acording to the article you posted he is using 3X400W metal halide lamps in Pacific Garden Supply’s Lumen Arc III which are SE fixtures that he rates very high as it has adjustable bulb positioning and other very nice qualities.. Maybe you should read the articles befor you post them :razz: and he is running 400watt Ushios.

Oh, and he also uses IceCap LED strips for his actinic.

Steve

:lol: Burn! You might want read the rest of the article for yourself.


"3X400W metal halide lamps in Pacific Garden Supply’s Lumen Arc III reflectors were my initial choice... More recent changes made to the lighting involve changing the reflectors to Sunlight Supply Lumen Max III reflectors."

http://reefkeeping.com/joomla/index....k-of-the-month

sorry for the noob question... what's the difference between SE and DE?

SE = Single ended (Mogul Base)
DE = Double ended

actualy I did, missed that one.

but dosn't show anything either way. his own tests over the years have showen SE's have better output and coverage when powered by the same ballasts, heck my own tests have showen SE's have a lot better out put also.

what I did find interesting is the MH/LED combo.. where are the T5s? :wink:

Steve

Thanks for all the input everyone! I know the SEs are difficult to get a hold of, but I do have a US mailing address if needed. Once a year replacement really isn't a big deal. However, if I put the effort into doing that, I would be HIGHLY disappointed if they weren't very similar to the Phoenix DEs.

I'm going to be using electronic ballasts, and if I use DEs I would have to retrofit my SE pendants, which is one of the reasons why I want to use SE bulbs. I'm using a DE fixture right now, but I am all out of DE bulbs with the current bulbs needing replacement. Time to put the pendants to use...and I would rather not have to retrofit them to accept DE bulbs. PAR isn't a huge concern, but I'm also not into wasting electricity on an inefficient setup. My current setup is inefficient for a number of reasons, and the corals are getting plenty enough PAR, but more for "free" is almost always better. ;)