glass cover for mh

lordofthereef

lordofthereef

Member
hi all. i am just about to finish my mh canopy for a 29 gallon sps reef. the hood is 16 inches tall, so the mh is 10 inches from the water. i plan on using a 3/16" thick peice of glass built into the hood to prevent water on the bulbs. it will be about 5 inches from the bulb, an another five from the water. under the glass in the back will be a four inch opening, and the front and sides will be enclosed. i will also be using two radio shack 4" colling fans fortemerature control in the top of the hood. so my question is, is the glass a good idea or not? i am just paranoid about moisture on the mh. BTW, i'm using two 75w vho actinics, and one 250w iwasaki mh. thanks for any help you can give me.
 
jacksonpt

jacksonpt

Active Member
General opinion is that the glass is not a good idea. Not only will it obstruct the light, but it will also interfere with cooling. I have run single and dual 250 MH in my DIY canopy, both with and without the glass, no problems either way. From what I've been told, the only problem with moisture is to the wood, not the wiring. Make sure you give the inside of your canopy a couple coats of polyurthane to protect the wood from the moisture.
 
jacksonpt

jacksonpt

Active Member
If your bulb is 10" off the water, you've got to have some serious splashing going on in order for the bulb to get wet. A little moisture from evaporation isn't going to hurt the bulb. Just make sure your wood is protected and your wiring is good (i.e. no frayed wires, etc.).
The bulb will be fine.
 
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