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oilfieldsafety
11-22-2007, 04:26 PM
Hey

I have a 29 gallon setup at work. To keep things clean I used an Eclipse 3 hood. I want to mod the existing dual T8 NO lights and would love to get your feedback/suggestions before I get started.

Thanks in advance.

Shane
Der_Iron_Chef
11-22-2007, 04:28 PM
How are you wanting to mod them?
oilfieldsafety
11-22-2007, 04:31 PM
I was thinking about either pc/ho/vho. I want to get as much extra light as I can without have huge heat issues within the canopy. Burning down the office is not conducive to long term employment.:lol:

Shane
Der_Iron_Chef
11-22-2007, 04:36 PM
Retrofit a couple HO T5's in there with individual reflectors. That would be my official recommendation.
oilfieldsafety
11-22-2007, 04:38 PM
Who would be my best bet for all the fixins?
Der_Iron_Chef
11-22-2007, 04:48 PM
Not sure about the dimensions of your tank, but there's always something like this:

http://www.jlaquatics.com/phpstore/store_pages/details/l-fl-retro2.php?product_ID=sl-t5tret24
oilfieldsafety
11-22-2007, 05:01 PM
Tank is a standard 29 gallon so 30" in length.
mark
11-22-2007, 05:20 PM
Yep, the T5 retro seems the way to go.

There's some back and forth on RC though which is the better reflector, the Icecap SLR or the TEK II.
oilfieldsafety
11-22-2007, 05:29 PM
What is the heat off of the t5's going to be like, any idea?
mark
11-22-2007, 07:10 PM
more light, more watts, more heat
oilfieldsafety
11-22-2007, 08:44 PM
The measurements that I got from J&L for the t5 kit make me think that I will have to look at PC lighting iinstead. The t5's won't fit inside the light cover in the Eclipse hood.
kwirky
11-22-2007, 08:47 PM
You could leave the ballast outside the canopy would that make for more room?

I'd recommend a set of 24" HO T5 retrofits like what J&L sells too because they are much more efficient than PC lights. Two T5 bulbs would be more intense light output than 4 PC bulbs.

You could cool your case with little VGA or "chipset" fans from a computer store like NCIX. Cut the "blowholes" in your canopy with a hole saw and use fan grills to keep it tidy. Power it with a 12V 1A power adapter from the source or canadian tire.

http://img.ncix.com/gif/16829.JPG
http://www.ncix.com/products/index.php?sku=16829&vpn=IXP-34-16&manufacture=SilenX%20Corporation

This will give you lots of light output and will deal with the cooling of the canopy quite well.

Or maybe consider a new tank and canopy? That might be the easiest and best solution?
oilfieldsafety
11-24-2007, 11:35 PM
Bump