Custom LED hood using flouro hood

[lerfdbs]

I didnt like the look of my new Finnex 24/7 LED sitting on top of the stock plastic/glass canopy. It was very bright on the wall and reflected off the glass.

Also since I have a very active betta that I'm worried about jumping out, I need this tank covered.


I thought about laying the light directly on the glass but I heard they need airflow to keep cool.


Enter the simple flourescent to LED hood conversion.


The process of making this couldnt be more simple.


-I removed the florescent bulb, ballast, and holder.
-Melted an opening with a hot screwdriver for the LED and fan cords.
-Drilled a hole for the tiny brushless fan(i got the fan from an old car stereo lol) and drilled a small hole to screw the fan to the hood.
-Attached a 9v, 0.5 amp dc converter to the brushless fan (similar dc converters can be found anywhere)
-Attached fan with just 1 screw.
-Duct taped some screen above the fan to prevent things from flying in there and duct taped the vent slits closest to the fan so the airflow will travel the entire length of the light.



I tried this without the fan and the top of the LED would get quite hot. Even with the stock slits the hood had.
After installing the fan the top of the light stays nice and cool.

 

[Brookster123]

Nice hack! home depot, dropped ceiling light grid/egg crate and cut it to fit. May be a safer option, less potential failures and more oxygen exchange.

 

[lerfdbs]

Thanks for the ideas, I will probably end up using something like that on my 20 long that has no cover at all.
Im hoping oxygen levels will be sufficient because I have a dual airpump running 2 seperate sponge filters in there.


It would be nice to not have to use a fan but these fans are extremely reliable at least.
If they start getting noisy they are super easy to oil.

The light actually stays cooler with this hood and fan than it did uncovered! Really happy with it now.