# Lighting issues...



## Kamon (Mar 27, 2009)

I only have a 20w flourescent bulb for my aquarium and would like to upgrade drastically. The tank is a 29gal and uses a 30'' light fixture that is can be lifted off of the hood/cover on top of the tank. I've read that some people use the lights from Lowes, Home Depot, Wal-Mart, etc. This obviously looks much cheaper. I'd like to try this if anyone can give me some advice or a word of input from those who have used these types of lights before.


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## Zapins (Jul 28, 2004)

I think you are going to find that lighting from Home Depot and Wal-Mart are roughly the same as a fixture made for plants, not to mention the store bought fixtures are not made to fit fish tanks, won't look good, and will probably cost you more in electricity in the long run since they aren't as efficient as aquarium lights (due to better reflectors and bulb types).

Have a look on ebay for some really good cheap lighting, I just bought a 2x55 watt (so 110 watt total) 48 inch long used Coralife fixture with 2 lightly used bulbs (6,700K) for 45$ plus 20$ shipping. You might also want to try craigslist.com to find someone local in your area. Sometimes you can get some pretty good deals, or freebies. If you are in the North East then you can also try bargainnews.com, but that site is usually better for finding cheap fish tanks rather than lights...

Just be sure not to buy Odyssey fixtures since they are a crap brand in general.


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## criminalhate (Mar 19, 2009)

Kamon said:


> I only have a 20w flourescent bulb for my aquarium and would like to upgrade drastically. The tank is a 29gal and uses a 30'' light fixture that is can be lifted off of the hood/cover on top of the tank. I've read that some people use the lights from Lowes, Home Depot, Wal-Mart, etc. This obviously looks much cheaper. I'd like to try this if anyone can give me some advice or a word of input from those who have used these types of lights before.


Depending on what type of tank you have set up this may be able to help you out
http://www.aquaticplantcentral.com/forumapc/el-natural/52532-low-tech-cheap-lighting-guide.html

Basically I did the same thing for a 20g high and got 3 26w CF screw in bulbs to fit nicely inside of it. I spent about $20 and got 78w of light. In my case I ended up not using a reflector and just painted the inside gloss white. I can't tell you how well the tank will like it yet because it is still in the planning (and trying to find more money) Phase. If you have any questions about how to do it or want some photos of how I did it feel free to PM.

I'm thinking with a 30" light fixture you should be able to get at least 3 bulbs like me but more likely you should be able to get 4 in there easily.

with 4 26w lights you will be getting 3.6 wpg and the cost shouldn't be more then $25 and your time to put it all together.

Something else to keep in mind if you go this route make sure your Kelvin rating is around 6500k.


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## Kamon (Mar 27, 2009)

Would something like this work?

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dl...57453&_trksid=p3907.m32&_trkparms=tab=Bidding

Zapins: You think its better to simply find an aquarium light to fit my tank?

criminalhate: I've read that guide before. The sad thing is, I've never done any electrical work. If you don't mind, could you PM me directions on how to do it and pictures?

Thanks for the input, guys.


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## king oz (Jun 27, 2007)

Kamon said:


> Would something like this work?
> 
> http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dl...57453&_trksid=p3907.m32&_trkparms=tab=Bidding
> 
> ...


if your wanting to be sucsessful I would go a lil higher wattage that looks like a single flourcent 20watt


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## criminalhate (Mar 19, 2009)

Kamon said:


> criminalhate: I've read that guide before. The sad thing is, I've never done any electrical work. If you don't mind, could you PM me directions on how to do it and pictures?


Let me take some detailed pic's for you and then I will send you a pm with all the info. Electrical work is easy as long as you work safely follow the instructions and always be careful.

Ok here's a quick write up but I still need to take the pictures so you can "see" what I am doing.

Items needed

- 4 CF light bulbs (around $12)
- 4 Standard screw in light bulb Sockets with screw holder angle bracket (about $3 each)
- Wire nuts of appropriate size (maybe in the light fixture already)
- 6Ft of Wire (18 gauge stranded or solid wire is best but 16g, 14g, or 12g will work) 
White, Black wire are all needed to keep everything looking the same but really any color can work. If you want to save money and not buy wire get some from an old power cord or extension cord, strip the old insulation off of a power cord from a pc and you will probably get a white, black, and green wire)
- Wire nuts 
- Old computer cord or the cord that was used on the last fixture
- Switch (not really needed but can be added if you want one)
Tools needed are a screwdriver and wire cutters

Instructions
First remove the old fluorescent fixture from the hood. Keep all hardware (screws) you removed .Once you have that out using your wire cutters remove the wires (if they are soldiered on, if not remove the wire nuts) that are connected to your fixture cut the wires as close to the fixture as you can get to give you more wire to work with. If there's a switch in your hood Do Not Cut the wire going from the plug to it. You can reuse both the power cord and the Switch. After you have the fixture out decide if you want to paint the inside of the hood or add aluminum foil to reflect the light. Paint it or add the aluminum foil. (I painted mine Gloss White) now because it is much easier to do it with out lights in it. Now add about 8"-12" of wire per screw on the sockets. One screw on the socket should be silver the other should be brass. Add black to the silver screw and red to the brass screw on each socket. Now screw in the bulbs and mount the sockets to the hood using the mounting points that the old fixture used. Now take the 4 red wires and connect it to the wire coming off of the power cord (or switch if there is one). Take the 4 black wires and connect them to the other wire on the power cord. You connect the wires by striping off the insulation of the wire about a half inch then twisting them together and screwing on the wire nut. After connecting the wire pull on them to make sure you have a good connection and they won't pull apart. If they do pull a part then you probably need a different sized wire nut. After this is finished double check that all the wires are connect to the right screws on the sockets. Once you finish double checking it and everything is correct then plug in your light and bask in it's beautiful artificial glow.


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## Zapins (Jul 28, 2004)

Check your PM's Kamon I found you a light, bidding ends in 1 hour though so don't miss it!


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## Kamon (Mar 27, 2009)

Zapins: I read the pm and messaged you back. 

criminalhate: Thanks. I'm awaiting your pm.

king oz: It was a strip light. I thought it looked like it had two sockets that I could use to put two higher wattage lights in.


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## Kamon (Mar 27, 2009)

Ignore post.


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