[joedelt]

hi all
well, after reading skylergirl's thread about building a canopy i'm thinking i might try it. i have a few questions to get answered first.
(warning, this is stream of consciousness, no order should be expected from this point on)

my tank will be a 2x2x2 cube, most likely built by myreefcreations unless somone finds me a better deal )

im going to light it with VHO's but i dont want the canopy to be any taller than it needs to be.
whats the recommended distance off the water for VHO's.

I really dont plan on keeping much more then ricordia and perhaps a few other random ones like green star polips, and perhaps a hammer coral.

would 4 bulbs be enough or should i think about adding a 250w MH as well? if i did that how much hight would i need to add?

The tank will be 360 viewable so i have limited cord space. would i be better served running a circut up the dry line (conduit running in the overflow ) and have outlets above, or would that be a whole other issue?

thanks for following this stream of thought. im looking for ideas and critizism, so all comment is welcomed

/john

 

[wingsfan]

Since you are just going to have a few softies, I don't think halides are really needed,the vho 's would be enough. Also have you given any thought about using PC's?

 

[joedelt]

yes, i've considered pc, and i used to have them, but really like the color of VHO. i also already have a VHO ballast here, so im set that way. my current nano (which is for sale, including a few corals*) has a CSL setup that i like a lot but not really enough IMO to make a tank that one could walk all around stand out (does that make any sense at all?)





*ask me for the qualifications )

 

[daytonight]

u can keep the vho just a few inches off the top of the water i first ran mine about 2-3" when i got them till i built the new hood to hold a 400 watt metal halide with those corals u wont need one and is the tank gonna be glass or acrylic ??
randy

 

[Skippy_electrician]

What do u mean by having the outlets above??? above the canopy or above in say the atic??? I would try and keep connections out of the canopy due 2 erosion and salt.

 

[joedelt]

well the tank is going to be 360 viewable, so ideally there would only be one cord running into the stand. i was thinking of in essence having a false pannel built into the canopy and have power and maybe even lamp ballast there so i could reduce the # of cords running up and down.

does that make more sense?
sorry fighting a killer headache today so im not entirly sure if im being coherent to the rest of the world

 

[Skippy_electrician]

Sounds like a good idea having just power cord running into the canopy. Just having the ballast and things under the canopy would be hidden enough unless u didnt wana c it when u opened it 2 feed and such.