MH color temp and brand

[EVO]

Hello... I have been running my 2x150w 20000K double ended MH lights for about a year a 3 months or so. I think the bulb will probably need replacement soon. My question is what is the ideal color temp for reef tanks and any better or wrose experience with brands of bulbs for double ended 150W HQI. Thanks ya'll!

 

[ChrisRD]

IMO there's really no "ideal" temp - a lot of it is preference. IME the full spectrum daylight type lamps like 6500K or 10000K tend to produce better growth rates but the bluer lamps can be more pleasing to look at and bring out different colors in some corals.

If you prefer the bluish look and want something brighter than what you have, look into the 14000K Phoenix 150 watt DEs. Just be sure to acclimate your corals with some window screen or something similar as the output of those lamps will be significantly higher than any 20000K 150 watt DE currently available.

 

[Anonymous]

Also, generally, the higher the temp, the shorter the lifespan of the bulb. Your 20k bulbs are probably well overdue to be replaced. Their spectrum shifts as they age.

 

[Unarce]

Not to makes things more complicated, but choosing the right bulb for your ballast is important, too. Not just in terms of performance, but with safety, too.

 

[EVO]

Okay... I got Ushio 14,000K lamps. WHOA... these are so much brighter then the old ones... those came with the system and are stamped Odyssa 20,000K. I guess the loss in brightness is gradual and I didn't really notice it. What I notice is these have a slight yellow tint... makes the water look slightly yellow. Okay I put carbon in sump to see maybe I have yellow water. Otherwise the corals are instantly happier... especially the hard corals. So... I had this thought... perhaps one could rig up a system to run 20,000K lamps for 10 hours and another set of 10,000K to come on for 4 or 5 hours at noon? I really liked the blue color of the 20,000Ks but seems the corals like the slightly yellow tint.