MH 101

Neal359 · 05-27-2001, 10:03 PM

i am seting up my 72 bow fromnt in about 2 weeks shortaly after i will be puting 2 250 mh on the tank and need some good info on them i have fond a few placeses that look like thee have good pricec (thanks for the help) by their are just so many difrent 250 wat bulbs i know some are more blue and some are more yellow i have a set of antic no lights right now and what are the difrenses between Iwasaki HQI and, normal balests that can run both is their some typ of advantige to having HQI or Iwasaki the HQI look to be much more $$$ and any good advice with them thanks for the help

Aragorn · 05-28-2001, 09:19 AM

Well,
I'll throw in a couple of cents. By no stretch of the imagination am I an expert in Lighting. However, I will share w/ you some of my thoughts and experiences.
I use Iwasaki 6500K 250watt MH bulbs exclusively. They work well for me, my inverts like it(at least that's what they've told me [img]/ubb/biggrin.gif[/img] ), and the color is just fine. I have a theory regarding the 6500K bulb. You see, in one of the books I'm reading, "The Ecology of Indonesian Seas", the author states that at a depth of up to 3 meters, light is "shifted" more toward the yellow than blue. Corals in this habitat have Zooxanthellae and pigments to take advantage of that.
That's why I believe the 6500K seems to do better for inverts although some folks have success w/ 10000K or higher.
Anyway, as far as ballasts... I use both Icecap and the Blueline E-Ballast. As much as I hate to say it(and it may be just a bad unit), I have had more problems w/ the Icecap than the Blueline. 2 days out of 10, my Icecap will not "fire" my MH bulb. My Blueline's fire everytime. With the Blueline, you can also use different bulbs and they're more energy efficient. They do give off RF though. I done. HTH

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One Ring to rule them all. One Ring to find them. One Ring to bring them all, and in The Darkness bind them.

Tahoereefs.com

**Ninong** · 05-28-2001, 09:51 AM

OK, time to move to the Lighting forum. [img]/ubb/wink.gif[/img]

blue · 05-28-2001, 08:55 PM

If it were my tank i wouldnt waste my money on HQI. If you are wanting to have SPS and clams mostly i would get 400watt halides and use iwaski bulbs this will be much more brighter then HQI and is like 2 dollars more then the 250's.
Im putting dual 400's on my 80. JME/JMO

[img]/ubb/flames.gif[/img]Blue[img]/ubb/flames.gif[/img]

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Think befor you speak or dont speak at all!!!

05-27-2001, 10:03 PM	#1
Neal359 Mayor Join Date: Dec 2000 Location: richmond Posts: 558	MH 101 i am seting up my 72 bow fromnt in about 2 weeks shortaly after i will be puting 2 250 mh on the tank and need some good info on them i have fond a few placeses that look like thee have good pricec (thanks for the help) by their are just so many difrent 250 wat bulbs i know some are more blue and some are more yellow i have a set of antic no lights right now and what are the difrenses between Iwasaki HQI and, normal balests that can run both is their some typ of advantige to having HQI or Iwasaki the HQI look to be much more $$$ and any good advice with them thanks for the help

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05-28-2001, 09:19 AM	#2
Aragorn Governor Join Date: Oct 2000 Location: Pine Grove, CA USA Posts: 2,064	Well, I'll throw in a couple of cents. By no stretch of the imagination am I an expert in Lighting. However, I will share w/ you some of my thoughts and experiences. I use Iwasaki 6500K 250watt MH bulbs exclusively. They work well for me, my inverts like it(at least that's what they've told me [img]/ubb/biggrin.gif[/img] ), and the color is just fine. I have a theory regarding the 6500K bulb. You see, in one of the books I'm reading, "The Ecology of Indonesian Seas", the author states that at a depth of up to 3 meters, light is "shifted" more toward the yellow than blue. Corals in this habitat have Zooxanthellae and pigments to take advantage of that. That's why I believe the 6500K seems to do better for inverts although some folks have success w/ 10000K or higher. Anyway, as far as ballasts... I use both Icecap and the Blueline E-Ballast. As much as I hate to say it(and it may be just a bad unit), I have had more problems w/ the Icecap than the Blueline. 2 days out of 10, my Icecap will not "fire" my MH bulb. My Blueline's fire everytime. With the Blueline, you can also use different bulbs and they're more energy efficient. They do give off RF though. I done. HTH ------------------ One Ring to rule them all. One Ring to find them. One Ring to bring them all, and in The Darkness bind them. Tahoereefs.com

05-28-2001, 09:51 AM	#3
Ninong Moderator Join Date: Jun 2000 Location: Louisiana Posts: 20,306	OK, time to move to the Lighting forum. [img]/ubb/wink.gif[/img]

05-28-2001, 08:55 PM	#4
blue Mayor Join Date: Sep 2000 Location: Denton,TX,USA Posts: 597	If it were my tank i wouldnt waste my money on HQI. If you are wanting to have SPS and clams mostly i would get 400watt halides and use iwaski bulbs this will be much more brighter then HQI and is like 2 dollars more then the 250's. Im putting dual 400's on my 80. JME/JMO [img]/ubb/flames.gif[/img]Blue[img]/ubb/flames.gif[/img] ------------------ Think befor you speak or dont speak at all!!!

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