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#1
03/12/2007, 09:03 PM
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looking to mod eclipse tank
I want to upgrade the lighting in this eclipse 3 similar to the upgrade I did in the eclipse 12. I am looking to put maybe 2 13w bulbs in there. I found this post:
http://www.nano-reef.com/gallery/sho...php?photo=5185 but i was curious if their were any corallife retros that would fit in the hood. The measurements for the tank are 13"Wx7"Dx11"H". The author of that picture is inactive. how are the smartpaq bulbs? are they the same as running a 50/50 bulb? And would this bulb fit if I cut the reflector a bit? http://www.marinedepot.com/aquarium_...it.asp?CartId= Or should I go with a couple of these? http://www.hellolights.com/13wretrokit.html It says its measurements are 3 1/2 wide which would fit, but I would like two of them and curious if I could move the bulb on the reflector. |
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#3
03/13/2007, 03:16 PM
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mod it? throw it out! I hate my eclipse, the pump and lights are terrible... Thats why i use it as a holding tank.
i dont know much about the retrofit kits, sorry. But post your findings, and hopefully i will end up upgrading mine eventually... this tank is just not made for a reef setup. |
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#4
03/14/2007, 12:10 AM
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I've already put 96watts in an eclipse 12 and was very successful. Its actually the best looking tank I've had a hand in. I am well aware of the limitations of the eclispe tanks but the 3 will be a fun project.
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#5
03/14/2007, 02:41 AM
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How did you do this, I got an eclipse 12g for cheap, and would like to make it into a reef tank.
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#6
03/14/2007, 11:38 AM
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#8
03/15/2007, 03:31 PM
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I'm experimenting with an eclipse 3 right now too. The 50/50 light at http://www.hellolights.com/13wretrokit.html seems very doable.
Do you plan on running (whatever light you go with) exposed or behind some sealed guard? Or perhaps silicone around the bulb's base and whenever you need to change it, just exacto knife it out? |
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#9
03/16/2007, 12:39 AM
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i'm not sure if silicone will melt under the heat or not. I hadnt considered separating the bulb from the water at all. Most retros are made with stainless steel. If there were signs of problems I would likely just put a piece of acrylic on there.
And why are you only shooting for 13? I know there is at least an 18 that will fit it. I'm hoping to find 2 13s or 2 18s to fit in there somehow. |
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#10
03/16/2007, 11:39 AM
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nice work.. im going to look into this for my 12.
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#11
03/17/2007, 03:41 PM
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What would the upper limit be on such a shallow tank for light? I know it's not often thought of, but i'm sure many animals/plants prefer lower light levels that even an 18watt T5 puts out, considering that the lowest part of the tank is only 8 inches from the light.
Too much light is just as bad as too little. |
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#15
03/18/2007, 04:48 PM
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rules of thumb are idiotic. The wattage of light you need is completely dependent on how deep the water is, how spread out that wattage is over the surface and how much of that wattage is actually in the correct wavelength to be useful, how much of the wattage is actually hitting the surface, from what direction the light is coming from to reach the plants/photosynthetic organisms in the tank. All of these need to be close or the same as the setup the rule of thumb used to just blindly follow the rule of thumb. I highly doubt nano-reef tanks fall into that category.
To use a "rule of thumb" you have to know the conditions for which it originated, to get an idea of why it is what it is. They probably used a 50/55 gallon long tank since that is pretty much the standard. They probably used MH bulbs since that was also the standard. The tanks are also +12" deep and +12" wide and over 3' long. Tanks in that range need a wattage to reach the corners and depths with enough energy to still allow photosynthesis and good viewing light. With MH this is even more significant because MH are more point sources than T5 types are, meaning the light comes in at an angle for more of the surface area of the water than tube flourescent. Light at an angle of smooth water is reflected at a significant percentage. Light coming in at 90 degrees is only reflected at 3%. It's easy to see how in just changing the type of light from which the rule of thumb was made, makes it irrelevant. I'm not saying T5 is better than MH here, i'm just saying that the rule of thumb could only be made assuming light from one or the other, it can't work for both. Next it's obvious to see that the water under the surface receives more wattage than the water at the bottom. With point sources of light, it's even more pronounced since the water directly under it would recieve much more wattage than the water radiating around it, even on the same depth. If your tank is restricted in any way to this area then the total wattage hitting your organisms is higher than the assumptions that the Rule of thumb makes. The rule of thumb isn't that 6 watts per gallon is required for a healthy reef aquarium, it's that for the types of tank and lighting that the person used who got the rule of thumb going, that was the avg amount of lighting he needed to ensure that the reef would be healthy in all places of his tank. Much of the tank's volume received more light than what was needed, but none of the volume received less with his rule. I'm not saying here that 6 watts per gallon isn't a good average. i'm saying that when you get to certain setups, especially less traditional ones, it's much more than what's needed, and possibly dangerously more for certain organisms. It's hard to think of 18 watts as being dangerously too much light when you hear people with 100+ watts on their 24g tanks. It all depends on what organisms they have as to how dangerous it is...but it very well likely is far more light than is required for them to be healthy. Just look how bright the tiny tank is with even it's crappy stock lighting. It's not throwing colors like everyone else's because there is no blue. Get a 13, or if you must, 18 watt 50/50. It's guaranteed to get more light than what most reef's receive in the actual ocean. All the additional light is purely for your viewing benefit, not for the things in the aquarium. In addition to that, a system 3 with liverock and substrate is significantly less than 3 gallons. Sorry for the rant there, but rules of thumb really do cause more problems than they solve. And they're everywhere. |
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#16
03/18/2007, 06:15 PM
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while I understand all that you have posted I must contest that the stock lighting is not sufficient for any type of life in the aquarium...even freshwater plants. The poor bulb not only barely lights the aquarium, it promotes no life with the wavelength that it has on top of its poor wattage. That being said, it seems I will be going with the 13 or 18watt pc retro - whichever one will fit better. thanks for your help
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#17
03/18/2007, 06:36 PM
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Well, there are two different lights for the system 3. Newer ones supposedly have a brighter light than previous models. Though, you are definitely right about the wavelengths not being ideal. It's a simple daylight bulb, a 50/50 would be magnitudes better.
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#19
03/19/2007, 03:19 PM
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I just bought the system 3. Still has stock lighting. I was searching around to see if anyone sold a 9" 50/50 but nope. I'll probably end up with something similar to the two links you posted first. Right now i don't have any real photosynthetic things in the tank.
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#20
03/19/2007, 11:37 PM
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How nice of them to contact me. But isnt installing this retro as easy as connecting the retro kit to the original wiring for the stock lighting?
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> EMAIL FROM AHSUPPLY: Regarding your request for installation instructions: You ordered a 13w Bright Kit #21301 which is designed for retrofitting the type of fluorescent strip light commonly found on a 10 gallon tank. The instructions only cover this use. There are no instructions for using this kit to retrofit an Eclipse hood. In fact, kit #21301 would not even include all the parts you'd need for this type of retrofit since this kit depends on reusing several of the components found in a 10g fluorescent strip light. We have no Kits specifically designed for Eclipse retrofits nor do we make any recommendations in this regard. We have looked at retrofitting Eclipse hoods but there always are two unresolved issues, 1)how to adequately protect the retrofitted lights from moisture, and, 2) the ability of the ABS plastic in those hoods to withstand the heat of additional wattage. Please let me know if you would like me to cancel your order or ship it anyway with the only instructions available. Also, did you intend not to include any bulbs in your order? If you'd like to add some bulbs to your order just let me know when you respond to this email. Regards, Kim Bryant A H Supply |
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#22
03/20/2007, 11:06 AM
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I hadnt planned on using the cover anyway. It would be impossible to fit the entire retro under that thing. I'm pulling the entire fixture out.
I'm no electrician so I really dont know much about hooking up retros to existing power sources. I'm guessing once I pull out the stock lighting the power source to it is coming with it like it did in my eclipse 12. I suppose if I had to take a hood apart for a 10g to get power to the retro I could. I'm just not sure about using the existing power source to the eclipse 3 for this retro. I've burned up a fan by trying to splice it into the power source to the stock filter pump in my eclipse 12 because I didn't know I needed an AC adapter at the time. Common sense to most, I'm sure. |
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#23
03/20/2007, 04:18 PM
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If you gotta go through all that trouble why not just run the power supply that is supposed to be with the light outside of the tank and run the wires to the light from it. That way you can use a power supply rated for the light you're using and you dont have to worry about the added heat from a taxed psu inside the tank hood.
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#24
03/21/2007, 12:22 AM
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Well the retro is meant to wire in to existing power supply. There is no power supply provided with the retro that I ordered. It simply has wires for you to splice in to something else. When I remove the stock lighting from the eclipse, the power cord comes with it.
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