large lumen bright with 2-MH & fan

Discussion in 'Metal Halide Aquarium Lighting' started by reef_guru, Aug 13, 2009.

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  1. reef_guru

    reef_guru Humpback Whale

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    for those of you with the large lumen bright reflectors heres an idea that allows 2 metal halides of different watts or k-value to be placed into 1 reflector without losing reflectivity and is able to keep both bulbs cool with an exhaust fan.

    duplicating the panel:

    using a drill bit take out the rivets on the panel that has the holes for the bulb. place it over the panel on the opposite side of the reflector and with a marker copy the pattern of all 5 holes, then cut and drill them out. put the original panel back in with rivets except the very top rivet.

    air flow:

    drill out the rivets holding the top center piece, place 2 nuts between the top center piece and the top of the other panels in four spots and bolts in place. doing this allows a gap between the top panel and the top center piece for air flow.

    fan:

    a 4" fan fits almost perfectly on top of the reflector. using a drill bit make a hole in the reflector threw the fans outer holes in the corners and with a bolt secure the fan in place. the holes should be right up next to the top center piece on the inside. the more cfm, the better.

    bulbs:

    your going to need 2 adjustable socket assemblies for one reflector. put 3/4" extensions between the socket assembly and the reflector on one side. this allows the bulbs to be side by side with enough space between them and also centered inside the reflector.


    if you just want to use 1 MH and are worried about the heat then just use the air flow and fan section above. works like a charm.

    this does not work on the small LB's. pictures should explain the rest.
     

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    reef_guru, Aug 13, 2009
    reef_guru, Aug 13, 2009
    #1

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  2. ~B~Low~HighTide

    ~B~Low~HighTide Spanish Shawl Nudibranch

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    You are amazing... thats the coolest mod ive seen i a while...

    Also the 4" usually is a 120nm x20mm Low profile fan( Make shure to get a fan with OPEN tab ends so you can use short bolts on the bottom side....Im into computer Overclocking and have about 6 laying around LOL...

    That one looks like a 38mmx120nm 56cfm .. it will be very quite still...

    If you need even more Flow a 86cfm- to 133cfm will also works (4" 120nmX38mm)Delta or panaflow.

    Note: If any one does this,, make shure to put the RIBS up or look at the Flow direction arrow on side of fan it will point to exaust..

    i like this a lot...

    Linky to buy fans at ...

    Most two wire and three wire fans use just red and Black wire ... DC/12v volts or you can get 120v to dc adapter and will run on a 12v to as low as 7v . Lots of options.

    http://www.petrastechshop.com/fans.html

    http://www.microcenter.com/search/s...y=match&category=HJ1&web_group=byopc_cooling&

    Also you can use a fan controller with LED or just knobs and adjust many fans when it gets real hot too..

    just hook up to the input with adapter and then up to four fans all independant from fast to slow.

    http://www.microcenter.com/search/s...y=match&category=HJ1&web_group=byopc_cooling&

    Pic of it lit please....we need a FTS;D
     
    Last edited: Aug 13, 2009
    ~B~Low~HighTide, Aug 13, 2009
    ~B~Low~HighTide, Aug 13, 2009
    #2
  3. reef_guru

    reef_guru Humpback Whale

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    im actually using these with the air flow pointed up, hot air rises.

    light values are additive, meaning, add the par from each bulb and thats what you got.
    and i thought you didnt like me, lol
     
    reef_guru, Aug 13, 2009
    reef_guru, Aug 13, 2009
    #3
  4. Dr.Fragenstein

    Dr.Fragenstein Panda Puffer

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    Do you really need to run that much wattage though? I mean think of the extra heat and most importantly electricity/$$ is it really worth it? Esp when I would say a third of that light will be lost on the other lamp....
     
    Dr.Fragenstein, Aug 14, 2009
    Dr.Fragenstein, Aug 14, 2009
    #4
  5. ZachB

    ZachB Giant Squid

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    That's a pretty cool mod. Take some pics of the resulting light - pretty cool - multiple spectrum's for MH folks now

    From the looks of the tank build he's got going, electricity and $$ isn't really an issue. Neither is temperature with all those chillers. lol

    How do you figure the light will be lost? They are both within the same reflector.
     
    ZachB, Aug 14, 2009
    ZachB, Aug 14, 2009
    #5
  6. reef_guru

    reef_guru Humpback Whale

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    how is the light going to be lost?, it can only go in one direction.

    heat isnt an issue with 2-mh using the fan, and as mentioned prior you dont need to add another bulb, the fan/air flow section will help cool the original reflector with one bulb. heat is what lowers a bulbs lifespan

    wattage? more like par, actinics par values are very low, both MH's dont need to be on at the same time either. if both bulbs are going to be used at the same time then lower wattage bulbs can be used. having a combination of 10k/20k covers the spectrum. there are 10k 250w bulbs that have more par than some 10k 400w bulbs.

    is it worth it? thats a matter of opinion.
    1) cooling fan for either a single or multiple bulbs
    2) variable k-values and watts without actinics
    3) capable of driving par lower in deeper tanks

    the options are endless

    yup, and these reflectors are going on that tank.
     
    reef_guru, Aug 14, 2009
    reef_guru, Aug 14, 2009
    #6