Help with canopy design (pictures greatly appreciated)

krishj39

krishj39

Active Member
What is a safe height for me to add 2 250w MH to my 90g tank? I want it to be high enough off the water that I can be certain I won't need a chiller. I will happily install all the fans I need when I build the canopy, but NO chiller. I will also have 2 110w VHO under the canopy. The thing is, I also don't want to have the MH and VHO so far off the the surface that I loose a significant amount of the light's punch. I know you guys have dealt with this before, what is the ideal height for this? And, how many and where should I install the fans, and should they blow in or out? Also, I'm still debating using 400w MH instead. I want the lights high enough so I won't need to chill, yet have enough light in the tank that I can keep anything I want (in terms of light, obviously).
Right now, I'm dreaming up a 20" tall canopy with an open back. I'd have the MH and VHO about 16" off the water. Probably 4, 4" fans, two on the top and one on each side of the canopy. Thoughts?
However, I really need to know how high I should put the lights before I can really start making plans on building the canopy and making progress on the project.
Sorry for all the questions, I'm just finding the info very hard to come by.
 
krishj39

krishj39

Active Member
Open top! That's a great idea! I'd probably make the canopy 24 inches tall, maybe up to 28 inches, high enough so the light couldn't possibly get in people eyes (if I made the canopy 20 tall, it would end at around 6' off the ground). Hmm, do you have a height recommendation if I went with 2 250ws? It is a 4' long tank. Obviously, I'd like to get away with that if possible.
 
wamp

wamp

Active Member
My 250s are about 5.5" off the top of hte water. I wanted higher but it was not possible with the canopy I wanted.
The heat builds pretty fast in my canopy. I do not have fans yet though. When I put those in I hope to see a diffrence in tank temp.
The problem with them being so close is it is hard (with the reflectors) to get an arm in there and work in the tank. So, I left room for the canopy to slide back on the ridge of the tank to have room to work.
My canopy, if you can imagine, is nothing more than 2 side panels and a top that only covers half the top. The other half is hinged with the front to open so the whole half of the top and the front panel lift up... I will snap a pic tonight for you. It is not the prettiest of things but it get's the job done..
I would suggest one thing. Once you get all your pieces cut and drilled, go ahead and stain and poyurethene the caopy and then put it togtner. I wish I had. There are always some small hard to reach cracks to get the stain in..
Good Luck!
 
krishj39

krishj39

Active Member
The tank is 24" tall, minus about 4" for sand. 250's are good enough for my tank? At what height? Would I be fine with the bulbs at say, 10 inches?
Wamp, I can visualize your canopy, but I'd like to see that picture. If you don't have fans, how are you keeping your tank from overheating? What size tank is it? Yeah, certainly, regardless of what setup I go with, I'll have to figure out a way to have easy access to my tank.
Right now I'm thinking just a simple cabinet door thing that drops down across the front, giving my full access to the lights and the tank. I have a proto-type design plan, but it's on paper so I can't share it with you guys. Thanks for the tip on staining first (though I'll probably polyurathane after to be sure I get it all good and sealed (nails and all).
I have not yet purchased any MH equipment. Cheap as possible is the goal. I still know precious little about MH from a technical perspective. I was looking into DE bulbs but I haven't hear much about them, or know ANYTHING about them. Do they require a special MH ballast? I'd like to order the ballasts through an electical supply/lighting company near me. I can get a 400w tar ballast there for $80, and a 250w for $70. Those ballasts will either have to be totally incompatible with the bulbs and sockets I need for an aquarium, or horribly inefficient for me to seriously consider getting practically the same ballast with a sticker on it that says something about aquariums. Although, I have seen some dual ballasts that weren't much more than $160, which is the cost of 2 at the light store here.
 
krishj39

krishj39

Active Member
Yup. Didn't get an answer in the other thread, rather than resurrecting that one and making people scroll through 20 posts, I thought I'd start over, asking the questions that didn't get answered last time. However, your posts were very helpful.
 
wamp

wamp

Active Member
I paid 400$ for my two 250w bulbs, ballasts and reflectors..
I would not go with the tar ballasts. They are very hot and are very inefficent...
As far as keeping the tank cool, it stays at 82 with the lights on. I am going to try and drop it to 78 with fans but doubt it will et that low. I can only hope..
The tank is directly in fron of an AC register. That helps a little. I would hate to see what it would get if it were not
 
plum70rt

plum70rt

Active Member
here is my canopy when did some work to it , 560watts VHO, dual 400 watt MH, No chiller, 10 inch off the water ,I use that 4 inch fan on top and 3 more fans in hood 2 suck out air one 12ich fan blows air forward,
 
krishj39

krishj39

Active Member
Thanks Wamp! I see what you mean about tight space for working in the tank. I'm glad you mentioned how much it cost you too. I was thinking about 600$, but then, that was including the cost of building the canopy, which I'm hoping I can keep under 100$ (prices get high when you use oak...).
I can special order pulse ballasts at the local lighting supply store, is that a good option? I'm just concerned they might not be compatible, and it costs like 30% of the bill to return special orders. I'm pretty sure I could get all the electrical stuff I need at this store, except the bulbs (although it wouldn't suprise me if I could special order the right frequency bulbs too). Has any one gone that route? As far as I know, it should be pretty straight forward, a project someone with basic electrical knowledge (me) should be able to do, but then I'm scared I'll end up buying all this DIY stuff and run into a nightmare of problems.
Anyone know of a good place to buy the MH equipment?
kristopherjhoffman@hotmailNOSPAM.com (remove NOSPAM)
 
krishj39

krishj39

Active Member
Plum! Glad to see you here. What's your take on my situation? Should I go with the 250 or the 400? I notice your tank is SIGNIFICANTLY larger than mine, so that means it is far more likely for mine to overheat with similar lighting. Are the 3 fans not pictured basically modified house fans or something (the 12 incher sounds like it must be :)).
Don't be shy guys, feel free to gimme your opinions on what I should do. I won't hold you responsible, I promise :D
 
wamp

wamp

Active Member
If money were not an issue and you plan on having SPS and Clams, the 400w would be the best! Heat can be an issue. Alot depends on ambient room temp.
My 65 with 2-250w is good to me. But a 90 (which is the same height as mine) I would have gone with the 400w because more water is harder to heat....
My only concern was water volume and heat when I bought the 250. If I had more water, I would have gone with a higher wattage bulb.
 
krishj39

krishj39

Active Member
Broomer, I was hoping you'd reply. I remembered you posting those picks back a long time ago. How high off the water are your halides? What have you done to combat heat in that tank? Are you upgrading to 400w MHs in the fall? Are you considering double ended?
The room the tank is in is actually about the only un-air conditioned room in the house. While it isn't in the basement, the room is about half-way under ground so we haven't ever needed to airco it. The room in the summer down there still doesn't get above 74.
 
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