Hotter Color Temp mean Hotter bulb?

[Ram_Puppy]

Ok, we all learned (hopefully) in basic chemistry/astronomy/physics, that blue is hotter than white, and green is hotter than blue, so on, so forth...

So, do 14K bubls generate more heat than a 10K? a 20K more than a 14k?

The reason I ask, is that since i switched from my 10K XM to my 14K Hamilton, my temperature has gone up from a steady 82 to 87. The temp makes me uneasy obviously, I am thinking of cutting the metal halide to just a few hours a day to keep the temp under control until I move into the 115 gallon.

Anyone else experienced anything like this? (changing color temp actually effecting the temp in the tank?) the only other change was swapping out a bad Rio 1100 for a MAG 5, which is actually weaker, and I would think, not as much of a heat producer.

[C.Mydas]

Ok, we all learned (hopefully) in basic chemistry/astronomy/physics, that blue is hotter than white, and green is hotter than blue, so on, so forth...


What school did you go to?!!! I grew bean sprouts and learned how sleep with my eyes open during science classes :-D :-D

[captexas]

Ram - is the Mag pump being used as a submersible pump? Mag pumps put out a lot of heat, no matter how big they are. I would suggest turning the pump off for awhile if possible to see if your temperature drops. As far as the changing bulb rating affecting the temperature of the tank, I doubt it as long as it is the same wattage of bulb is used. Also, if you went from a single ended mogul bulb to a double ended bulb there might be a difference. Of course the chemicals/gasses used in the bulbs could be different as they are different manufacturers and one may actually burn hotter than the other.

PS - I took science classes in school and don't remember anything about the color of lights being hotter than others. I do know that when dealing with open fire, the flames will be different colors depending on their temperature.

[Tim Marvin]

I can't tell any difference in my blue T-shirt from my green one. Now the white one on the other hand is toasty, of course it just came out of the drier. So I would say if the bulb is white and it is near a drier, keep it higher off the water.......LOL.... Just kidding, I have never measured temps coming off the bulbs at water level. I do know that the mogul socket/bulbs put a great deal more heat toward the water over DE pendants, which vent the heat more out the top.

[Ram_Puppy]

ok guys, thanks, I adjusted the light timing today, and put the mag drive on a timer to turn if off for a while mid day, each day. probably not ideal, but it should help.

As for color temperature explanations.

we can use a star as an example: Betleguese is a red super giant, big monstorous, but relatively cool, our sun, which is orange bordering on white, is much hotter, Eta Eridani is far far hotter (blue supergiant) (and may someday end all life in the galaxy, but that is neither here not there) A stars color is a product of it's temperature, determined by what gasses are A) capable of being burned, and B) still available to be burned (red super giants no longer consume hydrogen as fuel for their fusion reactions, but Helium) that is, if I remember all that stuff right.

Oh, and I peaked your curiosity on Eta Eridani, it is the largest star in our galaxy, If I remember correctly, the mass of about 16 supergiants, it produces so much luminosity and radiation we can't get a clear picture of it, some theorize it is actually a cluster of super giants in very close proximity. Eta Eridani is so huge, it gravitationally lenses natural X-Ray Lasers that cross the galaxy, huge and hot. If it ever decides it's time is up and goes supernova, the release of radiation will wipe us out, and anyone else (if any) fortunate enough to have come into existence. (even the roaches.)

[NaCl_H2O]

... the release of radiation will wipe us out, and anyone else (if any) fortunate enough to have come into existence. (even the roaches.)

Guess that kinda puts the 10K vs. 14K heat output question into perspective :shock:

[rocketeer]

Too bad for the roaches... But my acros will sure color up! :-D

[rocketeer]

Ok, I guess the best way to answer that would be experimentally. Let's see what we know about this.

Higher K would sure mean something in there is hotter. But they are probably the same power (watts).

Redder colors are absorbed more by water, probably inducing more heat to the water. That's a plus for cooler bulbs heating the water more.

The light that makes it through the water is partially absorbed by substrate, rocks, fish, corals, etc. Does anybody know what wavelengths get reflected more?

A significant amout of heat is conducted to the top of the water by the hot air in the hood. We all know this is significant because our fans, besides removing humidity and aiding evaporation, remove the hot air from our hoods. Because of the two effects they have a great effect on water temperature. Do hotter color bulbs make the air hotter in the hood? I would guess this effect would be minor because the different bulbs are the same power, and probably comparably efficient.

I don't know. But we do have one data point published by Ram Puppy, that is that 14K Hamiltons made the water hotter than the 10K XMs.

My $.02

Jack

[Tim Marvin]

Hmmmm, that is so weird. I thought the bulbs had different phosphers in them that made the color wanted. If they are all run on the same wattage wouldn't they be close to the same temp? 400w being hotter than 250w, 250 being hotter than 150, and so on?

[Tim Marvin]

Too many variables to compare light bulbs to stars.

[JimD]

Plus stars burn gasses other than whats being burned in our bulbs, different gasses, different temps.

[GaryP]

The K value on bulbs stands for Kelvin. Kelvin is a temperature scale where 0 is set at absolute zero (-273.16 °C on the Celsius scale), the temperature where all motion stops.

The K rating is an indication of the color of the bulb, not the heat that it produces.

Check this out.

http://www.3drender.com/glossary/colortemp_F.htm

Gary

[Ram_Puppy]

Gary, I think we understand what your tyring to point out, what i am trying to point out, is exactly what your article does, as that carbon block heated up, it produced higher K wavelength light, the light emitted, coresponds directly to the heat added to the carbon.

what we are probably looking at, questioning here, is whether or not the blue light from the 14K bulb (or can we infer even 20K's in this as well?) is produced from a hotter fillament/mineral/gas in the actualy 'bulb' of the halide light itself.

Tim is probably right that the bulbs use different phosphors to generate different color temps, the question is, does the phospho (or whatever material) ignite and emit the 14K spectrum from within the same temperature range as the phosphors that produce a 10K color? or perhaps there is another chemical or electrical process going on in there that were missing?

And while there are a lot of variable differences between stars and light bulbs (for instance, the lack of a fusion reaction in a light bulb! :) ) it may not be as different as we think, Stars go through specific color stages in their lifetime, burning some elements before others, those elements can be withheld in somestars, and plentifiul in others, some even require second or third generation stars to produce the elements (heavier elements may be created only in older dieing stars, nova's, super novas) when an element runs out, the spectrum of a star changes, just like lightbulbs getting old.

Stars are also big gravitationally bound balls of plasma, where as, when heat reches a certain point in a lightbulb, a plasma is generated, and that gives off light.

Anyhow... forgive me, I have work to do, and a 100 degree fever, so I must stop babbling for now.

[Tim Marvin]

Ram, sorry to hear you are sick. I hope you feel better soon.

[captexas]

Ram - what color is your fever? lmao, had to ask :-)

[GaryP]

A 20K bulb doesn't necessarily produce more heat than a 5.5K bulb.

Gary

[Richard]

Stephen, sorry to hear you are sick. I hate fevers. Here's some stuff for your overheated brain. LOL

Thermal energy can be measured in terms of calories.
1 calorie = 4.184 Joules
1 Joule = 1 watt
250 watts = 250 watts (any color)
Rio1100 = 22 watts
Mag5 = 45 watts
45 watts - 22 watts = 23 watts
23 extra watts fully submersed = warmer water

[Tim Marvin]

Richard, I'm with you on everything except for the Rio.
Rio 1100 = I ton nuclear bomb (as far as your tank is concerned) Just waiting for detonation....

[Tim Marvin]

Also, how much heat does 22 watts produce with the direct short? LMAO....

[Ram_Puppy]

man, is that the trade off of the century, my tank is safe from sudden explosion, but in danger of overheating... :| sigh...

CRAZY.

Well, I was going to buy a MAG 2 this week to drive the new Phosban Reactor I got for christmas, now, Me thinks that is not such a good idea... :(

Any suggestions? The Mag 3 drives my protien skimmer, the MAG 5 runs the SCWD, without the SCWD the tank is a stangnant mess...

[Ram_Puppy]

And Richard, does it hurt having all that info in your head? How can their be room for it with all that aquatic knowledge swimming around up there.

[Tim Marvin]

Ram, your tank looks great! Does the Phosban reactor need a pump? can you hook it to an overflow and have water draining through it?

[Ram_Puppy]

Thanks Tim, but it is looking pretty puny these days, I had a calcium/carbonate storm about a month ago, and the heat and all, lots of hair algae right now, I think either the heat, or the PH drop (or both) caused my rose and a very beautiful mushroom to bleach. The shroom is I think a gonner, I can't see any coloration in it at all (though it is holding on.) the anemone is coloring back up though.

The Phosban reactor requires a flow of 240 gallons an hour, the instructions say that the media should 'percolate' as water rised out of it. Since i don't have any overflows, there is no solution there, the only thing I can think of, is to Y off the SCWD, but there simply isn't room for that. I think my best bet is to just try and keep everything stable, as is, for now, until the new tank arrives... of course, I am thinking about ripping down my carnivorous plant tank (55 gallon) and using it in the interum, but that is just to much friggin work.