Re: lighting idea?

On Sat, 28 Jan 2006 18:40:42 GMT, Elaine T <eetmail-fish@xxxxxxxxx>
wrote:

>NetMax wrote:
>> "Richard Sexton" <richard@xxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
>> news:drg41d$vns$7@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
>>
>>>In article <o43lt1tpenp2spe5v98us9jinqcilsdq4n@xxxxxxx>,
>>>Mr. Gardener <mrgardener@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
>>>
>>>>The screw-in compact flourescent light bulbs are also available in
>>>>full spectrum as well as daylight around 6400 dK. I've made a couple
>>>>of strip lights for my kids' aquariums using them and the plant growth
>>>>was wonderful. I used a length of white plastic rain gutter, spray
>>>
>>>Yeah I tried that too. The rain gutter turns brown and brittle over
>>>time from the heat of the lamp. When I need to do this I use a standard
>>>black aquaruim hood made to take incandescents and scew in as many 23W
>>>daylight bulbs as I can (you can usually add a couple more byt adding
>>>another incandescent fitting.
>>>
>>>Keep in mind the refelctor in a fluorescent setup is going to give you
>>>almost half your light as it reflects the light that's otherwise waster
>>>because it's pointing the wrong direction (down, not up). So, a good
>>>bet
>>>would be to to go a hydroponics shop and get the heat and moisture
>>>resistant
>>>mylar and urethane glue it to the inside of the canopy.
>>>
>>>Like this:
>>>http://images.aquaria.net/hw/lights/screwins/
>>>
>>>--
>>> Need Mercedes parts ? - http://parts.mbz.org
>>>Richard Sexton
>>
>>
>> Thanks for the link. I'm resurrecting an old 120g and I'll probably
>> build a new canopy for it. I can have something made out of stainless
>> steel, so shape is not an issue. The tank top is 60" x 18". I usually
>> order glass plates to cover the top and then install the lighting in a
>> sliding or fixed canopy, in this case, four 4' fluorescent lamps would be
>> my typical approach. On my last canopy, I used the following:
>> 2 Philips F40-DX Daylight CRI 85, 6500K $3cdn each (Home Depot)
>> 1 Sylvania F40/GRO/AQ/WS Gro-Lux $7.50cdn (Home Hardware)
>> 1 GE F40C50 Chroma 50 Sunshine CRI 90, 5000K $7cdn (Canadian Tire)
>> ..which provided a wide bright spectrum.
>>
>> With your experience with these screw-in fluorescents, do you think it is
>> worthwhile investigating their use, or do you think I should stick with
>> my garden-variety and inexpensive approach using multiple inexpensive
>> lamps?
>>
>> I looked into halogen spot lighting, but their efficiency is not much
>> better than incandescent, though I may still use it for accents (I want
>> that shadow ripple across the bottom of the tank for the evening
>> transition), and for helping certain plants.
>>
>> I have the feeling that if I can wait long enough, there will be a
>> solution available using LEDs. Now that would be interesting, especially
>> is I could dim them, and turn on different banks for changes in hue (a
>> slight blue tinge in an open area, red-brown hue over the plants).
>>
>> Thanks for any feedback.
>
>Spiral compact screw-in bulbs get shot down on the AGA mailing list
>every time they're mentioned. Folks have measured lumens from them and
>they put out far less light than the same wattage T5. Somehow a lot of
>light is wasted by the spiral shape. I don't know how they compare to
>hardware store T12s, but you'll certainly get more even lighting from
>long tubes.

That doesn't surprise me. I use long tubes and 65W PCs on my display
tanks. But cost is a factor, and if I'm not doing anything special
with a tank, I'll take the cheap way out. I see these as a step up
from incadescents. And everyday run of the mill plants do just fine in
them. And I must continue to stress that one must take the time to
ensure their spiral screw-ins are not the general use bulbs found in
hardware stores, but 6500 or full spectrum found in gardening and fish
catalogs. Come to think of it, they're not all spirals - I've got a
couple that measure about 6 inches long, mounted to their screw-in
balast with a 2 pin connection. Westinghouse. Since they are u shaped
bulbs, like bigger PCs, that's 12 inches of tube per bulb. Lot of
light. 2 13 watters equivalent to around 100 watts. And they've got to
be better than the 15 and 20 watt straight flourescents supplied with
commercial hoods and strip lights for 15 or 20 gallon tanks..

Mr Gardener
.

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