I have a deep blue solarmax 2xT5HO+LED fixture on my 55 gallon tank. It has served me well thus far, but it finally came time to replace the bulbs since I got the usual cue of the tank suddenly growing great gobs of hair algae in the refugium instead of the normal great gobs of chaeto. My problem is that I wasn't able to put the fixture back together the way it was before replacing the bulbs.
Out of the box, this fixture had a plexiglass/acrylic/some plastic cover between the bulbs and whatever the fixture was to sit on. Unfortunately, although I was able to remove the old bulbs by just taking the ends off the fixture (which is the only way into the thing - the ends also keep the cover from budging), I couldn't insert the new bulbs and get them working with this cover in place. Trying to insert the bulbs in the way the old ones were loaded, sitting lightly in both removable ends, meant they didn't turn on when I flipped the switch. The old ones somehow worked without the usual quarter twist fluorescent fixtures require, but the new ones absolutely need it. I see no way to both twist the bulbs AND replace the plexiglass cover unless I do the seemingly dangerous and stupid approach of "locking" one side with the twist, putting the cover on, and then just pushing really hard to force the pegs of both bulbs simultaneously into already "locked" openings on the other side. I just don't feel comfortable with that method even though I have now read some accounts of others doing exactly that out of frustration. Seems like a great way to break a bulb or two if anything slips and possibly give my hand a good injury since the metal edges aren't exactly smooth.
Making things slightly worse, then I attempted to slide the cover out as it was obviously meant to, it snapped. There was a slightly wider spot that apparently hadn't been sanded down properly. It stuck and caused it to split under very little tugging. Not a huge problem in itself since I have gotten rid of that wider irregularity and can slide the two halves in and out still while managing a pretty tight join if I really need to put them back in there (assuming I actually can without telekinesis). Unfortunately the instructions have taken a hike so I can't confirm whether I'm recalling them wrong, but I really see no way to put the thing back together the way it originally was - assuming I want the lights to turn on!
Cutting to the chase, I am now running this fixture cover-less. The main reason for this is that I want the tank lit while I have a think about what the heck is going wrong. The tank has a glass canopy, so this is essentially the arrangement I am familiar with for all of my other fluorescent fixtures: no cover built into the fixture, but a cover over the tank keeping everything safe (I was actually a bit surprised this one had an extra cover). Additionally, the fixture is running distinctly cooler now, almost certainly due to the extra bit of air circulation allowed by not having the cover on, so I'm wondering whether to even try putting it back.
So, fellow salties who may have seen this kind of fixture issue before: yay or nay on leaving it cover-less and just relying on the glass canopy for protection like I do for all my other fluorescent fixtures? Is there some massive benefit to that plastic cover that I'm not seeing?
Out of the box, this fixture had a plexiglass/acrylic/some plastic cover between the bulbs and whatever the fixture was to sit on. Unfortunately, although I was able to remove the old bulbs by just taking the ends off the fixture (which is the only way into the thing - the ends also keep the cover from budging), I couldn't insert the new bulbs and get them working with this cover in place. Trying to insert the bulbs in the way the old ones were loaded, sitting lightly in both removable ends, meant they didn't turn on when I flipped the switch. The old ones somehow worked without the usual quarter twist fluorescent fixtures require, but the new ones absolutely need it. I see no way to both twist the bulbs AND replace the plexiglass cover unless I do the seemingly dangerous and stupid approach of "locking" one side with the twist, putting the cover on, and then just pushing really hard to force the pegs of both bulbs simultaneously into already "locked" openings on the other side. I just don't feel comfortable with that method even though I have now read some accounts of others doing exactly that out of frustration. Seems like a great way to break a bulb or two if anything slips and possibly give my hand a good injury since the metal edges aren't exactly smooth.
Making things slightly worse, then I attempted to slide the cover out as it was obviously meant to, it snapped. There was a slightly wider spot that apparently hadn't been sanded down properly. It stuck and caused it to split under very little tugging. Not a huge problem in itself since I have gotten rid of that wider irregularity and can slide the two halves in and out still while managing a pretty tight join if I really need to put them back in there (assuming I actually can without telekinesis). Unfortunately the instructions have taken a hike so I can't confirm whether I'm recalling them wrong, but I really see no way to put the thing back together the way it originally was - assuming I want the lights to turn on!
Cutting to the chase, I am now running this fixture cover-less. The main reason for this is that I want the tank lit while I have a think about what the heck is going wrong. The tank has a glass canopy, so this is essentially the arrangement I am familiar with for all of my other fluorescent fixtures: no cover built into the fixture, but a cover over the tank keeping everything safe (I was actually a bit surprised this one had an extra cover). Additionally, the fixture is running distinctly cooler now, almost certainly due to the extra bit of air circulation allowed by not having the cover on, so I'm wondering whether to even try putting it back.
So, fellow salties who may have seen this kind of fixture issue before: yay or nay on leaving it cover-less and just relying on the glass canopy for protection like I do for all my other fluorescent fixtures? Is there some massive benefit to that plastic cover that I'm not seeing?
