what do you think?

[FishNiX]

i have a standard 29, with a standard hood that comes with the aquarium...

i took out the guts of the light fixture (a fluorescent tube setup) and installed 2 regular bulb sockets...about 3 inches from each end of the strip on custom brackets....

I have one colder 25W and one "soft white" 25W compact fluorescent, so basically I'm getting 50W, which is nearly 2W/gallon...there is no reflector as of yet, but i think ill use either aluminum foil or flashing.

as a side note, i used 14guage wire...anyone see a problem with that?


seems a lot brighter than what came with the tank! what do you all think?
thanks!!

 

[Bol]

If you're wondering if the wire will "handle" the load, 14-gauge is more than fine.

It's been a while since I checked code, but I'm pretty sure that 14-gauge house wiring can be used for about 1500W (recommended breaker = 15 amps).

 

[FishNiX]

great... yeah that is what i was worried about, didnt want to burn the house down

anyone have any other comments/suggestions? i think a reflector will add even more
light, which should help... am i getting close to enough light to grow some redder plants?

anyone have experience with these type of bulbs? are they similar to what people call a
"power compact"?

thanks!!

oh yeah...the bulbs were rated as equivelent to 150W and 100W incandecent bulbs...what effect does this have on actual light output... should i be using this as the calculation(250W total!!), or something in between?