Giesemann Spectra for my 6 ft tank?

[A. grandis]

14K Phoenix is a DE bulb that is as good as any - it is the most used DE bulb. It needs M80 ballast just like the Radium 20K does. MegaChrome 21 is a good bulb too - this bulb needs a M80 ballast too on DE or SE and will look different on magnetic or electronic. The MegaChrome is a bit bluer than 14k Phoenix to me, but I would use it in a heartbeat if the 14k Phoenix ever went away (they did actually when LED were though to be an answer, and then they came back by popular demand when many folks changed back to MH).

FWIW, the MegaChrome 12.5 is a great bulb if you have some actinic bulbs to get awesome growth and pop, but it might be too white/yellow on it's own. I think that it is only a matter of time before 10K and actinics come back in - as people realize how powerful and effective 14-20K MH are and they have T5s anyway, they will naturally take this next step.

If you are posting about these, please include the ballast that your run so that people can do a good comparison.

Could you please explain what does "M80" stands for?
Also, could you please make a list of the ballasts we have today in the market for respective bulbs available?
I'm kinda confused with the terms and what site to trust.
Thanks,
Grandis.

 

[A. grandis]

Just to clear things up, the 72" Giesemann Spectra does indeed use 3 SE bulbs. Let me know if you need a price and/or custom color... white etc.

I tried to find that out, but couldn't. Searched even the Giesemann site. Maybe I went to the wrong sites.
Thanks for confirming that!
Grandis.

 

[mcarroll]

If you give yourself a few days to get used to the new 'HQI look", I think you'll be hooked.

Assuming it's a pretty good rendition of the magnetic HQI ballast, it's a really really nice color. I think the bluer look of low-power loses the perfect blend of high-power. But I'm biased!

 

[10Seconds]

The "M80" term gets thrown around a lot when discussing ballasts. But I cant find one sold currently with that description.

 

[A. grandis]

The "M80" term gets thrown around a lot when discussing ballasts. But I cant find one sold currently with that description.

Yes, that's why... It's hard to understand.
Grandis.

 

[rtparty]

The "M80" term gets thrown around a lot when discussing ballasts. But I cant find one sold currently with that description.

https://hamiltontechnology.com/index.php?route=product/product&product_id=180&search=Ballast&page=5

 

[A. grandis]

https://hamiltontechnology.com/index.php?route=product/product&product_id=180&search=Ballast&page=5

Thanks very much, rtparty!
I've seen that page before.
So M80 is nothing more than a magnetic ballast?
How come some people use the expression "Electronic M80 ballast", or " M80 ballast, either electronic or magnetic"?
More questions:
Is "pulse start" related to SE only? What does that mean?
Grandis.

 

[A. grandis]

Just got that one:

https://www.pegasuslighting.com/lc-...-metal-halide-lamps-whats-the-difference.html
Grandis.

 

[A. grandis]

Found something interesting! This page was posted before:

"250w specs are as follows:

Lamp Wattage: 270w

Ballast Spec: ANSI Code M80 Magnet HQI

M80 Magnetic Wattage: 330w

Electronic 250w Setting: 245w

Electronic 250w “HQI” or Super Lumens: 300w

Average Lamp Life: 9-10 months @ 8hrs/day"

https://premiumaquatics.com/articles/radium
I think it is related specifically to magnetic ballasts, yes. More precisely to indicate magnetic wattage.
Living and learning...
Grandis.

 

[newbreefer316]

I run a Giesemann Spectra with luxcore 250 selectable turned to super lumen with 21k mega chrome bulbs, 4 T5 Giesemann super actinic and 2 Reefbrite XHO blue

I'm getting ready to take the dive into an SPS tank and have been reading up on the different lighting options and was just on the internet looking up options for MH/T5/LED combos. Do you have a picture of your fixture and how you have XHO's mounted?

 

[andrew james]

I’m traveling and having a hard time finding the image with my phone. There is a photo in my tank thread you can see the light. I didn’t mention it here but I also have an AI hydra 26hd mounted in the middle just for good measure. I didn’t really mount the leds because I need more light but rather because sometimes I like the extra control and look. https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/heres-how-i-spend-all-my-free-time-reefer-425xl.278013/page-3

 

[Bronx19]

I have never owned a MH, but tempted. How much power does a 48" unit running 250w bulbs consume? How bad is the heat, if you're in a warm climate where the water sits at 77 ambient are you doomed to a chiller?

 

[rockskimmerflow]

I have never owned a MH, but tempted. How much power does a 48" unit running 250w bulbs consume? How bad is the heat, if you're in a warm climate where the water sits at 77 ambient are you doomed to a chiller?

A lot of factors that are not specified in your question, but to give you a ball park based on some reasonable assumptions - let's say you're running 2 x 250w Radium SE bulbs in a 48inch fixture with no supplemental lighting. Worst case scenario in terms of power usage you'll be running the Magnetic HQI ballasts and pulling roughly 320w per bulb. So perhaps 640w total. Of that total wattage I'd expect at least 300-400w or so to be radiated into the tank through infrared, convective heating, etc. If you run a good sized fan on a temp controller you might be able to keep up through evaporative cooling and skip the chiller. I made it work on a 65 gallon tank with 750 watts combined metal halide, t5ho, and led supplements using only a honeywell 15" Turboforce fan on a temp controller. Likely you will need a chiller if you can't exhaust enough of the humid air depending on your setup.

If you want the most aesthetic, realistic sunlight look for your reef tank than you absolutely can't go wrong with a Metal halide system. It's just all about the planning and execution. I'd do some research into your options and see what works for you. If you really have a hang up about the chiller a 48inch Sunpower 6x54w T5HO will be the ticket for plug and play success. A 6 bulb T5 will only add half as much heat as the 2x250w system you asked about, and the T5 would likely be pretty close to the halides in terms of overall PAR/coverage. The primary difference would be the look of the tank. You could grow virtually any light demanding coral with either setup.

 

[Bronx19]

Thanks for that. I'm currently running a ATI 6x24 on a little tank. I'm tossing up between Orphek and Halide/T5 combo. It sounds like the heat would be a deal breaker, I just can't bring myself to add a chiller plus heat the dining room up. I need silent operation and good coverage, my ATI fans make a fair bit of noise on 7.5V. As much as LED give me the *****, it might have to be.

 

[mcarroll]

If you're condsidering LED – go that way. Just don't go too high in the market so that you feel limited in the number of units you can afford. Emitters = coverage, so you don't want to skimp on fixtures.

Do you know how many Orphek's are recommended for a tank with your dimensions?

 

[Bronx19]

I really do want MH though. Its a real performance vs practicality issue. I have located a Infiniti 2x150w, 4x54w fixture, but everyone says you need 25ow halides for SPS @ 18". This fixture would draw about the same amount of power as LED and heat wouldn't be an issue, but would it be enough without bolting on Kessils.

 

[A. grandis]

I really do want MH though. Its a real performance vs practicality issue. I have located a Infiniti 2x150w, 4x54w fixture, but everyone says you need 25ow halides for SPS @ 18". This fixture would draw about the same amount of power as LED and heat wouldn't be an issue, but would it be enough without bolting on Kessils.

I would get a Spectra.
I've been searching for a while and still didn't see anything better than Giesemann Spectra.
It's the very best we could offer. No need LEDs. Halide and T5s for the best you can have.
Luxcore is still ok with the Spectra for most bulbs.
Grandis.

 

[rtparty]

I really do want MH though. Its a real performance vs practicality issue. I have located a Infiniti 2x150w, 4x54w fixture, but everyone says you need 25ow halides for SPS @ 18". This fixture would draw about the same amount of power as LED and heat wouldn't be an issue, but would it be enough without bolting on Kessils.

150w will be plenty for SPS at 18". Many people over power their lighting. Get some Phoenix bulbs and you're set

 

[A. grandis]

150w will be plenty for SPS at 18". Many people over power their lighting. Get some Phoenix bulbs and you're set

Agreed! To tell the truth MH should be used for tanks 24"+.
A T5s only fixture would be also great for a 18" deep tank.
I just like the Spectra too much! Hehe!
One of the reasons is because of Radium bulbs. They don't make DE Radiums.
Grandis.