BowMaster Posted October 14, 2007 Report Share Posted October 14, 2007 Hi, I am wondering about replacing the bulbs in my Coralife 4X65W Power Compact fixture. It came with 6700K Natural Daylight bulbs. I have read that these PC bulbs tend to loose intensity over about a year or so. I have had mine running for about 18 months now and have noticed a decrease in the growth of my plants. My Bio-load, suppliments, and CO2 perameters haven't changed much so I have to think it's the lighting. I was wondering about the differences between the 6700K, 10000K and even 12000K Daylight bulbs. The 6700K bulbs worked great and the color of the light was quite nice. But I as I've read about repalcing bulbs it would seem that there are no guarantees of quality. So, I was also wondering if anybody has any experience with these ebay outfits. I could get 12 10000K replacement bulbs on ebay for the cost of 4 6700K Coralife bulbs from J&L Aquatics. I will take any and all info on this subject. Thanks in advance. Lyle Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jvision Posted October 15, 2007 Report Share Posted October 15, 2007 The color temp isn't too crucial, it's just that the higher the K, the bluer the light. I really like an arrangement that give 2/3 6500-7000K and 1/3 10,000K The one extra blue bulb really makes the colors of the fish stand out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
werner Posted October 15, 2007 Report Share Posted October 15, 2007 (edited) Color temp is really a matter of preference. However, since you have plants, you should consider the output spectrum of the bulbs. Plants need certain wavelengths of light for photosynthesis: For plant growth, you want to choose a bulb that emits light in those wavelengths (basically light in both the red and blue parts of the spectrum.) Green and yellow light are the most visible to the human eye, but don't do much for the plants. Coralife's 6700K and 10000K bulbs both have appropriate outputs (see their website or bulb box for a pic). The eBay bulbs may or may not be suitable. Edited October 15, 2007 by werner Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BowMaster Posted October 21, 2007 Author Report Share Posted October 21, 2007 (edited) Well, I went ahead and bought new bulbs. I decided to go with two Coralife 6700K bulbs and two 50/50, 6700K/ColorMax bulbs to change things up a bit. Not too impressed with [the retail store I bought them from] though. [Their American based Online storefront] sells the 6700K for $25, [the Canadian site of the same store] sells for $60!!!!!! When [another Canadian website and storefront, but not local to us in Alberta] sells for $33 with shipping. What's up with the gouging already??? They priced matched them, but not until after plenty of hassle. They were even so tight to only adjust there pricing to allow for express shipping instead of the cheaper standard rate. Saying that since we got them that day, "it was just like express shipping". Give me a break! I've heard good things about the ultra cheap ebay bulbs. I could get 16, 6500K bulbs shipped for what I paid for the Coralife bulbs. But unfourtunatly they are back ordered right now. I'm going to keep my eye on them though and stock up when they get more. Lyle Edited October 21, 2007 by Tanker Removed store names Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.