coral reef hqi bulb

[Bidadari]

Jeremy,

Can you tell me, the Coral Reef 250W HQI bulb is the same as what other brand?

Thanks,
Tia

[etszoo]

I had the same question.
Tagging along.
-Eric

[skyedolphan]

not answering for Jeremy but...
I have previously had the 20k xm and now have his after changing from 14k gueismann


and am very happy with them they are to my eye the same as the xm HTH not hinders

[PenMan]

I put one in over our tank and thought that it was slightly bluer than the 10K XM HQI. We are watching this closely, but the price is right on them.

[newreefer03]

By any chance is there a spectrum chart and PAR measurements on these bulbs. Are they manufactured and sold under a different name ? generic?

[JeremyR]

I'm not sure if there is a spectral chart for the DE out there. If you want to see something similar, check the blueline "super white" for the 10k, but as far as I know that's only tested for mogul.

[delta]

Are they manufactured and sold under a different name ? generic?
I would imagine that this would not be in Jeremys best interest to release this information as it would probably be a violation of his contract between
CRA and the manufacturer of the bulbs\skimmers etc.

I dont think it is fair to put him on the spot in a public forum setting like this.

just check out CRAs site
http://inverts.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Session_ID=c0cb9ba0ffe3640784de1ca27a 1f34cb&Screen=PROD&Product_Code=cra_175m20k&Category_Code=_cra

[Aquaman_68]

I would imagine that this would not be in Jeremys best interest to release this information as it would probably be a violation of his contract between
CRA and the manufacturer of the bulbs\skimmers etc.

I dont think it is fair to put him on the spot in a public forum setting like this.

just check out CRAs site
http://inverts.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Session_ID=c0cb9ba0ffe3640784de1ca27a 1f34cb&Screen=PROD&Product_Code=cra_175m20k&Category_Code=_cra

I second that!!!

[Bidadari]

I disagreed! The questions arised from CRA claim "Our new house brand lamp is the same lamp packaged by other big name companies..." As an inquisitive consumer, it is perfectly fair to ask Jeremy for more info on the said claim. And it is perfectly fine for him not to disclose any information that he couldn't disperse.

Violation between CRA and the manufacturer is just one possible reason, competitive advantage is another.


I would imagine that this would not be in Jeremys best interest to release this information as it would probably be a violation of his contract between
CRA and the manufacturer of the bulbs\skimmers etc.

I dont think it is fair to put him on the spot in a public forum setting like this.

just check out CRAs site
http://inverts.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Session_ID=c0cb9ba0ffe3640784de1ca27a 1f34cb&Screen=PROD&Product_Code=cra_175m20k&Category_Code=_cra

[paulpp187]

i think people should have the right to know what the are buying

[delta]

i think people should have the right to know what the are buying

true but in regards to the exact brand i dont think he can tell you thats my point, think they call it a breach of contract. usually companies will sell generic brands for different reasons in this instance we the consumer get a better deal as they are selling him the bulbs at a rate he can compete with his "in house brand" with his Logo on it. usually there is a legal agreement that he will not devulge the "big name brand" to further his sales.

if you cant figure it out i dont think its fair to ask him in a public forum

perhaps a little research like 5 minutes worth would ease your curiosity
follow my previous link and do some cross reference surfing.

As to the right to know what your are buying simply put CRAs "in house brand bulb" he owes you nothing more than that. He actually owns the right to put his name on them.

Don't get me wrong i was just as curious :)

[newreefer03]

I agree with Tia, Jeremy has a right not to disclose any information he feels he is obligated not to divulge but as consumers we need to get as much information as we can before we commit to these lights. I know of several different people who encountered problems switching to other brand name bulbs much less generic bulbs. I know Jeremy would not knowingly steer us wrong but I for one would like more data before I switch bulbs. Actually Jeremy in his post answered IMO quite to the point of what I was asking. Anyway, how many places do you see advertised that certain widgets are just like the brand name widgets. Also by asking about the spectrum it may give clues as to the bulb and gives you comparison to known bulb spectrums and hopefully help you decide whether this is the bulb you want. Thanks Jeremy.

[Aquaman_68]

i think people should have the right to know what the are buying

Yeah you do..If you buy one of those bulbs your buying a CRA bulb. Do you realize how many companies mfg bulbs? There is alot of mfg going on to private labels. It's how the small business survives. Asking who makes his private label bulbs is like asking him to show his business contacts.

I'm a little sensitive to this area as I am a small business owner & it erks me when I get asked questions to personal business info. It's just not right...I know we now live in the age of information but isn't there anything sacred anymore? If anyone has concerns that their ballast will not fire his bulbs please disclose these questions to him for sure. As for color etc....I guess you will just have to take a visit to the store & see how they look fired up. Besides.......I don't know why anyone would buy a bulb mail order or anywhere online for that matter without first seeing it fired up in person.

I know these are my thoughts & I should have kept them to myself but once in a while I think it's our duty to voice what we feel without getting into a flamefest. These veiws I've expressed here are not meant to offend anyone. Lets all get along!!! :)

[etszoo]

I agree with the views posted here. However getting somewhere to view some of these
bulbs working can present a problem for some of us living in the boonies. So we value
the opinions of the other reefers out there. I am not concerned with who makes it as
much as viewability and how corals and livestock respond. There is not a lot of viewable data on de bulbs at this time and the de bulbs seem more intense in the 10k
range than the mugul style. One of the reasons I was thinking of going to a higher kelvin (13,14 or 20k)bulb.
-Eric

[JeremyR]

Hi guys,

I will try to take a photo or 2 of the 10k DE's running next to something like an AB or BLV for comparative purposes. Since all the tanks in the store except for the elegance tank are DE, taking mogul shots will be pretty difficult.. maybe we can get a shot of steve's tank with the 10k CR on one side and the 10k AB on the other.

I appreciate all the opinions and support here. I'm not really pushing anyone to change from one type of lamp to ours, but rather to fill a market niche.. a good lamp at a reasonable price. Everyone has preferences.. some people are going to prefer the AB or BLV/Giesemann, and some people are going to be happy with lamps such as ours. I'm ok with either viewpoint, we use and like AB and BLV, as well as our own lamps. I know not everyone can make the trip down, but for those that can we have a wide variety of lamp types and spectrums on display.

[Pinkskunk]

It would be nice to know the PAR for these lamp, single Mogul base prefered.

For me, PAR matters most as everything else is only for estatic look.

[etszoo]

Thanks Jeremy. That would be great.

[lactrain]

Left Side CRA 20K 150W DE (2 months)
Right Side AB 10K 150W DE (1 year +)

A little amateur photography ...

[JeremyR]

Ok, here are some photos of different lamps & combos.

150w Coral Reef 10k HQI DE (no actinic)
http://www.inverts.com/pics/15010k.jpg


250w Coral Reef 10k HQI DE (left) and 250w 10k HQI AB (right) with 2x54 t-5 actinic
http://www.inverts.com/pics/25010k.jpg
AB lamp is a few months old, so it's not quite apples-apples.

150w AB 10k HQI (left) 150w Coral Reef 20k (right)
http://www.inverts.com/pics/15020k.jpg
Again, the AB is a few months old, and is a 10k and more intense.

This isn't the end all be all of lamp testing.. just some quick photos for you. All ballastas are standard HQI. I hooked up a 10k coral reef in one of the electronic ballasts and it was noticably bluer than the ones here at the shop and not as bright.

[smcnally]

I bought Coral Reef's 175W 10k mogul base MH and they look great. Fire up nice and quick too. You can see pics with them on in this thread.
http://216.235.242.50/forums/showthread.php?t=8052

[lactrain]

Jeremy are your 175 Moguls pulse start or probe start ...

[JeremyR]

They run fine on standard ballasts, they are not pulse start.

[lactrain]

Thank-you

[lactrain]

Just figured I would update this thread end of April and the CR 20K 150 watt bulb has burned in rather nice and getting good color and growth out of my SPS corals ... I am very pleased.

See you soon.

Len

[JeremyR]

Glad to hear it. :)

The 14k's came in too, they are real similar in color to the 20k, just a touch more intensity.

[Valexia]

well this thread convinced me, i will be buying my replacement bulbs from CRA mid summer...
thanks for all the pics...these bulbs are what i was looking for.
this thread sold me.

[lactrain]

Just in case you all are wondering how the growth rate is on the CRA 20K 150 watt HQI ....

[JeremyR]

Cap is lookin good!

[offshore]

I wish I found this site a week ago. I just bought new HQI's and there on the way. I could have saved $60. and got the 14K that I could not find anywhere.

[Valexia]

just got the 10000k's (wimped out on the 14's) and they are beautiful! They are touch more blue which is exactly what i wanted. AWSOME price, for a GREAT bulb. What more can i say...oh yeah THANKS!!!

[PenMan]

Put a new 14K 150 watt on my Petco slant front that is housing a blue carpet and pair of saddlebacks. Looks really blue next to a 6500K Ushio single ended 250 W - good brightness.

[lactrain]

Jeremy ... figured I would give you a report on your CRA 20K 150 watt bulb...

It has hit its one year mark and appears to have reached the end of its "usable" life, IMO.

I run it without actinics in a AB fixture that I purchased from you. It runs opposite the main tank and these bulbs run on a 12 hour cycle to aleviate any large PH swings that may caused by photosynthesis.

So in reality, though the bulb is a calendar year old, im sure i could have stretched out its usable life a bit longer by shortening the photoperiod to a normal 8-10. But im not willing to do that I have too much success with maintaining PH to change it now.

I did manage to get excellent growth out of the monti- cap and it colored to a deep orange, and also what i consider a tough to color green slimer.

Just my opinion, I dont have many of SPS corals under it at the time but i did notice a bit of a color fade with my orange monti-cap to a somewhat light pink. Most of the corraline has vanished from the basement tank, but it seems to be flourishing upstairs under my new set of 175 watt halides so its not water quality or parameters.

After a year of running it, my overall opinion is that "I like it and I will stick with it" seemed to have enough par to color up most SPS, enough blue to get corals to flouresce without actinics, burns in to a cool "blue" as expected with a 20K and its life span was a approximately a year as one could hope.

Though i feel that it is in need of replacement I do have many softies and some SPS that the bulbs are still able to maintain.

Very good 20K bulb ... *****

I will be replacing it shortly with another.