DIY CompactFl. lighting safety?

[Tiffi]

Hi,

I've read that light fixtures over the aqarium should be mounted behind glass/acrylic to keep them away from moisture. It says otherwise it is a fire hazard.

The aquarium hoods with regular flurescent lights I had before where directly over the water without any glass or so.

Do I need to mount CF behind glass for a DIY?

Thank you very much for your answers,
Vanessa

 

[greenmaji]

fire hazard and CF ive not heard of.. MH lighting can blow bulbs from contact with water.. If your going to have a glass hood, I dont see why you would need glass on the strip itself..
are you going with AH supply or building it from scratch?

 

[malkore]

FWIW, I remove the glass from my tanks and run them all open top, with the bulbs about 6" above the water.
my canopies are all designed so that the backs are open, and you can't get condesation inside. moisture around the bulb end caps is the real fire hazzard, or the ballasts in self contained fixtures (like coralife's) getting wet.

REally, the bigger hazzard is electrocution. Just be safe and you shouldn't have problems runnign without a glass top...though you'll have tons more evaporation.

 

[Tiffi]

I was planning on building a hood myself (I want Amano Shrimps and they might go for a walk) and probably leave the back open.
It's already a habit of mine to switch anything off before I touch the water anyway.
I"ve seen this: http://www.aquatraders.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=135

Thought it's a good deal for a 70g if I can build it into my hood, since I don't like the design much. Will that be enough light for my 70g?

 

[Hoovercat]

That fixture will give you a little less than 2wpg but because of its design (2x22" bulbs) may be hard to provide equal light distribution over the tank. I would probably buy another like the one I bought for my 90 gal. http://cgi.ebay.com/JEBO-48-220W-55...707477363QQcategoryZ46314QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem