# Guide to DIY Moonlighting



## dekstr (Oct 30, 2007)

Hello APC members!

I originally got the idea of DIY moonlighting on my city's local aquarium forum. 
Then I posted it the full guide on plantedtank.net forum. I'd just like to share this information because I haven't been able to find any comprehensive DIY moonlighting guides. Here goes:

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I'm a complete noob in lighting and electrical wiring, so correct me if I'm wrong. I'm only doing this for fun, and also because LEDs are relatively safe since they use very little watts and emit very little heat.

*Why moonlighting?*
After the project, you only need to see for yourself in person to understand how cool and beautiful moonlighting looks in an aquarium. It's almost as if you have another tank during night-time. The nocturnal critters come out and the diurnal critters start slowing down. The behaviour of every animal changes. Before the moonlight, the aquarium would go from noon intensity lighting to pure darkness in an instant, this caused the fish to go crazy, erratically swimming for a while every night. The moonlight helps the transition from day to night to day.

I've been really interested in moonlighting for a while now and really wanted to have it for my aquarium. However, some limits kept me from doing it initially.

*Some reasons that kept me from installing moonlights:*
1. Premade Moonlighting Kits are often very expensive, selling for $20-$40 each just for 2 LED bulbs. And then additional $20 something for extensions of more LED bulbs. For example: http://www.bigalsonline.ca/BigAlsCA/ctl3664/cp17949/cl0/led?viewType=Category

2. There is not a lot of DIY information regarding DIY moonlighting. There is some, but they don't explain the process very clearly. Most DIY moonlighting comes from marine aquarium keepers--and the instructions to build these marine lighting systems are more complicated than they have to be. Plus they're not tailored to planted freshwater tanks.

Nevertheless, I managed to pull it off even with basic high school electrical wiring education, or at least what I learned when I wasn't sleeping in science class.

*Some things I learned while researching:* There are alternatives in terms of light source, like regular tinted incandescent, tinted fluorescent, halogen, etc. But LED is probably the best because of its cost, flexibility in usage, efficiency and ease of assembly.

LED bulbs are extremely cheap--I bought 20 bulbs for $0.99CDN on ebay. It uses very little electricity and emits very little heat, but a lot of light.
The assembly process is quite simple, just some soldering, wire cutting and planning ahead of time.

*Moonlight colour:*
Moonlight doesn't have a specific color temperature. It depends on which part of the Earth you are on, the time of the year, the atmospheric conditions, and the surface it is reflected off of. In general, in marine aquariums and saltwater, moonlight tends to look blue, whereas in freshwater, moonlight tends to look white. So I picked white LED bulbs instead of blue LED bulbs. I wasn't too concerned with the "planted" aspect of the bulbs because the goal wasn't to maximize plant growth, but to make moon lighting as realistic as possible in a freshwater aquarium.

*Disclaimer: Similar to all DIY projects, there is always risk and danger involved. Especially with electricty, as it doesn't get along with water very well. Thus the utmost concern for safety should be considered before partaking in any DIY project. This guide is meant as a general guide, and users should attempt this at their own risk. I am not responsible for any accidents that may result from this project.
*

Anyway, here is the guide.

*Items required:*
- electrical tape (about $5)
- soldering gun (about $10-20)
- soldering wire (about $3-5 for 85 grams, you won't need a lot anyway)
- electrical hook-up wire (For mine, I chose 18 gauge, doesn't really matter though, the thickness is mainly for aesthetics, $5-10)
- LED bulbs (look for on ebay, I got 20 for $1, with free resistors)
- 1/4" resistors (the ohms depend on your wiring circuitry; mine came free with the bulbs )
- electric adapter (a really cheap way is to use look for old phone/electronic chargers/adapters--they have all the specifications printed on; most adapters range from 5V to 20V; also the more amps (or milliAmperes, mA) it has, the more lights it can support, though it is safer to not push the adapter to its maximum capacity)
- plastic zip-ties ($1-2 for 100 or so)

If you can, buy products from a recognized brand name. This is for safety reasons. It is more likely that recognized brand name products have done product safety tests before selling.

As you can see, you can basically do the whole project for less than $10 excluding the soldering gun and labour cost. So why not give it a try if you're bored with your tank at the moment?

















Credit/thanks to jinx© for the second LED bulb picture, really helpful.

*LED specifications:*
Emitted Colour : White
Size (mm) : 3mm
Lens Colour : Water Clear
Forward Voltage (V) : 3.2 ~ 3.4
Reverse Current (uA) : <= 30
Luminous Intensity Typ Iv (mcd) : 4000(Typical) ~ 5000(Max)
Life Rating : 100,000 Hours
Viewing Angle : 85 ~ 100 Degree
Absolute Maximum Ratings ( Ta = 25oC )
Max Power Dissipation : 80 mw
Max Continuous Forward Current : 30 mA
Max Peak Forward Current : 75 mA
Reverse Voltage : 5 ~ 6 V
Lead Soldering Temperature : 240oC ( < 5 Sec ) 
Operating Temperature Range : -25oC ~ +85oC 
Preservative Temperature Range : -30oC ~ +100oC
Quantity : 20
Free Resistors (Work for 12v)

The only important specs to look for is the mA, mcd, size, colour, viewing angle, and voltage. mcd is basically the light intensity, the higher the brighter. Viewing angle means the angle that the bulb can cover.

The most important step is the planning.

*Some questions to ask:*
*How many lights do I want? *For me, I didn't really know how many I wanted. So I picked 8 so that the aquarium would be evenly lighted.

*How bright are the LEDs? *There are some differences in LED brightness--if you buy the ones that claim "super-bright, ultra-bright, etc", the bulbs will probably emit more intensely. Just look for the "mcd". The larger the number the more bulb intensity, but this is relative to the size of the bulb. Bigger bulbs have higher mcds because they have a larger surface area. Similar to differences in diameter for fluorescent tubes that will affect the light "intensity". I just chose the regular white LEDs because they were cheaper.

*How am I going to fit this over the top along with the current lighting system?* For mine, my regular lighting canopy has about 1" of clearance space between the lights and the top of the aquarium. I have a plastic grate as the cover, so I used that to mount the LEDs. I guess if you have a glass cover or less space, you can fit all the wires and bulbs into the spaces between your normal lighting. It might be dangerous to fit so many lights together though, as the normal lights might heat up the LED wires and damage them.

*Wiring diagram:*
I based the wiring on this useful guide: http://led.linear1.org/led.wiz
It's pretty simple, plug in the numbers and let it calculate the diagram.










I didn't follow the diagram to a T, but used it as a loose guide for how to wire. I ended up doing the lights by trial and error, soldering a few lights, then testing to see if it would still emit. The resistor is also an important part, too much resistance, then you will not have any light emit. Too little resistance, and your bulbs may overheat and burn out.

*Safety:* It's very important to tape off any exposed conducting metal parts with electrical tape. Even though you won't feel anything if you touch the wire while it's live because it uses so little energy, it's a good safety precaution. I tried touching it while it's on, you don't feel anything.

*Soldering: *For the soldering, it's straightforward. Cut the hook up wire to desired lengths. On the LED, you see two wires, one is longer than the other. Orient the longer side as the positive. Solder the hook up wires to the LED.

*Soldering/placement of resistors: *As well, solder the resistor between the positive adapter wire and first LED bulb. Common sense--resistor goes BEFORE the LED bulbs!

*Soldering safety:* Another note is that soldering is probably the most dangerous part of the project because it produces massive amounts of heat to melt the soldering wire. The heat will easily/quickly conduct across the hook up wire, so you have to solder quickly. Remember to turn it off when it is not in use--you can't tell visually if it's heated or not, so always assume it is on the on-position. Even after unplugging, do not touch the heated part because it will retain heat for a long time.

*Connecting the bulbs:*To connect the bulbs together, basically solder the negative (shorter) end of the first bulb to a hook up wire, then the end of the hook up wire to the positive end of the second bulb. So on so forth for as many bulbs as you want--depending on the calculations made beforehand.

*Parallel circuitry:*An assumption I've made is that you know how to do parallel circuitry. Just make separate series circuits, and solder the ends together. You can also solder each bulb side by side--this takes longer, but if one of the bulbs ever burn out, the other lights on that series will continue to run. I didn't do it because it was too time consuming for just 2x 4 bulb series.

*Adapter:*The adapter has a female and male part to the plug--basically the positive end is the hole in the middle, and the negative end is the outer metal part of the plug. Tape the hook up wires to the appropriate side, plug it in and you'll have moonlight!

*Minor touches: *To tie the circuit to the plastic grate, I used the plastic zip-ties to tie everything tightly to the grate (tongue twister). Just be generous with the zip-ties to make everything look clean and professional. Plus you wouldn't want any loose wires dangling into the water.

You can use coloured wire to differentiate between positive and negative. I used black wiring initially for everything, but at the end I got confused, so I used green as the positive side and red as the negative side.

Another interesting thing I noticed is that even after you turn off the LEDs, because the adapter still has electricty stored, the LEDs will only slowly transition from on to off. This is a nice transition effect for the dawn and dusk look.

*Pictures:*

































































The aquarium actually looks dimmer. I set the photo to a higher exposure so that you can see it more clearly. As well, there's a really cool water ripple effect that you can't see here.

In the pictures, the zip ties weren't trimmed. After the zip tie has been tightened, just take a pair of scissors and cut off the excess part. Zip ties are a really good investment even for other projects, they tie everything down, are inert, do not conduct electricity, is extremely cheap, has a very strong tightening grip, and if you make a mistake, it's not expensive to replace. They run about $0.01 each.

Set the moon lighting on another timer--maybe 1-2 hours longer than your normal photo schedule. Remember, as long as the lights are on, diurnal fish won't be able to sleep. Yes, fish do sleep. Hope this guide was useful!


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## Adragontattoo (Jun 3, 2007)

If you dont overload the amount of night lights, the diurnal fish can sleep, or if you leave them shadowed areas, they will be fine.

You dont need much to light the tank, and it doesnt have to be strong light either. To an extent your eyes will adapt to the light and you should (relatively) be fine using a minimal amount of light.


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## sonaps (Nov 15, 2005)

Thanks for the guide.


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## Dr. Tankenstein (Oct 28, 2006)

I went to Target last Christmas and bought a string of 60 blue LED lights for less than 12 bucks. The good thing is it only uses 4 watts of power! I leave them on 24/7. I ran them around the perimeter and center brace of my DIY hood.
Here's a pic w/out water in the tank. It works pretty well. I may try to build a white one for my daughters 5 gallon betta tank. Won't grow the plants very well, but what the heck.
http://s176.photobucket.com/albums/w184/Dr_Tankenstein/?action=view&current=holidaylightsturnedmoonlights2.jpg


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## Red Leader (Sep 17, 2007)

Just a heads-up for people that are thinking of doing this - don't leave the lights on for too long as it can cause a green water bloom. I had recurring green water blooms in my tank until I set the moonlights on for only 2 hours a day. Previously it was set for 12 hrs. I was using the moonlight computer from http://www.fishbowl-innovations.com/


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## TWood (Dec 9, 2004)

Far easier and cheaper is this:

http://autolumination.com/fixtures.htm

Scroll down to the 3 LED Dome & Utility Lights stick-on fixtures. $5 each plus a 12V wallwart power supply.


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## newbie314 (Mar 2, 2007)

Nice...
I made my own with a built in lm555 timer to turn off after 3 hours.
Used the lights from tank turning off to turn on the moonlight.
Tried using solar cell to charge off excess light but burnt up the cell.

Need to convert to DC supply and a photodiode instead.


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## goalcreas (Nov 20, 2006)

Red Leader said:


> Just a heads-up for people that are thinking of doing this - don't leave the lights on for too long as it can cause a green water bloom. I had recurring green water blooms in my tank until I set the moonlights on for only 2 hours a day. Previously it was set for 12 hrs. I was using the moonlight computer from http://www.fishbowl-innovations.com/


Never thought of that. I just got some green water a few days ago and I have a 1 watt light that I have been keeping on for 24/7 for the past 2 months. This is the 2nd bloom. I am able to squash it in about 36 hours with a magnum HOT filter, but I guess it will be worth the few $$ to get a timer and get rid of the green water blooms.

BTW, did you ever use the Lunar cycle on the lunar computer. I wonder if you would get green water blooms if you went thru the 29 day lunar cycle where the full load of light would only be for a few days then progressively dim down?

I have been looking at this somewhat seriously.
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=150169654637&ssPageName=STRK:MEWA:IT&ih=005
I will get one for sure when I do a large REEF project, but not sure weather I will put it on the Planted tank or not. It sounds VERY cool, and I am sure it is, but not sure if it will benefit the FW tank like it would a Reef and it is a little pricey.

Good thread BTY, thanks for taking the time to post up. Very creative.


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## Mr. Fish (Oct 24, 2007)

I dont believe that leaving the LED moonlights on 24-7 will cause an algae bloom,
in that case they wouldnt sell the ORBIT SYSTEM which is inteded for 24 hours of light night and day... Also as to my LFS has been using them on his tanks for years and didnt ever mention
getting algae blooms.... Is there a source to this ?


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## Adragontattoo (Jun 3, 2007)

The only reason I could see getting an algae bloom off the moonlights is because you are using too many and giving the algae some light to work with.

Most of the prefab moonlights are only a few LEDs and not 10+ over a 20g tank.


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## Red Leader (Sep 17, 2007)

Goalcres, yes, I ran the moon computer which is the higher end system than that link and still got the green water. Just because the ORBIT system is meant for "24 hr" lighting doesn't mean that it can't be the source of green water. There are many parameters involved but keep in mind that plants cannot photosynthesize for 24 hrs a day. Once they've received enough light they "shut down" and algae takes advantage. I had my lights going for 12 hrs plus 12 hrs of moonlighting. The particular moonlight that I put over my tank was fairly bright when at 100% brightness.


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## goalcreas (Nov 20, 2006)

Orbits and other fixtures with moonlights come with a separate cord for the moonlight,
So you could put it on a timer to go on for just a couple of hours and doesn't HAVE to be a 24 hour system. Also, the Orbit is marketed to REEF tanks as are most light fixtures that are not marked FRESH WATER since they are sold with 50/50 bulbs that are less then ideal if not useless for the FW plant tanks. The moonlights are thought to be a benefit and somewhat necessary for some reef corals and reef inhabitants for nocturnal feeding and spawning. I am unaware of any requirements like this for FW of any kind other then just being COOL IMO.

As far as the LFS, chances are they have an extensive water change, ATO and circulation system, I don't see low wattage moonlights having an effect on them at all.

I think that it probably wouldn't have an effect on a perfectly balanced tank or a tank in it's balanced conditions with good growth and pearling, weather 24/7 or not, but in a tank with some imbalance to exploit, I can see it happening and believe it to be the cause of my blooms, but didn't think of it until it was pointed out. That being said, both of my blooms came right after periods of travel (one business, one pleasure) where my tank missed it's weekly water change, probably not the proper balance, was it the light, not 100% on that, and it could just have been from the missed water change, but I doubt it helped any. For the future, I will just keep it on a timer for a few hours instead of all day in hopes to avoid it.

And now for the Holiday travel, another regularly scheduled water change will be missed. This time I will leave the light off the entire time and see what comes of it.

After the first week in the year, I will post back weather I got a bloom or not and we can use that as a somewhat loose test.


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## niko (Jan 28, 2004)

I'm about to finish a 4' light fixture and the LEDs that I will use will come from a $5 night lights sold at Ikea. There is no need for a timer and a transformer. The night light has a light sensor that turns on the LED when the ambient light drops under some level. The light plugs directly to an electric socket. Here is a picture of it (the photosensor is the small circle in front, the LED is hidden behind the big round circle):










The LEDs on these night lights are very bright - 2 of them are enough for a 4' long tank.

What has to be done DIY-style is to remove the LED and then solder about 5 ft. wire between it and the rest of the night light. If my idea doesn't work due to too much resistanse because of the length of the wire I will take a vow of celibacy, silence, and will go live in a desert as a hermit feeding only on Glossostigma, haha.

Also I forgot to mention - this night light can walk and speak with a voice like the moronic chubby robot thing in the movie Stars Wars. Look at the amazing resemblance:










--Nikolay


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## Bon (Feb 29, 2008)

I've been fighting green water in one of my tanks for about two years. I've tried what seems like everything for control and I do appreciate the many variables & contributions to this problem. Well, it dawned on me just yesterday that my 24/7 LED moonlights might be playing a role in this. Really, I never thought that 4 LED's could contribute enough light to create this problem. I did some searching and to my suprise found this thread. I unplugged them overnight and will keep them off until I get the green water problem under control. Like you all, I don't know if this is a valid concern but I'm sure suspicious and am going to find out. I'll keep you posted.


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## CraigThor (Aug 5, 2007)

I need one of those moon controllers. Dropped them a message to see if the lights come in white also.


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## Afyounie (Aug 10, 2007)

I saw this thread and decided to try and make my own led moonlighting. I used one of the led night lights for $1.47. I took it apart and added some wire between the led and the power supply. Then I put it all back together and taped it to cover any exposed wires. Here are some pics.

























This was really easy, but you must be sure to connect the led correctly, because it is polarized and will not work if it isn't correct.


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## newbie314 (Mar 2, 2007)

Looks good but I would recommend some electricians tape.
It's safer and can handle the voltage.


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## Afyounie (Aug 10, 2007)

Well I was gonna use electrical tape, but I couldn't find any. So I used this fabric tape, which I've seen used in wire harnesses at work. It should be fine, since the current is only like a few mA. The voltage is also small, only about 10V.


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## newbie314 (Mar 2, 2007)

So there is a dc converter in the assembly. I just assumed they just rectified the 120 throught the led.


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