Light/canopy cooling which design is best?

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Electrobes

Aquarium Advice Addict
Joined
May 5, 2003
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Greenwood, SC
hey everyone, I was deciding which design was best but got stuck. Basically I was wndering whether I should go for the one fan blowing in on one end of m 45G tall, and have another blowing out on the other end of the canopy OR have two exhausts (two fans blowig out in the rear)? If I were to do the 2nd option I am pretty sure I would have to cut vents for the sides.. but not sure if I have to do this.. what do you all think? thanks!
 
Are you going to have anything between the lights and the water? Such as glass or acrylic? One thing I noticed on the 180 I set up is that the fans, mounted on the rear, accumulated quite a bit of salt creep on the blades. They were set up to blow out. They were large fans and were oriented pretty close to the surface of the water...I'm sure that had a lot to do with it. However you set it up, you don't want the fans blowing directly on your bulbs...no matter what kind of bulbs you're using. Is having the fans on top of the hood blowing out an option? That would protect them from salt creep and would effectively remove heat.
 
Is the hood sitting directly on top of the tank or hanging above. If hanging above then heat may not be as much of an issue. I'm building a fixture right now for a 175watt MH/2x55w PC that will hang over my 20 gallon. It hasn't been tested yet, but my cooling scheme is going to be vents on the top of the enclosure to allow heat to rise out of the top. A vent hole on one side and a fan pulling air out on the opposite side. I'm also keeping the MH reflector about 1/2" off the wood with standoffs to allow air to circulate around it. I'll let you know in about a week if it works or not. :)
 
Out of curiosity, why don't you want your fans blowing on the bulbs? I'm sure it somehow wears down the life of the bulbs, or something to that effect, but I just wondered exactly why not.
Mostly because I was thinking that a fan in and a fan out would be best...or 2 fans in, with many slits for the incoming air to escape. I just don't know where I'd put them now...somewhere away from the bulbs I suppose, but I'm not sure where that'll be. Ideas?
 
because it creates cool spots on the bulb which in turn messes with the bulbs output. My hood is sitting right on the tank with about 7-8 inches of clearance. I have a 250 watt MH, with two 55 watt PC 03 actinics. SO whats the best route for me.. I did cut a single 80 mm fan in the top, but am not cutting any more considering I have the lights all hooked up... but the sides are doable, plus the back is all open, so thats workable as well... any suggestions?
 
I would personally use 2x120mm fans blowing out of the hood for cooling.. It has been working great with me I have even Jacked the temp in my house to 90f to make sure that the tank did not get affected by this as well. Still no issues so far..

HTH<
James

If you look for my posts There is one about cooling that went in depth about why it works better to have them both exhausting.. If you would like I can try and did it up for ya if need be..
 
well that sounds cool (no pun intended), but after sticking on the exhaust fans, did you add vents to the front or side of the tank.. or just left it as is? My hood has a top, front, and two sides.. with no back.
 
cj, if you could find it, or give me a title, that'd help =] I can't find it. Maybe a date estimate?

Here is the post I was Referring to
Cooling

well that sounds cool (no pun intended), but after sticking on the exhaust fans, did you add vents to the front or side of the tank.. or just left it as is? My hood has a top, front, and two sides.. with no back.
I believe there is some pics of my hood in that post however My hood is all enclosed and Has about a 1/2 back on it.. I added no vents but on the back there is about a 4" open space across the length of the tank..

HTH<
James
 
man on a 45G you think I should add 120's??? 8O I was thinking of adding two 80's on a lower voltage to have it not produce too much noise
 
OK, thanks cj! The front and back of my hoods will have Openings, approx 4-5" high, and about 2.5' long. I'll probably end up with 3 fans exhausting out the top, and 2 on the rear portion where there is still wood. I'm gonna post a new topic in the DIY forum, so if either of you would add your input here or there about this idea, I'd greatly appreciate it. Oh, and good luck, Electrobes!
 
Just to jump in on this one--I have a fan on one tank in the corner attache to the canopy. I looked at the prices of cooling units and decided to try something else first. Got an old computer laying around? I did--took out the fan in the computer and mounted it. Works great!!

Stacy
 
Got an old computer laying around? I did--took out the fan in the computer and mounted it. Works great!!
These are the fans that We were referring to only a bit larger.. Normal computer fans are 80mm.. I hooked them up to a 12vdc power adapter..

James
 
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