Time to replace bulbs... So I'm leaning towards Radium 20's or XM 20's.. Which do you guys perfer out of the two? Or which other brands you like in a SE 250? Perfer something higher K.. Not a fan of 10k
Which bulb?
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it's a dual 250 hqi ballast..
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I have the 20k xm's and have great growth but they are really blue hard to get pics with them everytime I put pics on here everyone says take a pic without the actinics on.. I have to let them know I don't have the actinics on in the pic.. but a great bulb IMHO
Anyone else?
Radiums out perform the xms they just dont las as long. I have been running radiums for years and I loved them. the xm bulbs just seem dim to me. Check out my par results on the bottom link it should help you make your decision these results were on a 30" tank. http://www.samsreef.com">www.samsreef.com</a>
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30" tank and bulbs 12" above water?! Choice is made!!
In my experience radiums totally dominated the xm's. Radiums are a high end german bulbs. Xm's are chinese budget bulbs.This is just my opinion I have changed bulbs over and over for years and my two favorites are phoenix 14k's and radiums. If you compare color spectrums on sanjays website they are almost the same bulb with the exception of the spike in the red spectrum.
Par values for the SI 400W are higher when using a XM over Radium when using M135 abllast. Nothing against Radium. Just because something is made in Germany does not mean it's better, that's an advertising/marketing tool....just like shamwow...it too is made in Germany and it's crap.
Check out Sanjays website for bulb performance in the 400w 20K and you'll see what bulb stands out above the rest on M135. Again Radium is a great bulb and you can not go wrong with it. Both bulbs need to be fired on their proper ballasts for maximum performance. Run the Radium on HQI and it will outperform XM but at the cost of bulb life.
Check out Sanjays website for bulb performance in the 400w 20K and you'll see what bulb stands out above the rest on M135. Again Radium is a great bulb and you can not go wrong with it. Both bulbs need to be fired on their proper ballasts for maximum performance. Run the Radium on HQI and it will outperform XM but at the cost of bulb life.
I could care less where something is made as long as it works I have tried almost every bulb on the market over the last 8 years. I only go off my personal results with my par readings and on my setups xm's only out performed the others in the 10k category. as far as 10k xm's I dont think there is a better bulb. I have my own par meter and dozens of bulbs HQI,mogul, all wattages and all ballast types I played with lighting for a while and I still have not found the 1 bulb that truely makes me happy. Like I said before this is only my opinion and Ash I hope it helps you in your decision.
Charlie I really liked the color of your helios. Joe clark has had great sucess with them, I believe.
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I run helios 20k 400 watt on hqi ballast and they are the best that I have run by far. I do not know how they perform on the 250 watt range but may just as nice not sure. Like mentioned above Sanjay sight is nice to determine par for different combos. The color on these 20k helios is the perfect color for my taste.
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https://www.customaquatic.com/estore/control/search">:up:https://www.customaquatic.com/estore/control/search</a>
Here is where I got mine .I called them before ordering to check stock and they were very nice and helpful
Here is where I got mine .I called them before ordering to check stock and they were very nice and helpful
As far as the thread jack I'm not sweating it.. Good to see a healthy debate that doesn't turn ugly! Well I'm about to pull the trigger and order the radium before I get ready to go see Tool!
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