Can hallides go through glass top?

[FinzAquatics]

Okay, ive been hearing conflicting stories. Some people have hallides on open top, some do have glass tops with hallides. I was told by a couple LFSs that hallide spectrim cannot pass the glass on glass tops, so ive strayed away from them due to that. but now ive seen a couple people with glass tops and having reefs.

So what is true, can hallides go through glass? If so are there restrictions on certain corals? Pros Cons... help me out

 

[B.rian]

well one con would be crazy heat build up. i would not recommend glass tops, just screen in the top of the tank. do you have a uv shield/splash guard?

 

[Frag Freaks]

I agree with ^^ i think you would see alot of heat and evap in the water due to a glass top. I have an open top with my halides but the halides themself have a uv/splash shield. I think most people if they need to cover their tanks for some reason use egg crate.

 

[FinzAquatics]

well my thing is i have a stretch hex, so it sucks with placing lights on the tank. i hate the idea of hanging lights from the ceiling.

but my thing is if the spectrim of a hallide can pass glass, i dont mind setting up an extra fan or two to pump the heat away from the tank. i am just concerned with the corals. if i have glass tops will the corals that need hallides survive?

and if not... what would happen if i got plexy, and i shaped it to my tank. is that a possibilty. ive notice most hallides/pcs have that layer of plexy so the bulbs dont get wet. so i assume the spectrim can pass the plexy. would that work?

 

[NateHanson]

Actually you get very little evaporation with glass covers, and that's one reason the heat build-up under a cover is so huge. The other reason is that light energy passes through glass, but the infrared radiant heat your tank is trying to get rid of doesn't go through the glass. It's the greenhouse principle.

The short answer is don't use glass covers. There's no reason to. Whatever your type of light they reduce evaporation (which limits your supplementation of Ca/Alk by kalk-dripping), increase heat, and they'll inevitably get salt splash caked on them which will block lots of your light from getting into the tank.

Nate

 

[FinzAquatics]

but how about if i made a plexy cover as i stated before?

im stuck on this concept because i like the option of having the light sit on the tank rather than hang from ceiling (i have slanted ceilings)

 

[NateHanson]

You can't use plastic under a halide fixture. They'll melt or burn the plastic.

As for your plan to use glass, but just add fans, the fans don't do much to move heat away from the tank, because the tank is sealed with a glass top. Fans don't work by blowing heat away as much as they facilitate evaporation, which absorbs lots of heat. Wet one hand and not the other. The wet one will feel much colder because the water is evaporating, and when water changes from liquid to gas, it sucks up energy to make that phase change (evaporation is Endothermic).

 

[smcnally]

Why not build a canopy for it and mount the light in the canopy?

 

[Moe_K]

Why not build a canopy for it and mount the light in the canopy?

Yeah, that's the other option if you don't want to hang them from the ceiling.

 

[NateHanson]

Or you could get a fixture and sit it on two tempered glass strips that go across each end of the tank. I'd probably get something 1/4" thick for strength, and put a lightweight fixture on it. You'd have to get a glass shop to make these tempered strips the right size for you, and it'll probably cost you a bit.

 

[RobboT]

What kind of halide fixture do you have or are you contemplating?
Your profile only shows 2x65W PCs so if you're researching new fixtures you might lean toward something that comes with legs instead of something that requires a hanging kit. The canopy is a great idea too.

I definitely would shy away from tops of any kind, even screening/eggcrate reduces the light transmitted to the tank.

 

[FinzAquatics]

the ones im looking at do come with mounting legs, but mounting legs cannot sit on my tank due to the shape (stretch hex) so my only real options are to have it sit on top of tank with something under it or to hang it.

haning will be rough cause i have slanted ceilings, and no idea how to hang it.

canopy idea is rough cause i have no idea how to do it.


i dunno, i love this hobby and i wanna get further into it but i cant figure out the light situation

 

[FinzAquatics]

i have thrown the idea around of the coralife hang on tank metal hallides


ill post a pic and the spec in a min. please tell me what you think

 

[smcnally]

Maybe it's time to upgrade to a bigger tank then you could get a rectangle one that makes it easier to chose lighting for

 

[FinzAquatics]

Coralife Metal Hallide (Yes or No)

Includes:
One 150 watt 14,000K double-ended HQI metal halide lamp
External HQI metal halide ballast with on/off switch, 12-foot lamp cord and 6-foot power cord
Three points of articulation for multiple lighting positions
Sleek, anodized black-aluminum housing with ventilation grill
Highly-polished reflector
Built-in cooling fan
Glass HQI lens cover
Heavy-duty mounting bracket
Product instructions




Any good?

 

[FinzAquatics]

i just downgraded to this from a 90. i am in RI for college and i cant have a big tank down here. so for the next 2 years or so i gotta keep this tank.

 

[Moe_K]

Or, you could run strips of wood across the top of your hex - make them cross the tank right under the legs of the light.
The legs would stand on the wood strips instead of a rectangular tank's glass sides.

 

[NateHanson]

I like the idea of the coralife fixture.

Also, hanging is nothing to shy away from. If you have a hammer and a screwdriver you're set. Get some drive-in hollow wall anchors at a hardware store. Whack them into the slanty ceiling over your tank. Tighten with a screwdriver. Done.

 

[FinzAquatics]

okay i think i may go with the coralife fixture. i never heard any reviews about it before so i wanst sure about it.

we shall see.

if anyone else has experience with the coralife fixture please tell me, id like to hear as much about it before i purchase it.

 

[Moe_K]

Unfortunately, I don't know anything about that light. Looks nice, though.
Sorry I can't be of more help.