Reefoholic April 25, 2011 Author Share April 25, 2011 TonyD, There is no shield over the bulb. There is only that tube over the bulb, and I think that tube is to protect the bulb from any splash of water. I was thinking that UV rays from the bulb could have caused the damage on the corals and other inhabitants. Especially when the verticals parts of the monti on the rock was not even damaged. Where can I get some UV protective glass plate? Home Depot? You have a double ended MH bulb. The glass tube over the MH is not UV shielded. You need a glass plate over the double ended bulb to provide UV shielding. You can go blind if you stare into the bulb without UV protection. On the contrary, the glass on mogul type bulbs are UV shielded and don't require a glass plate. I couldn't tell from your picture if there was a glass plate over the DE bulb or not. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Origami April 25, 2011 Share April 25, 2011 The tube sleeve that goes over the lamp is the shield here. If you look closely at the picture, the 150W lamp (with a bayonet-type connector) is contained within another sleeve that provides the shielding. While I'm more used to seeing a plate of glass in front of the lamp, this configuration works just as well. Who makes that fixture anyways? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reefoholic April 25, 2011 Author Share April 25, 2011 Here is the link to it. Coralife Aqualight Advanced Tank Mount . I have been reading some stuff on it on RC and Nano-Reef forums and many people say that even adding a tempered, green glass will filter 100% of UV C and B and 95% of UV A rays. Could it be possible that I fried the corals with the UV rays? The tube sleeve that goes over the lamp is the shield here. If you look closely at the picture, the 150W lamp (with a bayonet-type connector) is contained within another sleeve that provides the shielding. While I'm more used to seeing a plate of glass in front of the lamp, this configuration works just as well. Who makes that fixture anyways? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Origami April 25, 2011 Share April 25, 2011 Here is the link to it. Coralife Aqualight Advanced Tank Mount . I have been reading some stuff on it on RC and Nano-Reef forums and many people say that even adding a tempered, green glass will filter 100% of UV C and B and 95% of UV A rays. Could it be possible that I fried the corals with the UV rays? The cylinder leaves the ends of the lamp open at both ends. It's hard to tell what leaks out of the ends, so I can't say how much UV may be leaking there. Research the track record of the lamp with other hobbyists and see what you find out. That's an odd design you have there, for sure. However, while UV might be an option, it's still very possible that you just shocked your corals with too much light. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TonyD April 25, 2011 Share April 25, 2011 The tube sleeve that goes over the lamp is the shield here. If you look closely at the picture, the 150W lamp (with a bayonet-type connector) is contained within another sleeve that provides the shielding. While I'm more used to seeing a plate of glass in front of the lamp, this configuration works just as well. Who makes that fixture anyways? I went back and looked at the picture again. I missed the glass cylindar over the bulb. I'm used to seeing a plate of glass over the bulb as well. Learned a new configuration. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reefoholic April 25, 2011 Author Share April 25, 2011 Just read a number of forum threads on numerous sites and discovered that the Coralife fixtures are designed to protect against the UV rays that comes from only Coralife DE MH bulbs, since these bulbs also have UV protection build in. Many people express experiencing bleaching of their corals because of the UV intensity when these fixtures are used with different bulbs. I should have read this way before I installed the radium 150W 20K. What can I do know in order to make the light fixture functional with the radium bulb again? I really like the colors and white/blue balance of that bulb. Where to get UV shield glass or maybe a DIY MH fixture using the parts of my Coralife? Thanks! I went back and looked at the picture again. I missed the glass cylindar over the bulb. I'm used to seeing a plate of glass over the bulb as well. Learned a new configuration. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Origami April 25, 2011 Share April 25, 2011 Just read a number of forum threads on numerous sites and discovered that the Coralife fixtures are designed to protect against the UV rays that comes from only Coralife DE MH bulbs, since these bulbs also have UV protection build in. Many people express experiencing bleaching of their corals because of the UV intensity when these fixtures are used with different bulbs. I should have read this way before I installed the radium 150W 20K. You probably ought to call the manufacturer about this. This seems awfully fishy to me. I can't imagine a custom lamp envelope: it would be too expensive to manufacture and maintain on the market. I've owned Coralife fixtures before and I don't think there was anything special about their lamps over other manufacturers lamps. Here's their contact information: Attn: Coralife Customer Service Central Aquatics 5401 W. Oakwood Park Drive Franklin, WI 53132 Toll-free: 888-255-4527 M - F 7:00 AM to 4:00 PM CST Their website is at http://www.coralifeproducts.com I'm still more inclined to believe that the intensity of the metal halide lamp has shocked your corals. Get with the manufacturer and see what they say about it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flowerseller April 25, 2011 Share April 25, 2011 Doesn't seem fishy to me, it's Coralife-less Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flowerseller April 25, 2011 Share April 25, 2011 I can't believe it's being understood correctly unless it's implying that the glass sheild does not offer any uv protection. I may be shooting myself in the foot but can't believe a radium bulb (even de) does not offer uv protection out of the box, regardless what fixture it's placed in. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hypertech April 25, 2011 Share April 25, 2011 DE HQI bulbs need UV protection. ie, they need to be under glass. This is for all DE HQI bulbs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TonyD April 25, 2011 Share April 25, 2011 Reefoholic, As Tom said, call Coralife and get confirmation. Safety first, never assume. If it's ok to do so, you can get tempered glass plate and cover the bulb. There are mirror clips you can buy at Home Depot/Lowes to hold the glass plate in place. I did this when my old DE MH fixure glass plate shattered. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Origami April 25, 2011 Share April 25, 2011 DE HQI bulbs need UV protection. ie, they need to be under glass. This is for all DE HQI bulbs. It is under glass. It's an odd design, though. Coralife slipped a glass sleeve over the lamp's envelope. It's open at either end, envelopes the lamp, and looks to be about 1" in diameter. Look closely at the pictures that were posted earlier and you'll see what I mean. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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