glass canopy- possible?

[severum mama]

Hey everyone, I have a hex tank sitting in my basement that I believe is either 27 or 30 gallons. I'll be moving in a couple months (WOOOOHOOOOO) and I think I may have a plan for it. I'd like to tear down my 55 gal tank at work, put the 2 angels in the hex with a few tankmates, and use the 55 gal for either Malawi cichlids or to finally try my hand at SW. Anyway, has anyone ever seen a glass canopy for this style of tank? It only has a plastic hood right now with a single bulb light strip that is barely even functional for a tank that narrow and tall. In order to grow anything, I will have to upgrade the lighting, but to upgrade the lighting I will have to have a glass canopy, right? You see the dilemma here.

I've never even seen anything close to what would fit, any help would be much appreciated as the big move is only a couple months away! If I can't find a glass canopy, would it be safe to suspend a CF light over the open tank, not with the legs, but actually hanging it above? Is there a shop light that would work that someone could recommend?

TIA

[Fishyfanatic]

You mean a glass hood, right? Or a glass canopy as in a piece that goes over the lights and filters?

[Devilishturtles]

I was a bit confused by that too. You just mean like a simple glass top, like a sheet of glass that sits on top of the tank?

[Fishyfanatic]

I just saw a link from LBW with a glass hood and it was labeled glass canopy from DFS. I guess some people call it different things. LOL

What are the dimensions of the current hood?

[rich311k]

Depending on the tank mates you choose you could get away without a top. I haven't used one in years. I have never lost an angel or tetra to jumping.

[Purrbox]

If you can't find a glass canopy, you can always ask a hardware store to cut some glass to fit. I don't know if you can order the plastic hinge, but you can defiantely order the plastic handles and the plastic peice at the back. Put it all together and you have your very own custom built glass canopy.

[severum mama]

Yes, I mean a glass top. Unless someone would like to build me a wooden canopy to which I can mount some lights.

Will the hardware store smooth the edges for me? I don't have a Dremel tool or anything- this isn't the handiest of households.

I just measured the tank. It's 24" tall, each side is about 10 and 1/4" wide, and it's about 21" across the top at the widest point. The strip light is about 15" so I'm guessing it's a 15 watt bulb. You can imagine what a 15 watt bulb can do for a tank this size.