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MH bulbs question
- Thread starter oscar
- Start date
MH bulbs are a very personal choice. You'll find that you will need to balance the light that can be use by the corals or plants against how you want to view them. Since you mention "shrooms & zoos", if you don't have SPS or other light loving corals, you can go with 20,000K MH bulbs. The light they give is a lot more blue.
The other thing people do is to supplement the MHs with actinic bulbs, either VHO, PC, or T5's.
Since you need to replace the MH bulbs anyway, I;d get the 20,000 K bulbs and see how you like them. It you still want more blue, then add actinics
The other thing people do is to supplement the MHs with actinic bulbs, either VHO, PC, or T5's.
Since you need to replace the MH bulbs anyway, I;d get the 20,000 K bulbs and see how you like them. It you still want more blue, then add actinics
steve68 said:if u want color but don't care about growth 20k is ur bulb
Thats me...
10k growth, 14k growth and colors , 20k colors...
oscar said:thanks dave. i think i'll try the 20k bulbs. i forgot to mention my fixture has actinics also. i'm just hoping it's not too much blue with the 20k & the actinics. ho w bout as far as brands go, whats your opinion on that?
If you think the 20Ks are too blue for your tastes, you can always soften it a bit by putting 10000K bulbs in place of the actinics. I have used a different brand of bulb every time I replaced the bulbs on my fixture. I didn't find any problems as such, but they do vary a little in color between manufactures.
My though is to buy a name brand bulb that is at a moderate price, and avoid the "brand X" bulbs. So far I've used Aqualine bulbs, Hamilton bulbs, and XM bulbes, and I didn't see too much difference. I have been using 10000K and 15000K bulbs. I think I'm going to go with 20000K bulbs the next time around.
Which reminds me. I'm about due to replace my MHs.
You may want to look into the phoenix 14k bulbs if 20k bulbs end up too blue for you. They are bluer than the xm bulb you are currently using, but also give off more par to boot.
When I lived out west one of the lfs that also did maintenance would sell used bulbs for cheap. You might find a store near you that does the same to try out a 20k bulb. (unless someone is willing to lend when to you that is)
When I lived out west one of the lfs that also did maintenance would sell used bulbs for cheap. You might find a store near you that does the same to try out a 20k bulb. (unless someone is willing to lend when to you that is)