immediatly perked up. Some mushrooms I've had for ever that don't really open really opened up after only 2 hours. My green "daisy" pollups were much fatter looking .. and it was much like flicking a on switch on the Xenia. It stretched out up towards the light as if the tank hasn't had any light on it for the last several months. This is the first "miracle" upgrade I've seen in reefing yet. I wasn't expecting any instant satisfaction from it. I knew my corals would appreciate it more, but I didn't realize how quickly and how much. Anyway, thats all I had to say, and in my opinion MH are now on the list of required items to have on your reef tank.

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03-03-2002, 01:45 PM	#3
Ironreef Governor Join Date: Aug 2000 Location: Pacific WA Posts: 1,220	I like to have actinic not so much for the extra light but for /day/night effect. When halides come on they slowely light which is nice not sudden brightness. But when they go off it will go to bright so sudden dark. I prefer everything suttle. But running halides maybe just fine. I would use 10k not the 6.5 if not using any actinic. JMO

03-03-2002, 06:13 PM	#4
eses Council Join Date: Nov 2000 Location: Seattle Posts: 270	Thanks for your input. I do like having the tank shut down slower, so I think I will then keep my existing actinics as I do have two 32w PC fixtures that would have been left overs. If that doesn't work out for me I can always purchase VHO's later. Also, when you say the halides come on slowly do they just take awhile to warm up and then its suddenly full output, or do they glow brighter and brighter until they peak? If thats the case, how long does it typically take for yours to come full on?

03-06-2002, 12:41 PM	#6
R1 Citizen Join Date: Jul 2000 Location: Dothan, Al Posts: 136	I'm running a 250w 65k Iwasaki with four 3' 95w super actinic. I was running a 10k with two 50\50 and two actinicc. I would say go with the 65k and the actinic it looks much better. I will try to post a pic of the 65k set up. I don't know if it will work.

03-07-2002, 09:03 PM	#7
Ironreef Governor Join Date: Aug 2000 Location: Pacific WA Posts: 1,220	depends on the 10k. IMO there a big diff between 10k =color AB bulbs have almost same par but more light in the 400-500 range

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