DIY Lumenarc III Reflectors

[draleigh]

damn i need to proof read my post. WOW WHAT A DIFFERENCE...anyway. off to spend some time with the kiddo's

[yrema]

looks great draleigh! is there a way to make aluminum flashings shinier?

[draleigh]

i am sure you could polish it. But i think for the effort i would just get the Solar Tubes. I am gonna make the brackets for the mogul base this week and hopefully mount these over the tank this weekend. I am pretty confident i can make them good now so i may pop for the solar tubes.

[draleigh]

Took some pics of my coral tonight that i have been meaning to do. I got these two someone on craiglist getting outta the hobby. The reddish coco worm she through in for free. I thought it was dead until tonight


Reddish Coco Warm





Fox Coral




And someone please - what kind of coral is this. I thought it was a candy cane, but i am not sure. I got it at the swap.



Whatever it is it is doing great. There were 4 heads on it when i got it and now (about two months later) there are like 8

[MrSpiffy]

Yep, that's a candy cane coral (Caulastrea). Here's a pic of mine.

[miwoodar]

Originally posted by miwoodar
This stuff is 95% reflective...

http://www.specialty-lights.com/refl...un-sheets.html

The net price for four sheets is $4.70/SQFT (shipping is free)

You could make 8 mini or 4 mediums

If you can find someone to split in (or you have a large tank) these are cheaper than cutting up solar tubes...


BTW - thanks for the awesome pics! I'm making mine tomorrow night. Two minis for $35.

[miwoodar]

double post

[draleigh]

thanks for the comments. I think i PM'ed (emailed) everyone that asked for the plans. If i missed ya let me know

[bracebldrs]

nice work,reminds me of oregomy. i tried polishing that flashing material before,was alot
of work they put a protective coating on aluminum.i just bought
a 2by 2 sheet of polished mat for like$20.00 .but that would just do one of those bigones prob.still$20.00 per reflector is a good deal.the sono tube
material sounds like a good idea providing its aluminum based.

[draleigh]

where did you get the polishing mat? I was thinking of a buffing wheel for my drill from harbor freight?

[MooDraMan]

I'm willing to split the cost of the "sun-sheet" with you.

BTW your buger (fox coral) Is looking a lot better now... like it might actually make it.

[hebygb]

Here are the plans:

http://www.reefdiversity.com/DIYPage...ectorIndex.htm

[draleigh]

thanks, i was trying to find that site again. those are the 14" plans.

[miwoodar]

I had difficulties printing it to size - Office Max blew them up for a few bucks.

[draleigh]

i guess going and getting them printed larger would be an option. i just measured and drew out the templates, then cut out wood templates. Post some pics of yours when you get them

[gotbags-10]

I know that some of you guys had suggested solar tubes from like home depot but i found this site that just sells the extensions and not the whole kit. Didn't know if those would be good to use. I was thinking about getting the 14" by 2 feet extension. Any thoughts?
http://www.millworkforless.com/skylights-suntunnels.htm

[gotbags-10]

I know that some of you guys had suggested solar tubes from like home depot but i found this site that just sells the extensions and not the whole kit. Didn't know if those would be good to use. I was thinking about getting the 14" by 2 feet extension. Only 40 bucks and you could prob make two reflectors. Any thoughts?
http://www.millworkforless.com/skylights-suntunnels.htm

[medic29]

That is exactly what you want....the extension, not the whole kit. the whole kit is well over $100.

[Nammy]

What are the dimensions?

[medic29]

Look at the plans linked to above.

[TomRep]

For what it's worth, this is the difference using flashing vs. solar tubing

[medic29]

What difference??? LMAO!!! WOW

[spleify]

When you guys are using the solar tubing, you're not having a problem with the "rolled" tube? I want to get a tube to build my next Lumenarc, but I just keep thinking about trying to flatten the tube out.
Thanks
Spleify

[TomRep]

Not at all. Just take it out of the box and roll it the opposite way. This typically flattens it out quite well. It's not perfectly flat, but it is a lot easier to work with. You do have to be careful when rolling it as not to "kink" it or crease it at all. Creases are nearly impossible to make smooth again without marking the polished side. I made my templates out of flashing which it nice and flexible. This allows me to tape the template and mark it correctly, even if it isn't 100% flat. Good luck!
tom

[spleify]

Thanks for the great advice.