Anyone running XM 20K?

[JRod]

Have XM 10k's now and am going to be upgrading the tank so was thinking about new bulbs. Looking to make the colors on the corals "pop" a bit more.

Am running 2x250W XM 10k with 3x110 VHO Super atinics.

The XM's are run off of a PFO ballast. The Radiums are step for me in the price and I don't have an HQI ballast to drive them and the life from what I read is short, so...

Who is running XM 20K and what is your opinions on them.

 

[Tonyscoots84]

they def. will make the colors pop.. but ur par will suck... i think from what i read its one of the lowest par bulbs out... if you mixed it in between a couple 10 k xm's then u got urself a sweet light setup...

 

[loismustdie]

I had 2 10,000k and 2 20,000k mix set up. The look was amazing. I even removed my VHO set up (you guys wouldn't believe how much that saves on electricity). PAR did leave something to be desired, but I still had good growth and a really nice look. How many MH lights wil you be running?

 

[cali_reef]

How many MH lights wil you be running?

Am running 2x250W XM 10k with 3x110 VHO Super atinics.

I run two 250w XM10K with dual PFO HQI ballast, they are whiter than on normal ballast I had before. I also have one on Icecap ballast and it run more blue. IMO and IME XM10K is the best bulb in terms of PAR and cost, color is not bad if you add 220W of actinic(I am only using 110W+75W on my tank for few hours a day). 20K are just too dim as the main MH in a tank.

StingNYC tried XM 20K's and he might still have those bulbs, try PMing him if you want to see the color for your self.

 

[JRod]

Thanks for the info guys.

Chris - Will definately be running 3 (looking towards 180) and maybe fit in four if I can. How did you have your lights in the canopy, staggered? one and one, etc.

The setup I have now just don't bring out the Blues in the corals. The greens look good though.

Even thinking of the 20k with the Actinic White VHO's to brighten it up.

Cali- Will drop Sting a line.

 

[Pedro]

I tried the xm 20k's and returned them immediately. They are way too dim. If you are planning on mixing them, then that's another story. You can also overdrive them with hqi and get them brighter. For me, 20k radiums are still my favorite.

 

[stingnyc]

I tried NYPDFrogman's XM 20k's on an HQI ballast and they are dim as hell! My favorite combo is XM 10k's on an Icecap Ballast with URI T5's atinic supplements. You can stop by and check them out for yourself.

 

[loismustdie]

cali, I got that part, but was wondering if he planned to run more:

Chris - Will definately be running 3 (looking towards 180) and maybe fit in four if I can. How did you have your lights in the canopy, staggered? one and one, etc.

Sometimes questions are asked not because it wasn't read, but because I'm looking for what they may be planning.
Over a 180, I was running 4. Originally I staggered them. Then I put the 2 10,000k in the middle and the 2 20,000k on the ends. I liked the look of the second arangement better. Also, I set the timers so the each bulb turned on a half hour after the other and turned off in the same sequence. I liked this set up a lot.
Currently, I'm now running 3 250's because I switched from spiders to luminarcs. I changed to 2 XM 15,000k on the ends, which are still slightly blue, but more in the white and 1 10,000k in the middle.
I'm running a 180 as well. I do have the 20,000k bulbs if you would like to see the colors and arrangements. You can easily fit 4 bulbs, even if you use the luminarc minis, but I believe that may be overkill.

 

[pnoyreefer]

joe,

how old is your XM? I am looking to change my 14k setup to XM so if you are getting rid of the bulbs let me know and how old I will buy them .. thanks


steve

 

[reefman]

i run 400w 20k with pfo in a 92g. i didnt think it was that dim. but thats a matter of relativity. i never care for that bright a lighting. grow seems to be fine.

 

[lazyreefer]

i have a 250 20K XM over my 29 gallon now. Love the color but it was really dimm compared to 10K XM. The growth is def. less than 10K XM.

 

[JRod]

Steve - The bulbs need to be replaced in September, so they are old.

Chris - Do you get patches of blue and white from the bulbs or do the colors blend?

Pedro - Have a PFO ballasts now and don't want to spend the cash on an HQI, which is truely the best way to run Radium. Do like the Radium look but need to go with what I have now.

A blend looks like the way I will go, if anything I will add some white vho is brighten up.

Gentlemen, thank you all for your help.

Joe

 

[loismustdie]

When I had the bulbs staggered, at the surface it had a patchy appearance, but by the time the light hit the coral, it was well mixed. When I put the 20's on the outside and the 10's in the middle, it gave a really nice contrasting look.
IME/IMO, XM's look best with IC ballasts. I've never seen the 20's ran under PFO ballasts, so I really can't say exactly how it would look or how good it would be.

 

[henrystyle]

Anyone know what other 250w 20k SE mh works good with a hqi ballast?
I have a radium now which is excellent but, I'm looking to experiment with another bulb come change time.