Lighting Dilemma

[chessie]

Have a 110 gal. tank (high - 30"). Lighting that came w/tank is 2 55w Perfecto power compacts & 2 40w actinic blue. What I want to do is increase the lighting.Right now do not have any corals but, would like to have sufficient lighting in the case I would like to add some at a later date. Tank has a glass top. Anything that would hang is out of the question due to cathedral ceilings. I also am concerned about the heat factor due to lights having to sit directly on the glass. Any help would be greatly appreciated - thanks!

 

[chuck]

If you or someone else could build you a hood to match your tank you could put whatever lighting you wanted in your tank that would be mounted high enough off the water so that it wouldn't heat up the environment to much. A general carpenter or even you could do it. It doesn't have to be perfect. A little paint or stain can make any creation look good. There are also spots on the web that tell you how to do it.

 

[chessie]

Chuck,
I like the idea of a 'custom' built hood & think it would work pretty well. Do you happen to know how to connect to these sites (re: custom hoods) that you were speaking of?? Thanks for your help.
Originally posted by chuck:
If you or someone else could build you a hood to match your tank you could put whatever lighting you wanted in your tank that would be mounted high enough off the water so that it wouldn't heat up the environment to much. A general carpenter or even you could do it. It doesn't have to be perfect. A little paint or stain can make any creation look good. There are also spots on the web that tell you how to do it.

 

[gus]

Originally posted by Chessie:
Have a 110 gal. tank (high - 30"). Lighting that came w/tank is 2 55w Perfecto power compacts & 2 40w actinic blue. What I want to do is increase the lighting.Right now do not have any corals but, would like to have sufficient lighting in the case I would like to add some at a later date. Tank has a glass top. Anything that would hang is out of the question due to cathedral ceilings. I also am concerned about the heat factor due to lights having to sit directly on the glass. Any help would be greatly appreciated - thanks!
Having a hood is the only way to go. besides, if you plan on adding any corals later you will need to remove the glass top so as not to reflect all the good lighting spectrum away from the tank. Kep in mind this will also increase your evaporation rate, but nothing that is alarming. I have a 100gal that needs about a gal a day replacement with the two VHO's that I have..