i guess chris jinx'd me yesturday saying you never know when a buld or something will go out. this morning i woke up and one of my 250 mds is not working. at this point im not sure if its teh bulb or the ballast. the ballast is not warm at all like the other that is running. will the ballast warm up even if the bulb is blown? i can transfer my coral to the other side of the tank under the one still working so its not an emergency but i want it fixed asap.
The ballast probably will not warm up if the lamp will not fire and run. You can figure out if it is the ballast or lamp by moving that lamp over to your known working ballast and trying to fire it up. REMEMBER let the good lamp cool down before you go grabbing it to remove it, just a reminder. I don't want anyone hurt.
Be sure to not touch the glass part of the bulbs with your fingers. Skin oil can cause a hot spot, discoloration and premature bulb failure. Also, we broke a DE bulb trying to remove it from the socket. They are very fragile.
im looking online and see these bulbs ranging from 10.00 to 120.00 for the same spectrum. is there a real difference from manufacturer to manufacturer? can i just get one of the cheaper ones or shoud i go back with teh exact bulb i have now?
My opinion is you get what you pay for. I'd stick with the brands with good reputations -- XM, Phoenix, Iwasaki, etc. Read some of the articles by Sanjay Joshi. There's a sticky at the top of this forum.
