XMs on Crack!!!

[Michael_Lambert]

Alright guys..

So i upgraded from 10k ushios to 10k XMs.. and well the last couple of weeks i have noticed things not looking soo hot in my tank.. My acros seemed to have browned out.. So i kind of got worried and decided to clean my tank.. So i killed my actinics and was SHOCKED!!!

My XMS.. are only a month old and have Yellowed out BIG TIME! here is a shot to prove it!!

The right side is my 8 month old 10k Ushio.. and the left side is my 1 month old XM!!!

Anyone eles have issues???

Thanks
Michael

 

[sambot]

Wow, that stinks. Where did you buy them from.

 

[Michael_Lambert]

Sambot..

I'm not going to post that dealer.. Untill they get a chance to get back to me.

 

[sambot]

Good idea.

 

[BoomerD]

Well, if they're from the place many of us will suspect, that is a good outfit and most likely will make it right with you...I've heard a lot of mixed reviews on the XM 10K bulb, including some yellowing, and also tht it's temporary and they go "white again shortly after, but it's ONLY RUMOR to me. I have 1 175 XM, and 1 175 Hamilton, both 10,000K, and they both have a slight blue tinge to them, as well as showing just a smidge of yellow on some parts of the tank.

 

[Michael_Lambert]

well i did get them from a supplier here in canada.. and they said they are going to make some calls in the morning..

The bulbs keep shifting.. they go white then back to Yellow.. and back again.. its really screwy.. But when my 10k ushios that are 8 months older are looking better.. there has to be somthing wrong!

 

[cward43062]

You have a nice tank. I do think that the XM's are a downgrade from the Ushio's though. The XM's seem to be the flavor of the month because of the price.

 

[Michael_Lambert]

well i moved to the XMs.. because of the higher PAR rating on them compared to the Ushios.. I found the XMs slightly Bluer and Brighter than the Ushios where.

 

[Michael_Lambert]

Well i am pleased! .. The store i bought them from, Today did a straight exchange.. infact i decided to grab the 20ks.. AS from what i have been reading most of the issues are with the 250 watt 10ks.. and that the 20ks really only issue is after 6 months it starts to slightly shift spectrum.. So what i mean if after 6-8 months it starts to shift.. i dont mind changing them out.. for that price.

here is shot now, Im thinking i might need to remove some of the Actinics im running.. as its kind of too blue

 

[Witfull]

if they shift from 20K to 15 K in six months,,,no biggy...lol but the 20K's are about half the PAR of the 10k's.

 

[Michael_Lambert]

yea they are 1/2 the par. .. But atleast the only think i need to do is worry about them shifting to the qaulity of the 10k.. and not to the quality of a 3k

 

[reefrunner]

here is shot now, Im thinking i might need to remove some of the Actinics im running.. as its kind of too blue

Give them 2 weeks to a month to burn in, I have 20K XM + PC actinics and the tank is not too blue (for me anyway) seems a crisp white with just a little blue.

 

[Michael_Lambert]

Cool i will leave them run..

Reefrunner, How long have you been running yours? I have heard that you can only get like 6 months out of them? is this true? I would love to get a LuxMeter, So i can mesure it now and over time..

 

[reefrunner]

I've been running mine about a month or a month and 1/2, So far I love it. Everything has colored up very nicely and I'm experiencing good growth, but I went from 175W 10K to 250W 20K, so the par didn't really go down and the spectrum skyrocketed.

 

[beyondreef]

I've been running my 20K XM for about six months-haven't had a problem with them. Definitely take six to eight weeks for them to break in. Hope they can rally a little longer cause I'm still trying to replumb my sump and add a refuge and I could use the cash.

 

[joe@inreef]

Remember..... I have sold over 150 XM bulbs, and only 6 have came back... pretty good results. The problem is that the 4% of people who had problems, are louder then the 96%, who havnt had problems. Just some information, as I sell CoralVue, XM, Radium, Ushio, Iwasaki and Sun.

 

[AustinReef]

I have been running mine since january. I'm going to replace mine soon since i have noticed a slight drop in growth. Although recently, the spectrum appears really nice. All of my corals colored up really nice under the 20k xm

 

[SueT]

I've had my 250w 10k XM's since january and have never had a single problem. I have had incredible colors morph out that I never had with iwasaki's. I have good growth too, in fact IMO, better than with the iwasaki's.

I have heard of the yellowing problem but I even run mine with no actinic supplementation. They are that good.

I too switched to the XM's due to the highest PAR rating under iwasaki's. I used Joe Burgers study he did plus being arm twisted by Jim Norris lately of Austin texas and now S. Carlona.

 

[Scooterman]

looking nice ToooLoud, I wish I had a LUX meter myself, just to take a before and after test, when they get older or weaker in lux, they probably not putting out the same PAR either.

 

[Electrobes]

Man i wish i had as good of luck as you! In a period of 2 months I went through 3 250watt XM 10,000K's! I gave up when the last one started flickering constantly from the white it is supposed to be, to yellow (losing spectrum). My corals looked terrible, and I decided that I wan't something on the bluer side. After much research I got the Hamilton 14K 250watt bulb and have not been happier since!