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Build Your Own Fish Tank Light?


tukituki

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We have 3 tanks set up at the moment, our largest has great T5 lighting, a med-large tank that has a built in light (which we use for breeding, the light itself is pretty poor), and a fairly small tank which is also used for breeding that has an aqua one tube on it (works fine even though its a bit too long).

The problem is the built in light on our med tank has stopped working. We've tried replacing the bulb and it still won't go. I was hoping for some advice on building a new light for this tank ourselves as we're a bit broke at the moment!

Has anyone got any ideas?

Thanks.

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thanks. i like the buget of $20 a bit more than about $100, with time the lights could be upgraded to T5's, they make such a difference.

the med tank could have the aqua one light, there are bristlenoses breeding in there. the small tank could have the mitre 10 light. its going to be used to breed fighters. theres just a few guppies cycling it at the moment. do you think it would be good enough lighting for the fighters? cheers.

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theres just a few guppies cycling it at the moment. do you think it would be good enough lighting for the fighters? cheers.

Why cycle a breeding tank? Heavy feeding and water changes are usually the norm.

Fish don't need lights to survive, lights are really just for aesthetics and plants. I have one of those 23w 6500k energy savers over my fighter fry tank, can see them just fine.

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If the lights are just to see, why not use an eco bulb on a long lead and cover it with a bit off plastic offcut from guttering. You can get bits of it free from building sites or guttering installers. You can buy end caps if you want it to be fancy but will have to cut a small gap in one for the cord to go through :wink:

Here is a fancy version...

lightfittings.jpg

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i like the guttering idea. there is loads of random old stuff in our sheds the previous owners left behind, i'll look and see if i can find something suitable. where do you get the light fittings from though?

the small (breeding) tank is newly set up and is going to be used for my fighters. i always cycle newly set up tanks with guppies.

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If the lights are just to see, why not use an eco bulb on a long lead and cover it with a bit off plastic offcut from guttering. You can get bits of it free from building sites or guttering installers. You can buy end caps if you want it to be fancy but will have to cut a small gap in one for the cord to go through :wink:

Here is a fancy version...

lightfittings.jpg

Awesome idea! economical and cheap!

Would this work in series? for example 3 or 4 eco bulbs off a single power supply? and whats the output/plant growth like with these bulbs?

Cheers

LB

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The problem is the built in light on our med tank has stopped working. We've tried replacing the bulb and it still won't go.

Has anyone got any ideas?

Thanks.

I am assuming that's it's a fluoro tube ?

If so, you probably only need to replace the starter which will cost you the huge sum of about $3 at your local hardware store.

This is what they look like

http://www.newark.com/ge/155-800/starte ... p/08WX5936

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If by these you mean 6500k 23w energy savers then I can comment positively on them. I grew this under one.

Im impressed! Hoping it'd be enough for glosso? I've never been able to keep hairgrass alive, so im guessing if that light can do that, easier plants like ambulia, cobomba (sp?), star grass, crypts, valis and sag would do fine? I Just love heavily planted tanks.

Cheers

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Im impressed!

:oops: Aww thanks.

I have grown glosso in 30cm of water but it got covered it algae. I really want to try a dense hairgrass carpet again but the tank is being used for fry. If you look on some overseas forums, namely plantedtank.net's nano section you'll see this is what they use. That hairgrass tank waas ignored, just a couple of JBL fert balls at the start, play sand, that light and no CO2.

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yeah a couple years back i got a big tub of glosso off trademe only to discover it was ridden with little creatures that infected and multiplyed in the tank, so out that went.

I've seen it in local creeks here but am abit worried that it would be the same deal all over again. With the glosso could you have used a product like algae clear? I used to lightly dose that occasionally in a heavily planted tank and it would destroy any algae bloom and didnt seem to harm the plants.

Also if anyone lives near lake waikaremoana, i was there last year over new years and got fist fulls of Christmas moss and ambulia! theres also some really cool little freshwater fish that look like gobbys, with many colour variations, anyone know what they are?

Cheers

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