HQI Replacement Bulbs

Discussion in 'Metal Halide Aquarium Lighting' started by superclouds, Mar 29, 2008.

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  1. superclouds

    superclouds Flamingo Tongue

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    Northern Michigan
    So a few months ago I got this, 48" 760W Metal Halide System (Electronic Version) - 504023 and ended up replacing both MH ballasts with IceCap 250 Watt Electronic Metal Halide/ HQI Ballast (Saltwater Aquarium Supplies > Lighting > Accessories > Ballasts > Metal Halide > 250 Watt > Electronic ).

    Now I want to replace the MH bulbs as they look yellow and I dont think my corals are doing as well as they should be. What should I get for a rating and what are some good brand names? I have mixed LPS and SPS and i'm leaning more towards SPS as time goes on. I want things to grow fast and have good color. Any opinions are welcome please.
     
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  3. lunatik_69

    lunatik_69 Giant Squid

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    The K-rating of the bulb is a personal preference(imo) I like the 14000k bulb myself, not to white or blue, in the middle. There are alot of good names out there, again thats a personal preference, but here are some; Agualine, Hamilton, Ocean, Icecap(only seen 400w), Current, Ushio, XM, SPS(tangster sells these) to name a few. Luna
     
  4. reef_guru

    reef_guru Humpback Whale

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    reeflux bulbs are the best ive used so far the par ratings are higher than most with a color range that suits the corals, i use 12k
     
  5. superclouds

    superclouds Flamingo Tongue

    Joined:
    May 5, 2007
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    Location:
    Northern Michigan