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i am looking forward to buy a power compact fixture for my 29g tank, the fixture will be 30" long, with 2- 65 watt bulbs. the fixture is going to sit right on top of the glass, no legs, will i need fans to be installed??

and also, do you think the lunar light feature is good to have? how many LED bulbs should i get enable to actually see something at night?

oh and i forgot, whats are some good combination of the bulbs to get for a planted tank with a few colorful fish. i heard 50/50 + 6700k?

Last edited by greenfootball at 08-Oct-2005 15:00

Hi,
First, I can't imagine a canopy with two 65 watt Compact
Flourscent bulbs without a built in fan. Mine is
similiar in length and has a 3 inch muffin fan at one end
and an air filter at the other end. Be sure that the fan
is wired so that it comes on with the bulbs. With mine
one bulb is wired to come on with the fan and the other
bulb is not. So I ran my timers so that the one with the
fan is on for 10 hours and the one without is on in the
middle of the 10 hour stretch and simulates the sun at
noon in the middle of the "day."

Personally, I use two 8000K bulbs as they no longer made
the 65 watt ones (6700K) that I had been using, and I
wanted to go up to 96 watt bulbs.

I won't mess with the 50/50 bulbs. To me they are simply
a "gimmic" meant to separate me from my money.
They are more expensive than the regular CPF
bulbs and don't do anything for my tank.

Don't know what to suggest about the Moonlights. While
they look neat, I have not seen one in operation, and
before I buy, I gotta see.

Frank


Last edited by FRANK at 08-Oct-2005 17:08

-->>> The Confidence of Amateurs, is the Envy of Professionals <<<--

Definitely put in at least 1 fan. I had a cf with four 55w bulbs, no fan, no legs. It got hot enough to melt the glue holding the handle to the glass lid. My current four 65w fixture has 2 fans with legs and it's just barely enough. When I didn't have the legs on it got too hot and the vibration of the fans made it really loud. I'm not really sure what it was rattling against but it doesn't do it with the legs.
The number of leds depends on the quality of them. 1-2 good quality(more expensive) leds would be enough but there are some cheap ones out there that even 4 would just barely give you enough light to see. I have 6 cheap ones on the fixture for my 4' tank and I can't tell they are on.
50/50 bulbs aren't all that useful for freshwater tanks. Any bulb from 6700-10,000k will grow plants just fine. I have all 10,000k bulbs because my fixtures came with saltwater bulbs.

so definitely need the fans... ok... if i do get one with legs... will my room be pretty bright too? i kinda dont want the light to escape to my room, but if no legs will result in any malfunction, then obviously i'll need to consider the legs...


about the LED lights... anybody have more inputs?

Hi,
Mine has no legs and sits atop my glass top that covers
the tank. I also keep the tank filled up to the black
plastic trim. That way no light escapes around the sides
or top of the tank, it all is directed into the water.
I find that the light escaping out the sides or from a
gap between the fixture and the top of the tank to be
glaring and bothersome.

Frank


-->>> The Confidence of Amateurs, is the Envy of Professionals <<<--

greenfootball,

I agree with sham, get the legs. Otherwise, I am not quite sure that I understand what you want to do.

Are you intending to build a unit yourself?
Are looking for one that is available on the market (which one &#8211; link it)?
What are you trying to grow with over 4wpg and a tank that is only 18&#8221; high?
I would think that at this wattage you will most certainly have to add CO2 to the tank. Are you planning on this?
Is your glass top suitable to have such a wide fixture over it (in particular if it also includes the LEDs) without having parts of the light be blocked by the plastic connectors of the top&#8217;s components?
Are you maybe even planning on hanging the light over an open tank? In this case you have to make sure that the fixture is designed to be exposed to moisture.

How many LEDs would be enough: 2

I know I ask a lot of questions, sorry about that

Ingo

---

Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

LED's have the problem of trailing wires around the tank hood which can make maintenance tricky, but they dont generate any significant amount of heat, but since you will need to mount them actually underwater there can be problems with having the light where you want them without actually seeing the visible bulb,and trailing wire into the water visibly. Id stick to all blue or green led's as the multicolour looks a bit tacky to be honest, it also is nice to arrange them just so thay theres only a few highlighted areas, theres really no need to illuminate the whole tank at night, personally I think its nicer to leave dark corners the fish can retreat to should they be sensitive to light. Some fish are actually more sensitive to red light than blue or green, so Id avoid the red lights which will seem brighter to them than to us and let them get some rest. So in a way led's are better than moonglow striplights that illuminate the entire tank a little too brightly if anything. Ive tried both types of lighting and I have to say if anything the fish seem more relaxed , slower moving and more chilled out at night with just a few light spots than a moonglow striplight set up.



Last edited by longhairedgit at 09-Oct-2005 07:34

i have them in my 55g and my 40g. i have 5 each in them tanks. for a tank that size, 3 will light it nice, but i'd go for 5 total and make it brighter. the wires are a pain, but if you place them right, you wont have a problem

these are very nice to watch at nice with the fishes

i know its not totally clear, and i need a new pic. but heres one of my 55g

http://i16.photobucket.com/albums/b48/monkeyboy000/Tanks/55g-live-plant-moonlight.jpg

Last edited by monkeyboy at 09-Oct-2005 07:55

Fish tanks are an expensive addiction

I put LED lights in my light fixtures. Here are some pictures. LED

I don't really have any good pictures of the tank all lit up but it looks pretty sweet.

Last edited by Wingsdlc at 09-Oct-2005 08:17

55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

My leds are in a strip along the back of my light fixture and pointed down into the tank. There is only 1 cord coming out the end. It's sort of like a 2nd light fixture and sits on the glass the same as any fluorescent strip only this one is connected to the main fixture. There are several premade led setups that solve the problem of mounting the light and having cords around.
Setting the light fixture on legs helps prevent heat build up and in my case solved the vibrating fan issue. It also allows light to spread out more and possibly away from the tank and into the room. I never had a problem setting a well ventilated light strip directly on the glass.

Are you intending to build a unit yourself?
NO

Are looking for one that is available on the market (which one &#8211; link it)?
I DONT KNOW WHICH ONE, BUT YES, ONE AVAILABLE IN MARKETS

What are you trying to grow with over 4wpg and a tank that is only 18&#8221; high?
I DONT KNOW YET, BUT RIGHT NOW MY HOOD IS HOME MADE, WHICH ISNT EXACTLY THE PRETTIEST THING IN THIS WORLD hahah... I DO ALREADY HAVE OVER 3WPG RIGHT NOW, BUT WITH REGULAR FLUORESCENT

I would think that at this wattage you will most certainly have to add CO2 to the tank. Are you planning on this?
ALREADY HAVE A TANK CO2

Is your glass top suitable to have such a wide fixture over it (in particular if it also includes the LEDs) without having parts of the light be blocked by the plastic connectors of the top&#8217;s components?
WELL, MY TANK IS 30" ACROSS, SO IS THE FIXTURE

Are you maybe even planning on hanging the light over an open tank? In this case you have to make sure that the fixture is designed to be exposed to moisture.
NO, IN FACT, I DONT WANT ANY LIGHTS TO GO ANYWHERE EXCEPT INTO THE TANK, BECAUSE AFTER ALL, THATS WHAT THEY ARE FOR, THE FISH TANK, NOT MY ROOM




sorry, just typing in caps so easier to see what i've typed

Is your glass top suitable to have such a wide fixture over it (in particular if it also includes the LEDs) without having parts of the light be blocked by the plastic connectors of the top&#8217;s components?

WELL, MY TANK IS 30" ACROSS, SO IS THE FIXTURE

I don't think that's what he meant. When you put on a wide light it ends up covering more than 1 piece of a glass cover. So without removing the light you can't open the tank and the light gets slightly blocked. I had that problem and my 4' compact fixture was heavy. Now that I have it on the legs so it doesn't have to sit on the glass I just removed the front glass panel. The fixture has an acrylic shield over the bulbs and I still have slightly over half the tank covered in glass.

If your not making a fixture then anyone you get should have fans unless you go with a really cheap one. I don't suggest that.

I would replace the two 65w bulbs with two 55w bulbs. You may have to buy a fixture that already includes the bulbs and then change them. Over 4wpg in pc lighting is really a bit of overkill. With two 55w you will be able to grow anything really and the fish won't need sunglasses.

Last edited by sham at 10-Oct-2005 14:13

yeah i measured the depth too, i'll need to remove/tilt the fixture a little when i open the lid. but thats what i have to do now anyway, so i wont complain too much. okay i'll get fans, but no legs, and probably no LED lights.... i figure if it is dark, the fish will be resting anyway, no action to see

depends on they type of fish you have........

55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

I have a lunar aqualite fixture on my tank with 2 blue LEDs worked into the fixture. The effect is kindof neat, but it does not create enough light to really see much detail. However, if you have nocturnal fish like plecos, you will be able to see them as they become active, and that can look really neat.

Here's some pictures of my tank at night (they're blurry because the digital camera can't autofocus with so little light, but you get the idea)

This one is the whole tank under the LEDs
http://www.dartmouth.edu/~illustrae/Aquaria/pictures/pict0012.jpg

And in this one you can see my pleco like a mysterious behemoth from the deeps...
http://www.dartmouth.edu/~illustrae/Aquaria/pictures/pict0014.jpg



Hoping that there must be a word for everything I mean...

i have 1 clown pleco, corys, otos, and a yoyo, i see them all during day time except only occasionally for the clown. i think i am ok with it for now, i can always add it later if i have more noctural fish right?