Radiums vs. Non Radiums.

[roscoe]

I just replaced my 400w lamps to Radiums. I love this bulb! I have them under large Lumenbright reflectors driven by IC ballast over a 72''x36''x24'' DT 17'' from water surface. I notice the corals (SPS) on the bottom of the tank colored up even better than before. To me it isn't too blue at all. Just a perfect for me.

 

[Ike]

I just replaced my 400w lamps to Radiums. I love this bulb! I have them under large Lumenbright reflectors driven by IC ballast over a 72''x36''x24'' DT 17'' from water surface. I notice the corals (SPS) on the bottom of the tank colored up even better than before. To me it isn't too blue at all. Just a perfect for me.

The 400w are less blue when driven with a 400w ballast because they're being overdriven... They're really only supposed to be driven by 360watts, so be aware that you'll need to replace the 400w radiums more often. Most people that use them suggest new bulbs every 6 months.

 

[Blackhawk Fan]

Another option for the 400w Radium is get a dimmable ballast and a kill-a-watt. Then you can drive them at 360w.

 

[KingRicky]

Ricky why are you wanting to change? As you know I got rid of mine to change over to T5s and I get better color with T5s than I did with radiums. The growth slowed on SPS but picked up on LPS/zoas.Im okay with that due to the cooler temp my tank runs.
That is going to be a biggie also your tank is going to run warmer and your going to have to find away to keep it cool. I think you run 4 T5s? I would add 2 more and run 5 blue+ and 1 white or a fiji purple. IMO I would I would stick with the T5s and just change bulbs. You can change all your bulbs and add 2 more for just about the same that your going to spend on 2 radium bulbs alone

I like the look of Paul's tank with the Radiums that you sold him. I am just exploring the option. I am getting good color and growth with the exception of on piece that I got from Paul. In his tank it was a vibrant green and in my tank it is brown.

 

[acrosps]

The 400 watt radium bulb works great for me . I have been using them with the pfo ballast and 2 uri vhos.

 

[TonyB]

The Radiums are too blue for may tastes. But for those that want the blue look then the Radium is hard to beat. I have tried/tested many lamps over the years and I continue to stick with the Reeflux 12k. This past weekend I tested the 12k reeflux and the Radium on a 250w dimmable CV ballast overdriven. The par was very close to the same. The only difference was the apparent color and the Reeflux looked brighter. So don't be fooled that the radium lamp looks dim because more than likely its producing more par than imagined especially for a 20k. So to the OP if your looking for a real 20k blue looking tank where everything seems to pop in color then look into the Radium and make sure you run it on a recommended ballast.

That's not a fair comparison. Your test is flawed because you were underdriving the radium. To get the proper output, you must fire it on an M80 like it was designed for. I did the same test comparing 12k/CV to a 20k Radium/M80. The 12k put got only 180 PAR at the bottom of a 24'' tank and the Radium was well over 260 PAR. If you underdrive the radium it will be more blue and have drastically less PAR. That's why I switched over to the Radium setup. The PAR on the 12k stunk. The actual color on the properly driven Radium is very close to the color of the Reeflux 12k.

 

[stuckey_t]

I have radium 250's run on both icecap electronic ballasts and blueline electronics and like the color of both. reminds me of a t5 lit tank...here is a good representative shot. kinda blue but i lke blue

 

[stuckey_t]

also forgot to add. growth on the bottom of the tank is good. 24" tall from tank lip to bottom. lights are about 8" off the water....

 

[shaggy420]

Radiums are nice but currently most of my stuff is double ended. I like the phoenix has anyone used the newer mogal phoenix that is around? just wondering

i have a mogul based phoenix in the middle of my tank. it creates almost as much par through the center brace as my phoenix hqi's do that are on either side of it. with the center brace i am getting around 550-600 par near the top of the rock structure and around 350-400 at the sand bed(21in tall tank). the hqis, without having to go through the center brace put out around 700-750 par at the top of the rock and around 450 on the sand bed.
the closest rock is about 6-8 inches below the surface.
lumen max elite reflectors and lumatek e-ballasts, 250w

 

[SPS Addict]

Ive always ran my 400w Radium off a Galaxy ballast. Am I missing out that im not running them on an M80?

Personally id never run a radium bulb alone, I love the color that I get when I add some ATI Blue Plus along with the Radiums, great combo!

 

[knockout]

yes the cost is justified IMO. i use nothing but 250 and 400 radium SE bulb and i love them. never had a problem and been suing them for nearly 8 years now. after trying every bulb and balast combo i could think of these are the bulbs i chose to stick with.

which ballasts are you using?

 

[EliteReefs]

which ballasts are you using?

magnetic pulse start ballast. they run and work great on electronics but it was not the intension and i'm not a fan of the results when you use them

 

[SPStoner]

I have tried many, many bulbs on the market, including Reeflux ( nice bulb WHEN they work), Helios ( awesome, but VERY blue), Aquaconnect ( great bulbs but very pricey), Giessemann (pricey) XM, Phoenix, and many others. IMO, the Radiums are the best 400 watt mogul bulb out there. They are consistent, provide a nice color and growth, and are readily available. I keep trying other bulbs, to see if I can find something better, but always end up back with Radiums.


HTH