BRStv Investigates: Double End vs Single End Metal Halides - Which is better?

brs.li/halides Today on BRStv, we are launching a brand new series: BRStv Investigates. In this series we will explore popular reefing theories, products, methods, and what the manuals are missing, with a focus on putting them to the test!
This week we are talking metal halides:
"Does a single 250 watt double ended bulb perform as well as a 400 watt single ended bulb?"
So follow along as we answer today's question, provide some helpful insight, and help make reefing just bit more fun and easy for you and your tank.
Legal Stuff
The purpose and content of this video is to provide general information regarding the products and their applications as presented in the video. Aquatic sales solutions, inc. And its officers, directors, employees and agents disclaim all express or implied warranties, in any way, related to the products and their application as presented in this video, make no representation or warranty regarding the products and the application as presented in this video and shall not be liable for any direct or indirect losses or damages of any type, including but not limited to punitive damages, or from personal injury or death resulting from or in any manner related to the video, and the products in and contents of the video. The viewer expressly agrees that aquatic sales solutions, inc. And its officers, directors, employees and agents shall not be liable for any damages or losses related to the products in and content of the video and hereby agrees to hold the foregoing harmless from any such losses or damages.

[@fusestatisfyi]

Don't know where I'd be in this hobby without the help of your videos. You've taken a lot of the guess work out for me and made things much simpler to understand. Thanks for all your time and support for the community :)

[@kylepagel9360]

I'm not even done watching this video and I'm already stoked! thanks for exploring these theories!

[@JDPyrotechnics]

Specifically with Radium bulbs, a 250watt radium on an M80 ballast runs nearly as high as a 400watt radium. The 400watt radium is really 360watt, but the m80 isn't made anymore so with an electronic ballast the 250watt output is more typical now.

[@AMILLER415]

Really excited about this series!!! Especially the question of certain light spectrums vs. problem algae! If possible, can you also try and test what gives a BTA it's bubbled tentacles? Light, water changes, flow, feeding?... This question might be too complicated to know for sure, but I think it would be a really fun test with all your resources and I think you'd get huge kudos from the reefing community for trying! Thanks!!

[@oldknee]

Another great series from BRS, look forward to the future episodes!

[@Emmanuel-rs7eu]

This is gonna be a great series...I have two or three doubts on certain things which I hope you guys will clear up soon! You guys rock!

[@adamblanden7912]

very excited about this series!

[@ratherbeflyen1]

I was worried the videos might end after the 52 weeks series was over. I'm glad to see you guys are continuing the information. Your videos are a large part of the reason I have a saltwater tank . Lots of brs boxes have shown up at my house because of it. The claim I'd like to see tested is if you can really run a tank solely on an algae scrubber.

[@Live4Ibanez]

really like the idea for this series!

[@SeanJones25SJ]

I had used LEDs on my tank for over a year and switched back to metal halides. Huge difference in coral growth. The halides really grow SPS SO much better than LEDs.

[@SeanJones25SJ]

I noticed a more natural color in my corals under metal halides than I did when I was using LEDs. Halides just give it a more real appearance.

[@InappropriateReefer]

Love the idea of the series!!

[@coralinealgae]

Another great series.

[@ptester1]

Awesome series! Really looking forward to the next video!

[@chrisauer4204]

Love the series, keep the videos coming!

[@Mike__B]

First off, thank you for making these videos, this is another series that I am going to be eagerly looking forward to seeing every new episode you release. Second, I was absolutely floored that the DE bulbs were that much more powerful than SE bulbs, and part of me wondered if you had the glass shield over the DE bulb and NOT over the SE bulb. Third, I was surprised at the results from the Geissman fixture compared to the Caymen fixture, while both give good readings at 18" the Caymen is a bit brighter in the center, but the Geissman has much higher at the edges of that 30x30" square. Is that all reflector doing that? Or is there some reflections off the glass wall? Does Geissman just sell that reflector? Or are you forced into buying the all in one fixture? Lastly, (promise), one thing that struck me as awesome, was the distribution of light as you went deeper, unlike LEDs the brightness doesn't drop by an appreciable amount as you go down near the edges, yes it's not as bright as the center, but the deeper you go the more benefit of the large reflector that you get. It was a bit sad to see so many LEDs at MACNA, yet no love for metal halides anymore.

[@Mike__B]

Ah I see, curious how those single ended results would work if you don't use the glass shield. Because now you have another piece of glass that needs to be gone through which could explain why the double ended fixtures are giving better results.

[@Jolopy8000]

Yay! this series is what I've been waiting for!👍 Can't wait for that T5 episode

[@LXXero]

If you are gonna test "tank starters" like bio-spira, be sure to include Fritz Zyme 9 and Fritz TurboStart 900. I've had really surprising results with their Zyme product on both salt and freshwater. Like, full blown algae growth and tank fully cycled within a week. It's all subjective, though, and would love to see a proper test done. From what i've been told - fritz is one of the only companies that is actually harvesting the correct bacteria types and providing them in a form that they stay alive (the bottles are often refrigerated and with expiration dates, at least where I get them they are.) I suspect they bottle "food" in with the bacteria, and the expiration date is when said food is consumed and the bacteria starts to die off. Would love to see something more than my subjective experiences though.

[@joseCalderon1976]

Another great series! And another order of reefing stuff placed to BRS by me!

[@feedthatreefaddiction1508]

Great series! Looking forward to this!

[@reefingmedic7537]

great new series!!!!

[@jasonlamountain2269]

awesome a new series to look forward to

[@gbj6581]

Mythbusters for reef tank!!! Awsome... I must say for a retailer to put this much effort into fact finding on behalf of its customers and the hoby in general is really amazing. im trying to think of other companies in other industries that do this and im drawing a blank... great stuff.. plse do lots of 24inch, 4 bulb T5 stuff : )

[@AMILLER415]

Marine Depot does videos, but they aren't nearly as good. BRS is in a league of their own and my favorite KZbin subscription by far!

[@beej1254]

Yay! New series!

[@aslamabraham550]

What halide and t5 bulbs is the sps cube running with geissemann fixture.

[@trureef2319]

Now we're talking great vid..

[@1royalwolf]

Looking forward to this series. Always great info from your vids. Would like to see a vid on the chemical makeup of packet salt compared to natural seawater if you get the chance too mate. Cheers

[@BodyworkASMR]

I would love a brs investigation on ich via aerosol transmission.

[@Justindejager205]

Please look into continuous water changes done with a dosing pump. Are they more or less effective/stable than large regular water changes.

[@Dropswitch]

I would go with the single ended bulb too because the double ended bulbs are harder to manage. The bulbs don't install very easily in my experiance.

[@Steve-lu1my]

is a coral reactor in your top off water just as good as kalk?

[@Steve-lu1my]

A reactor that uses the low pH of RODI to dissolve crushed coral or aragonite. www.reef2reef.com/threads/frederickson-coral-reactor-increase-alk-calcium-ph-trace-elements-in-your-top-off-water.232842/

[@Steve-lu1my]

Awesome! I'd love to hear your findings, even if it doesn't make it to an episode. Thanks guys!

[@DylanJWilkinson]

Is miracle mud a better refugium substrate then other refugium "mud" substrates?

[@N1ceDrgn]

+BRStv When replacing the plumbing for a tank/system, is it myth or reality, that a 90 elbow works better than a 45 elbow? For years, I have always used 45's over 90's to maintain a even flow in my plumbing. I always see people use 90's instead of 45's, only for the sake of space utilization and to generate a clean appearance. Is one better than the other?

[@roryguice1234]

great topic!

[@affordable_reefing4794]

Hello from London. It will be very interesting to see how DIY Cree LEDs (the Cree Leds that some reefers buy from ebay and put together themselves) perform? Have you tested those? really curious! please share if you have some data! thanks for all your videos. thanks to you i have became a reefer.

[@MrGarnettmiller]

Dosing vs water change. As I don't dose and perform water change weekly and having great success.

[@InappropriateReefer]

Please solve the mystery of what causes a BTA to bubble. =)

[@ssingh4418]

Inappropriate Reefer you have to try different things light led or t5 low or high flow dirty or clean water mine was flow I bought a anemone my lfs sold it to me saying ritteri it was big I put it in my tank got bubbles after a week

[@tsurro8086]

Luv to see how leds last over time, after talking to ecotech guys about it, at 1% or 100% an hour is an hour, and at a certain time span does the par change with out us knowing it?????

[@ssingh4418]

? Can I add sugar to top off container. Will it stay and feed bacteria

[@deadeye4868]

It'd be awesome to see if 2 smaller skimmers performs better or worse than one big skimmer. Also internal vs. external skimmers. Finally, can you go to BIG on a skimmer? (starting a 180g build, but would like to go to at least 800g within 4 years. Would like to reuse as much equipment as possible.)

[@typicalfan170]

can you pay with cash when the item is shipped

[@dontworryaboutit8445]

precipitation or evaporation

[@dalberteckert7140]

try dividing your single ended bulb into to bulbs i like the lighting

[@dalberteckert7140]

my hood has 2/ 175 halides bulbs single end .left and right end of tank plus 2 t12 tubes.i have very few shadow iam now coming back from an auto ph control melt down i now do everything manually.i lost everything and have a mess.keep up your videos

[@MrGarnettmiller]

Looking forward to this series. On another note this is too scientific from me

[@joseCalderon1976]

It's pretty easy to understand honestly. He's just talking pretty much about how much PAR you get at different depths from different reflectors and MH bulbs.

[@BaconSniffer578]

Surprised you can still get metal halides lol. The gold'ol'days

[@NaturalViolence2]

Thank you for doing this. This industry is full of so much pseudoscience and general nonsense that it hurts my brain to look at it sometimes. It's stunning how little real investigation and science is done on such important topics that so many people spend so much money on.