375 gallon glass tank build
- Thread starter mdstark
- Start date
PROJECT COMPLETED!
I haven't posted any updates in a while, but have continued to work on the tank over the past month. Here are the updates.
I installed T5 high output lights in the canopy. I have three rows total, two 7 foot rows (4 foot 54W bulb and 3 foot 39W bulb) and one 8 foot row (2x54W) (with slight overlap of bulbs). Total wattage for the lights is 294W, which actually lights the tank up very well. So well, in fact, that I am only running the two 7 foot light strips during the day (186W total) to light the tank during the day. I only turn on the middle row for pictures to add additional light. T5HO lights are expensive, but they certainly are bright. I will probably save on energy costs over the long term, as I can get a bright tank with a lot less wattage compared to standard t12 flourescents.
I played around with the bulbs a little, and finally settled on one row of hagen powerglo bulbs, one row of UV actinic white bulbs, and one row of GE 6500 daylight bulbs. I run the actinic white and powerglo bulbs daily (I really like this combination), and only turn on the GE bulbs for pictures to add additional light.
Here is a picture of my lights mounted. The blue bulbs you see in the picture were swapped out for the powerglo bulbs, so I no longer have those (too blue).
And here is a picture of the canopy with lights sitting on my tank, aquascaped and filled with fish.
And now some pictures of the completed project. I still need to add some corner molding to the edges of the tank to hide the silicone, and add a few more fish, but otherwise the project is done.
I haven't posted any updates in a while, but have continued to work on the tank over the past month. Here are the updates.
I installed T5 high output lights in the canopy. I have three rows total, two 7 foot rows (4 foot 54W bulb and 3 foot 39W bulb) and one 8 foot row (2x54W) (with slight overlap of bulbs). Total wattage for the lights is 294W, which actually lights the tank up very well. So well, in fact, that I am only running the two 7 foot light strips during the day (186W total) to light the tank during the day. I only turn on the middle row for pictures to add additional light. T5HO lights are expensive, but they certainly are bright. I will probably save on energy costs over the long term, as I can get a bright tank with a lot less wattage compared to standard t12 flourescents.
I played around with the bulbs a little, and finally settled on one row of hagen powerglo bulbs, one row of UV actinic white bulbs, and one row of GE 6500 daylight bulbs. I run the actinic white and powerglo bulbs daily (I really like this combination), and only turn on the GE bulbs for pictures to add additional light.
Here is a picture of my lights mounted. The blue bulbs you see in the picture were swapped out for the powerglo bulbs, so I no longer have those (too blue).
And here is a picture of the canopy with lights sitting on my tank, aquascaped and filled with fish.
And now some pictures of the completed project. I still need to add some corner molding to the edges of the tank to hide the silicone, and add a few more fish, but otherwise the project is done.
And here are some more pictures of the inhabitants.
And that's it. A couple of points I discovered during this project:
1. It took a lot longer than I thought it would
2. It cost more than I thought it would
3. It was more work than I thought it would be
But, it turned out better than I could have expected and I certainly enjoyed (almost) every minute of it. Thanks for looking.
And that's it. A couple of points I discovered during this project:
1. It took a lot longer than I thought it would
2. It cost more than I thought it would
3. It was more work than I thought it would be
But, it turned out better than I could have expected and I certainly enjoyed (almost) every minute of it. Thanks for looking.
I bow to you!! Amzing work and excellent job! The aquascaping and lighting are very classy and tasteful. I personaly would advise against adding more fish though, it is perfect as is..
