I Don't Know If This Has Occured To Anyone...

[InaneCathode]

But i've heard comments that acrylic tubing for water bridges is rather expensive. It's just occured to me that florescent light covers are very cheap, very common, and very strong. It might be an idea to use one of those in a project?

 

[SkiFletch]

Its ok mechanically for the lamps. As for the fish, if you've been doing this for a long time.... "If it aint broke, dont fix it"

 

[Lateral Line]

I've never seen a fluorescent lamp cover which would do the job?

 

[NoRp]

the reasons for using the real tubing is for clearness safeness and getting elbow joints to fit
plus ive never really seen a florescent tubing wide enough for fish to turn round in

 

[Lateral Line]

I still don't know what the OP is talking about. Can someone post a link to this material, it is possible we don't have it here, the government ban all kinds of things here for what are usually extremely flimsy reasons.

 

[wendywc]

Here you go Lateral Line. http/www.northsolarscreen.com/html/fluorescent.shtml

The light covering he's talking about is the covering/tubing to sheath flourescent lights with. It's a safety thing to protect people from shattering bulbs or to protect the bulb from condensation/water or some diffuse the light for an office, etc.

 

[InaneCathode]

A guy in the states here has made a record setting water rocket out of one of those, they can hold an excess of 200psi no problem. They're really long polycarbonate tubes they normally sell at home improvement stores.

As far as width goes, i guess you'd only use it if you intend small fish to go through it

 

[Rooster]

But they filter UV... so essentially killing all benefit of "aquarium" tubes

 

[wendywc]

But they filter UV... so essentially killing all benefit of "aquarium" tubes

Not all tubes do.

 

[Lateral Line]

I think there is some severe marketting double talk in that link!

Of course fluorescent lamps generate UV, that is how they work! The UV then is converted to visible light by the phosphors on the inside of the lamp wall. Almost no UV escapes from a decent quality lamp. The description also talks about it being made of Mylar film. This is usually quite a flexible material, the bags in wine boxes are made of it for example, (many of them anyway). I don't see it having the rigidity necessary to produce a bridge.

I have never seen such an item for sale here, perhaps we ar enot as gullible?!?!?

 

[RRasco]

im sure there are varying degrees of thickness. for example, i work at a theatrical stage equip co, and we sell gels that slip on over fluorescents like that. i have not personally handled them, so i could not tell you the thickness, but i would not put water in it.

you can always use clear PVC as well, but that is just as expensive as acrylic. I got a 2" piece of clear PVC for my inline external reactor, it was $10/ft!

 

[InaneCathode]

Wendywc, that link isn't what i'm talking about. That's some goofy marketting gimmick that slips on over florenscent lights. I'm talking about the safety version.
Rooster: I'm not sure what you're talking about, but i'm intending those covers for water bridges not tube covers.
Lateral line: I'll try to find a link to what i'm talking about. Filter bags for lights arent nearly ridgid enough to create a water bridge out of...

Edit: Links:
http/www.bulbco.com/tubeguards4ft.html
http/www.covershield.co.uk/lamp%20cover.htm

 

[Lateral Line]

PolyCarbonate is a lot tougher than Mylar film. Crash helmets etc. are made of PolyCarbonate. The sizes offered on the link I checked would not be large enough really, you really need something that a scared fish can easily turn in.

What concerns me more is that people are buying this stuff at all! Fluorescent lamps are not prone to exploding. Are we so far down the American road that we need to sleeve our lamps in bags to prevent vacuous law suits? Sad day.

 

[SkiFletch]

Dont get me started, at least those second links were to make "fun colors"