whats the diffrence

[monica]

between 10k coralvue and 14K coralve?

[mathias]

about 4k sorry had to do it....


some said before I think the 14k is more blue ?

[monica]

well my thing is I have two 10Ks on each end and I need a bulb for the middle and didnt know if it was have a drastic change having two 10k and one 14k.

[StephenA]

A 20K might have more of a change, atleast towards the blue end. It could cut down on the yellow you have now.

[Jenn]

So 20k is as blue as it gets? Monica, I am so glad you asked this type of question. I would like to see a chart something like this: (I know its not correct, but just for example purposes)

6500k = white w/ yellow hues
10k = whiter
14k white w/ blue hues
20k = bluer w/ white
etc.....

[scuba_steveo]

Jenn, generally you are right with you chart. The problem is different manufacturers are different. Some ones 20k may be the same amount as someone elses 14k. Some 14 are blue blue most are not. Some 20s are not as blue as other 20s. and so on

[StephenA]

20K is the max for our use. The higher numbers are not as bright. I 150W 10K is brighter than a 250W 20K. I tend to like a mix or a 14K bulb. I even ran 1 10k and 1 14K and it looked nice.

Some plant growers have 36K and 40K bulbs at 400W

[Brett Wilson]

To make it even more confusing, Iwasaki makes a little 50,000K bulb. But it looks like a 15,000K... it's all just marketing.

[JimD]

This www.reeflightinginfo.arvixe.com should answer most of your questions.

[SaltyJim]

And this too

Lamp tests (http://www.cnidarianreef.com/lamps.cfm)

[monica]

Thanks all for al your info.

I think I am gonna get a XM 250w 10k. My 400watters are XM so I am gonna just keep them all the same.

Thanks Jim for the link that helped out alot, especially with the pics of the diffrent bulbs color.

[astrong]

The kelvin scale is an astronomical rating for star color based on surface temperature. The problem is that lamp manufacturers only follow it superficially. But here is a chart, not the best I've seen but it gets the point across.