Aqua
Aquarium Advice Apprentice
OK, here is my problem/project….
Background
I have a 175 gallon bow-front Salt Water (SW) tank manufactured by Oceanic Systems. It is an acrylic tank with an acrylic canopy/cap. I have purchased a retro fit kit for the canopy/cap that has 3-175 watt 10K Metal Halide (MH) lamps and 4-65 watt 50/50 Power Compacts (PC) for a total of 685 watts. The kit includes 2-5”x5”x1” cooling fans. Of course I bought all of this stuff without thinking/realizing this was going into an acrylic canopy. Everything is wired to the ballasts and only needs to be mounted and plugged in.
I need to figure out how to install all of this stuff without melting the acrylic cap when I use the lights.
My idea
I was thinking I could mount the reflector to a thin piece of ply-wood and somehow mount the wood backed reflector to the inside of the cap. I would also somehow insulate the cap with some kind of insulation that would reflect the heat from the MH away from the cap but wouldn’t add more heat to the tank. The big problem is that I have no idea how to do any of this or where to start. This is why I need your helpful suggestions/instructions.
I know if I had a wood canopy this wouldn’t be that big of a problem, but I have absolutely NO woodworking experience at all.
Dimensions
I took the liberty of writing down all of the dimensions I am working with for the canopy.
The canopy walls are 1/8” thick/thin.
Canopy Outside
H 11 ¾”
L 73”
W 18” outside edge
W 23 ¾” outside bracket
W 24 ¾” dead center
Canopy Inside
H 11 7/8”
W 17 1/8” inside edge
W 23 1/8” inside bracket
W 23 7/8” dead center
Reflector
L 69 ¾” (two pieces attached by power cord)
W 15 1/8”
What I need/Questions
1. Can this honestly be done (the company who made the retro-fit said it can but failed to provide detailed instructions-there explanation was “over my head”)?
2. What exact materials should I pick up at Home Depot? Type of wood, insulation, fastening screws, epoxy/glue?
3. How exactly do I attach/mount all of this stuff without collapsing or melting this fragile canopy?
Thanks all for reading my problem. I and Nemo I, Nemo II, Dory, Dice, Blue, Angel, and all of the other critters appreciate it.
Aqua
Background
I have a 175 gallon bow-front Salt Water (SW) tank manufactured by Oceanic Systems. It is an acrylic tank with an acrylic canopy/cap. I have purchased a retro fit kit for the canopy/cap that has 3-175 watt 10K Metal Halide (MH) lamps and 4-65 watt 50/50 Power Compacts (PC) for a total of 685 watts. The kit includes 2-5”x5”x1” cooling fans. Of course I bought all of this stuff without thinking/realizing this was going into an acrylic canopy. Everything is wired to the ballasts and only needs to be mounted and plugged in.
I need to figure out how to install all of this stuff without melting the acrylic cap when I use the lights.
My idea
I was thinking I could mount the reflector to a thin piece of ply-wood and somehow mount the wood backed reflector to the inside of the cap. I would also somehow insulate the cap with some kind of insulation that would reflect the heat from the MH away from the cap but wouldn’t add more heat to the tank. The big problem is that I have no idea how to do any of this or where to start. This is why I need your helpful suggestions/instructions.
I know if I had a wood canopy this wouldn’t be that big of a problem, but I have absolutely NO woodworking experience at all.
Dimensions
I took the liberty of writing down all of the dimensions I am working with for the canopy.
The canopy walls are 1/8” thick/thin.
Canopy Outside
H 11 ¾”
L 73”
W 18” outside edge
W 23 ¾” outside bracket
W 24 ¾” dead center
Canopy Inside
H 11 7/8”
W 17 1/8” inside edge
W 23 1/8” inside bracket
W 23 7/8” dead center
Reflector
L 69 ¾” (two pieces attached by power cord)
W 15 1/8”
What I need/Questions
1. Can this honestly be done (the company who made the retro-fit said it can but failed to provide detailed instructions-there explanation was “over my head”)?
2. What exact materials should I pick up at Home Depot? Type of wood, insulation, fastening screws, epoxy/glue?
3. How exactly do I attach/mount all of this stuff without collapsing or melting this fragile canopy?
Thanks all for reading my problem. I and Nemo I, Nemo II, Dory, Dice, Blue, Angel, and all of the other critters appreciate it.
Aqua