Superjohnny,
I know that Slip posted earlier that they use rebadged Fulhams. I just went in and looked and it has a generic gray label that mentions AH Supply in a footnote (its says its four up to 4 bulbs totalling not more than 110w when wired to AH specs…). I know that when he wrote that I already knew it, but I don't remember where from. It may have been Slip again in an earlier post (when he was explaining all of this stuff to me
). My experience has been that he knows what he's talking about.
Sump,
I wrestled with the lighting issue throughout the fall, and I still don't have the whole thing together. This whole bit about the ballast factors and differing efficiencies in nominally similar bulbs is a new wrinkle for me. I found this the other day while trying to research crypts and thought it was pretty on point. You can wrestle with the details indefinitely. The Krib, as usual, has some good stuff archived -- including the difference between lux, lumens and PAR (Photosynthetically Active Radiation), and a bit on how much is too much.
As for the setup to go with… it all depends on everything else. The canopy, the fish, the plants, the growth rate you're looking for.
One consideration for me was overlighting. My 2x36w is giving me 2.4 wpg. I'd read that most of my fish liked subdued lighting. If I had to do it over I'd go with the 96w. That would be 3.2 wpg for me. I like the light, fish don't seem to care -- they sometimes shade themselves under the plants, but no one spends the day in there. Plants are growing well as is.
On a 55 the 4x55 is going to be high but not crazy. If you're canopy is designed to hold them, maybe the NO is a better route for you. By having a single strip I can open my top without disturbing the lights. I could build the same thing for 2 strips on a 75, but with either 4x55 or 2x96 AH CF you'd have 2 strips, 8" wide and that may or may not interfere with your access just as much as the NO, depending on your design. I could probably get it to work, but its trickier. It would work fine for me with the 4x36 kit over a 55 (2 7" wide reflectors). A similar wattage to what you're talking about with the NO. You may have a different solution canopywise. I like leaving the lights in place as much as possible. Others have expressed a preference for wide coverage. If you don't want the space for something else, conserving it is not really a factor.
The reflectors -- all this talk about watts and ballasts. The reflectors are ridiculously bright and are IMO a significant contributing factor. The AH reflectors are supposed to be especially good (and can be ordered separately). I don't know what other reflectors are like so I can't compare. At least worth considering.
The AH end caps come with rubber sleeves for waterproofing. I've read about corrosion problems, especially if your tank is open. I don't think they invented it: it must be out there somewhere, some sort of weatherproofing. Worth noting.
I'll stay with the AH for the time being. I'm happy with it. I have a canopy design that I'm basically happy with that works with it. It suites my tastes. Slip thinks the bulbs break to easily and he doesn't like the light compared to other types. He tried it and went a different way. I read a thread that basically revolved around how much people didn't like wooden canopies. I like wooden canopies. At some point its just personal preferences,
I know that Slip posted earlier that they use rebadged Fulhams. I just went in and looked and it has a generic gray label that mentions AH Supply in a footnote (its says its four up to 4 bulbs totalling not more than 110w when wired to AH specs…). I know that when he wrote that I already knew it, but I don't remember where from. It may have been Slip again in an earlier post (when he was explaining all of this stuff to me
). My experience has been that he knows what he's talking about.Sump,
I wrestled with the lighting issue throughout the fall, and I still don't have the whole thing together. This whole bit about the ballast factors and differing efficiencies in nominally similar bulbs is a new wrinkle for me. I found this the other day while trying to research crypts and thought it was pretty on point. You can wrestle with the details indefinitely. The Krib, as usual, has some good stuff archived -- including the difference between lux, lumens and PAR (Photosynthetically Active Radiation), and a bit on how much is too much.
As for the setup to go with… it all depends on everything else. The canopy, the fish, the plants, the growth rate you're looking for.
One consideration for me was overlighting. My 2x36w is giving me 2.4 wpg. I'd read that most of my fish liked subdued lighting. If I had to do it over I'd go with the 96w. That would be 3.2 wpg for me. I like the light, fish don't seem to care -- they sometimes shade themselves under the plants, but no one spends the day in there. Plants are growing well as is.
On a 55 the 4x55 is going to be high but not crazy. If you're canopy is designed to hold them, maybe the NO is a better route for you. By having a single strip I can open my top without disturbing the lights. I could build the same thing for 2 strips on a 75, but with either 4x55 or 2x96 AH CF you'd have 2 strips, 8" wide and that may or may not interfere with your access just as much as the NO, depending on your design. I could probably get it to work, but its trickier. It would work fine for me with the 4x36 kit over a 55 (2 7" wide reflectors). A similar wattage to what you're talking about with the NO. You may have a different solution canopywise. I like leaving the lights in place as much as possible. Others have expressed a preference for wide coverage. If you don't want the space for something else, conserving it is not really a factor.
The reflectors -- all this talk about watts and ballasts. The reflectors are ridiculously bright and are IMO a significant contributing factor. The AH reflectors are supposed to be especially good (and can be ordered separately). I don't know what other reflectors are like so I can't compare. At least worth considering.
The AH end caps come with rubber sleeves for waterproofing. I've read about corrosion problems, especially if your tank is open. I don't think they invented it: it must be out there somewhere, some sort of weatherproofing. Worth noting.
I'll stay with the AH for the time being. I'm happy with it. I have a canopy design that I'm basically happy with that works with it. It suites my tastes. Slip thinks the bulbs break to easily and he doesn't like the light compared to other types. He tried it and went a different way. I read a thread that basically revolved around how much people didn't like wooden canopies. I like wooden canopies. At some point its just personal preferences,
