Ideas on lighting for 350g
- Thread starter brent245
- Start date
For my 8 foot tank I use two Aquaillumination Hyrda 52 HD+ units; I created two 4" tall aluminum brackets for the lights and gorilla-glued them to the two middle braces of my tank. But you have just one middle brace at the top so I guess you could have just one light on top (on middle brace), or three lights on top, or install two suspended lights that hang from your ceiling.
I sure there are other options such as led lights that come with stands that you could fix into the top/rear of your tank by screwing into the acrylic. But I would personally prefer hanging lights in your situation if it works with your ceiling.
good luck
I sure there are other options such as led lights that come with stands that you could fix into the top/rear of your tank by screwing into the acrylic. But I would personally prefer hanging lights in your situation if it works with your ceiling.
good luck
My DIY ghetto-style lighting works for me because I don't have "display" tanks, per se. Your stand looks like a DIY, so you could adapt some of my El Cheapo stuff by concealing it in hoods that match the stand.
This is a simple LED worklight, suspended from the ceiling above the tank on jackchain. It's easy to raise or lower by simple hooking the chain up shorter or longer. As a point source, it gives that wonderful shimmer effect; easy plants, like Swords, Hornwort, Duckweed, etc. grow very well under it, and by leaving it on for 10 or 12 hours straight, my Jelly Cat's home becomes a Hair Algae Farm. I harvest the stuff regularly and use it to feed my Goodeid livebearers; doesn't matter how much I throw in with them, it's always gone in a couple days. The tank/sump beneath the Cat's tank houses my Red Wolffish and also contains a Mattenfilter at one end...not visible as the bottom light, an actual aquarium fixture (!!!) is on blue mode only in this pic.
This is another DIY hack, an old fluorescent shoplight that has been gutted of its ballast, and now utilizes LED replacement tubes. Hung on a simple wooden frame attached to the tank stand. Easy plants grow well under this one as well, although this cool-water tank doesn't have any yet aside from some Duckweed. This one is timed to come on for 4 hours in the morning and another 4 in the evening, which helps control algae.
Both tanks appear dimly lit in these pics, mainly because I am too dumb to figure out the metering controls on my cell-phone camera and the glare from the fixtures overpowers the sensor, underexposing the rest of the pic. In reality, both tanks are very well lit. I usually hang a strip of cloth along the front of the shoplight, and around the front and sides of the worklight, to act as a shield to block out extraneous light which makes the tanks much easier to view; had them off as I was puttering in the tanks this morning and hadn't replaced them.
This is a simple LED worklight, suspended from the ceiling above the tank on jackchain. It's easy to raise or lower by simple hooking the chain up shorter or longer. As a point source, it gives that wonderful shimmer effect; easy plants, like Swords, Hornwort, Duckweed, etc. grow very well under it, and by leaving it on for 10 or 12 hours straight, my Jelly Cat's home becomes a Hair Algae Farm. I harvest the stuff regularly and use it to feed my Goodeid livebearers; doesn't matter how much I throw in with them, it's always gone in a couple days. The tank/sump beneath the Cat's tank houses my Red Wolffish and also contains a Mattenfilter at one end...not visible as the bottom light, an actual aquarium fixture (!!!) is on blue mode only in this pic.
This is another DIY hack, an old fluorescent shoplight that has been gutted of its ballast, and now utilizes LED replacement tubes. Hung on a simple wooden frame attached to the tank stand. Easy plants grow well under this one as well, although this cool-water tank doesn't have any yet aside from some Duckweed. This one is timed to come on for 4 hours in the morning and another 4 in the evening, which helps control algae.
Both tanks appear dimly lit in these pics, mainly because I am too dumb to figure out the metering controls on my cell-phone camera and the glare from the fixtures overpowers the sensor, underexposing the rest of the pic. In reality, both tanks are very well lit. I usually hang a strip of cloth along the front of the shoplight, and around the front and sides of the worklight, to act as a shield to block out extraneous light which makes the tanks much easier to view; had them off as I was puttering in the tanks this morning and hadn't replaced them.
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We went with shop lights over our 300 gallon tank. They are mounted on hinged posts and drop down over the tank.
We went with industrial shop lights over the big tank. The plastic was still over most of the lights when I took this picture. We got covers for the lights, since they are 2' from the top of the tank. They can also be hung over a tank, but we mounted ours to the ceiling. We have five 4' lights with 4 bulbs over the tank.
I love these Simkar Reflect A Bay lights. We put them in the equipment room, utility room and garage.
The tank is quite well illuminated. We can have three or all five lights on. Since we got our Simkar Reflecta-A-Bay lights, they have come up with an LED model.
We went with industrial shop lights over the big tank. The plastic was still over most of the lights when I took this picture. We got covers for the lights, since they are 2' from the top of the tank. They can also be hung over a tank, but we mounted ours to the ceiling. We have five 4' lights with 4 bulbs over the tank.
I love these Simkar Reflect A Bay lights. We put them in the equipment room, utility room and garage.
The tank is quite well illuminated. We can have three or all five lights on. Since we got our Simkar Reflecta-A-Bay lights, they have come up with an LED model.
Wild idea...what about a swag light at each end fitted with led? You could put each one on a timer. Could even have the led brighter on one side for a special effect.
