T5 lighting and glass canopy

S

Soldaneg

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May 22, 2008
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Hi everyone, I am new to reef keeping and have just purchased my first lighting system for my 72 gallon tank. The Nova Extreme Pro 6x54 was the best fit for my desired stock and also the most economical. My question is, can I lay the lighting system directly on top of the glass canopy or is the heat (or anything else for that matter) going to cause problems? I don't want to use the legs that came with it because they are too long and make viewing the tank from the seating arrangement of the room difficult due to the brightness of the light. Any thoughts or suggestions?
 
I don't see how it will hurt anything they don't get really hot so heat isn't an issue. Didn't fixture come with little rubber legs that are like an inch high? They only problem I see with laying it on the glass is being a pain to open the lid.
 
My only concern would be heat. Even a 1" gap between the glass and the fixture allows for heat to be circulated away from the bulbs. If the bulbs get too hot, their spectral output will shift more quickly. There's also been some reported loss of PAR when T5s are run outside their designed temperature range.
 
fsn77 said:
My only concern would be heat. Even a 1" gap between the glass and the fixture allows for heat to be circulated away from the bulbs. If the bulbs get too hot, their spectral output will shift more quickly. There's also been some reported loss of PAR when T5s are run outside their designed temperature range.
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Agree 100%. You'll lose a lot of intensity just from the heat.
 
I may be wrong but don't T5's run cooling fans and a lens that covers the bulbs.heat should not be a prob
 
McLendon said:
I may be wrong but don't T5's run cooling fans and a lens that covers the bulbs.heat should not be a prob
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Most of the fixtures that run like that aren't nearly as effective as they could be. Higher end units manage to circumvent these problems. But don't expect Nova Extreme fixtures or even Tek fixtures to work as well in the same conditions.
 
I have the 36" fixture NEP I use glass tops and use the legs.
untill I get a canopy built I have a long short piece of cadboard leaning on the front of the light on top of the glass to keep the glare in...it helps alot for now :D
I would recommend to not put it directly on he glass as the fixture does get pretty hot and is heavy to be taking it on and off the glass
 
I ended up laying the legs on their side and placing them on the rim of the aquarium. I then placed the lights on top of the legs. This gives me about an inch of space between the light and the glass and does not affect the viewing of the tank. I believe this should work but let me know what you guys think.
 
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