DIY light canopy and T5 setup

[killfire]

Just some pics to share of my home made light canopy which measures 2'L x 2'W x 8"H.

Canopy made from 3/8" plywood, veneer laminate finished.

Pic shows my wood workshop ... the corridor outside my hdb apartment...

[killfire]

The finished canopy... now for the T5s...

[killfire]

Setting up T5 lighting....

[ryz]

the tigerbrand thing is glue? for the laminate? where u get the laminate from huh? and plywood too... where to get? hehe thinking of doing one.

[killfire]

the top view of the canopy with light setup completed....

Lighting configuration (Aquaz T5 HO tubes and spider parabolic reflectors):

2 x 24W Actinic Pro

2 x 24W Sun Pro 6500K

4 x 24W Blue Pro 20000k

4 x 24W dual tube elbiru e-ballast

Arrangement:

Actinic pro

Blue pro

Sun pro

Blue pro

Blue pro

Sun pro

Blue pro

Actinic pro

Any comments on this arrangement?

[killfire]

canopy... reflector and light tube side

[killfire]

2 x Actinic pro fired up

[killfire]

2 x 6500K lighted up....

[killfire]

All systems go......

Btw, the tubes, reflectors and e-ballasts are mounted on a removable rack (the 2 pieces of wood spaning the width of the canopy).... to allow access into the tank...

and yes... those are non-waterproof endcaps... will be mounting a thin piece of acrylic sheet to shield them from splashes...

[killfire]

the tigerbrand thing is glue? for the laminate? where u get the laminate from huh? and plywood too... where to get? hehe thinking of doing one.

yeah.. the tiger brand thing is a can of glue... the type that people use to sniff.... smells really good .... just like candy

wood and laminate from the timber factories in Sg Kadut... but they only sell in 8'x4' pieces ..... had to get them to cut in half before transporting home...

[typrobin]

nice piece of work...

too bad my workanship not as good as yours...

[Clownfish]

hmm... seems to me it gets dimmer as u switch on more tubes?

[killfire]

hmm... seems to me it gets dimmer as u switch on more tubes?

the tubes don't get dimmer as more are lighted up... they are on separate circuits.

I think the effect is caused by the dig cam I am using ...

[ryz]

it's the digicam auto exposure settings... compensate for the brightness..

WOW your lights look impressive... confirm get good spread...

whats that one green tube?? 3rd from the right.

[danano]

KF, nice workmanship!

Do you have a pic of the hood on the tank?

[YzF]

Very nice setup! Professional enough to diy for pple liao..

[kamiru]

Hey killfire, where did you order the wood? What is the price and the size of your hood? Pls advise, thks!

[slcw]

wow nice, show it on the tank

[chselee]

Nice work..

The parts cost is about $500 I guess.

[killfire]

Hi all,

Thanks for the kind comments.

Ryz: Thanks for explaining the camera bit... The 3rd tube from the right is an Aquaz Sun Pro tube 6500k... The 6th tube should also be a Sun Pro and should appear yellow... but I think I mixed up my tubes and used a Blue Pro (20KK) instead...

Danano, slcw: Have not taken a pic of the canopy on top of the tank... but have tried it on... the bottom of the canopy overlaps the tank by 2" thereby hiding the water surface.... Lights are about 3" from water surface... but can be lowered further.... will try to take the pic tonight... was searching high and low for my camera charger last night but couldn't find it... hope the cam has enough juice for some more shots....

Kamiru: The hood is 2'(L) x 2'(W) x 8"(H). Wood is bought from Sg Kadut, there are quite a number of timber factories/shops there... however, they sell in 8' x 4' stock pieces...

Chselee: The canopy is cheap..... It is the T5 stuff that make up a big part of the cost... Cost for whole setup is under $400..

Rgs,

Isaac

[dradttg]

Nice work bro.

Wow 8 tubes for 2 ft!!

[yangster]

great work dude! you are hardcore! 8 tubes for 2ft length & 1.5ft depth! super!!! going for SPS? & clams??

[dr evil]

nicely done....... another diy guru in the making....

[killfire]

great work dude! you are hardcore! 8 tubes for 2ft length & 1.5ft depth! super!!! going for SPS? & clams??

Yeah... mainly to grow out my sps frags and as a holding tank for some colonies...

[Eric]

Hi all,

Thanks for the kind comments.

Ryz: Thanks for explaining the camera bit... The 3rd tube from the right is an Aquaz Sun Pro tube 6500k... The 6th tube should also be a Sun Pro and should appear yellow... but I think I mixed up my tubes and used a Blue Pro (20KK) instead...

Danano, slcw: Have not taken a pic of the canopy on top of the tank... but have tried it on... the bottom of the canopy overlaps the tank by 2" thereby hiding the water surface.... Lights are about 3" from water surface... but can be lowered further.... will try to take the pic tonight... was searching high and low for my camera charger last night but couldn't find it... hope the cam has enough juice for some more shots....

Kamiru: The hood is 2'(L) x 2'(W) x 8"(H). Wood is bought from Sg Kadut, there are quite a number of timber factories/shops there... however, they sell in 8' x 4' stock pieces...

Chselee: The canopy is cheap..... It is the T5 stuff that make up a big part of the cost... Cost for whole setup is under $400..

Rgs,

Isaac

Hi killfire,

Can pm me the exact address of the timber factory and prices of the wood, where to buy T5 parts the cheapest?

Planning of diying a 2 x 250W with 4 x T5 for my 3ft x 1.5ft x 2.5ft tank end of year. Or you want to give me a quote?

Eric