FishProfiles.com Message Forums

I'm looking for someway to either put a nine inch compact 50/50 bulb in an 12 gallon eclipse marine nano tank or add somesort of retrofit kit that contains one actinic bulb and one daylight bulb.

I've looked all over the internet and can't find anything.

Does anyone have any ideas?

Thanks!

"A fish swims through the sea, while the sea is in a certain sense contained within the fish."
-mewithoutYou

Try out hellolights they have retrofit kits of all kinds. You could probably fit something bigger in there if you keep the ballasts remotely.

---

Critical Fertilator: The Micromanager of Macronutrients

You might also check out Aquarium Hobbyist Supply as they also have a number of retrofit setups. Here's the link:

http://www.ahsupply.com/index.html

Jim

---

Water, taken in moderation, cannot hurt anybody. -- Mark Twain

So, I ordered a 50/50 PC bulb that fit perfectly into my Eclipse System 12. When I put it in and turned it on it was really dark in the aquarium. I'm sure that it's because of the blue light, but now I'm worried that it's not bright enough to allow anything to grow.

Does anyone know of a way to brighten things up? I've seen a few retrofit kits, but am not really able to tell if they would work well in my hood. They seem to need to be mounted inside the hood, but also seem too large (so that they would site partially in the water) or too long, or that they don't have anything to protect them from water.

Any further advise would be great!

Thanks!!

"A fish swims through the sea, while the sea is in a certain sense contained within the fish."
-mewithoutYou

Hi,
I'd toss the Actinic bulb or trade it in on a second
daylight bulb.
Frank:


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

Ok, so I revisited hellolights.com (thanks for the previous heads up about this site!!) and found this:

http://www.hellolights.com/13wretrokit.html

This seems like it would work (it says it fits Eclipse System 12s). I'm sure I'll have to jimmy rig is some how, especially with the reflector. Since now I'll have two ballasts (one original and one from the kit) I want to combine the two. Is this possible? Will it get too hot? The fittings will be encased in a (I'm guessing) just plain old clear plastic compartment and I don't want to risk it deforming or melting.

How much would two 50/50 13 watt bulbs heat up 12 gallons?

Also, would having a lunar light on for the remainder of the time (during the night) help at all?

Thanks.

"A fish swims through the sea, while the sea is in a certain sense contained within the fish."
-mewithoutYou

I've been checking out Nano tanks and it seems like most have a lighting ration of 4 watts per gallon.

Anyone know of a good retrofit kit for an eclipse system 12 that would boost me to that? Is it totally necessary?

I found a kit that would get me 13 watts total.

What should I do?

Thanks.

"A fish swims through the sea, while the sea is in a certain sense contained within the fish."
-mewithoutYou

Hi,
Would these fit in your tank top:
http://www.hellolights.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWCATS&Category=580

The reason that most of the "nano tanks" are running
around 4 watts/gallon, daylight, or sunlight, bulbs is
because they are using high light demand plants, usually
mosses or carpet plants.

Frank


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

As far as moonlights go they do not produce enough light to cause growth at all. You should keep in mind that even plants need time of total darkness, so if you do use the moonlight you will need to have it turned off for several hours.

As for the Actinic bulbs I agree with Frank toss it or trade it.

But it will produce growth, just will cause the tank to be dark, and if you try to photograph the tank you wont be able to see much in the pics.

mts.gif" border="0"> I vote do you?
My Tanks at Photobucket