Protective sleeves for bulbs

[new2us]

Is anyone using those protective sleeves that you can get for your bulbs to keep the salt off? Our 55 was quite successful fairly quickly so we just converted to a 90 gallon set up with a canopy and VHO lights. Now our bulbs are installed into the canopy but the splash is a bit of a concern to us - starting to see a little salt residue on the bulbs, so looking to see if anyone has had any problems with using those protective sleeves you can purchase separately. These are double-ended bulbs so they don't have the protective coating built in, I don't think.

 

[reefraff]

Just wipe the lamps down every few days. The protective sleeve will cut down on output and possibly filter out some part of the spectrum of light your critters need..

 

[new2us]

Okay.....I had just heard the sleeves might actually prolong the life of the bulbs, but I certainly do not want to give up the light output. Do I need to worry about bulbs breaking and gases poisoning the tank? Had heard that somewhere a while back as well. :notsure:
With my former lighting system, it had a built-in shield so I didn't have these issues. Sorry if they seem like dumb questions. BTW, thanks much for the help.

 

[reefraff]

I wouldn't worry about it, I have never heard of a VHO shattering from a splash.

 

[thegrog]

Don't worry about VHOs getting a little splash on them. Just wipe them down regularly (when they are off and cool). If anything, the sleves shorten their life as they keep in heat.