Just got some Redwood 4 hood

[wastedincome420]

Wel I just got a bunch of nice red wood at work I plan to make a hood for the 45g long that in my bedroom. Just figured I post to see if anyone here has some "input";)
The tank is 4 feet long & 1 ft wide. VHO lighting. I ahve 4 48" bulbs on a "make shift" right now (would like to try and fit 1 more bulb in there;) )
The red wood I got is 3/4" thick and 3 1/2" wide.
My "semi-plan" is to glue up enough for the top (about 50" x 15" (due to the space between back of tank and wall I want to also cover)
And then also glue up 2 boards wide for the all the sides=7" tall hood
I dont wan to to have any doors on the front or anything. Something simple....... Ya as if anything I endup doing is simple
I will have it so the top panle is hinged and mount all of my VHO bulbs to the underside of that. I will also end up drilling some hole in the side for a fan or two..............huh??? What about mounting the fans on top and have em' suck the hot air out instead of blowing/sucking air across the lenght of tank
Well maybe some of you can add something or just some idea's
Wastedincome420

[Reefland]

One thing you may encounter and must be proactive at is warping. The hinged top if not supported in some manner is the main problem.

For fans, 1 blowing in and 1 blowing out works great! I guess you could put them in the top but I have always placed them in the ends.

Just some thoughts,
Scott Z.

[hllywd]

hmmmmm.... 4 tubes in a 12" space.... what about all the light emitted from the top of the bulbs? My opinion is you should rethink adding another bulb and devise a way to reflect your existing light downward. Effectively what I think another tube in limited space will do is prevent the light that comes from the top of the existing bulbs from being able to be put back where you want it...
Tim

[wastedincome420]

Update: I just found out that what I thought was "red wood" turns out to be "Red Oak".
As far as I'm concerned it's no big deal. I love the color of the wood;)

Hllywd: Thanks for the tip.

The bulbs I run are URI VHO's which have a "built in" reflector to aim the light -output down. Plus I plan to give the inside of the hood a couple coats of white paint before I poly/spar finish it, which should also aid in the light reflection.
The only reason I "might" add another bulb is to, A: Use a red NO bulb on own ballast for nite-tyme watching or B: Use a NO attnic on own ballast for "sun-rise" - "sun-set". (my current set up w/ 2 Ice Cap 660's I have 220w of attnic come on as sun rise/set and its a bit intense

Any more good tips ??????;)

[hllywd]

I've tried some internal reflector bulbs in the past and was not terrifically impressed. That said the ones I had were NO marketed by DLS Aquatics in Toledo, Ohio. They were pretty bright, for NO but light still came off the top of the bulbs and still benifited from a reflector.

Oak will be fine for a canopy just use some oil based poly or spar varnish. For a reflector I had some SolaTube extensions left over (I'm sure it's available otherwise, it's an Alcoa product), they're spectral aluminum with 90 some % reflectivity, much higher than white paint.
Tim

[billzie]

If your canopy is going to have the top perforated (slats) like most, then use all fans blowing out that way room air is drawn in and hot air out by convection which is the more efficient method of temp reduction. Also, you may want to plan your hood for 18" since your already going to 15", you may move up to a 75 or 90g and moving this hood to your new tank would be a cinch! HTH, Bill.

[wastedincome420]

Thanks for all the tips;) They are a great help and I hope you keep em' coming.

BILLZIE: I plan will not have the top w/ slots. I wan t to try and keep as much lite in the hood as I can. The tank is in My bed room and I don't want lite shining out from the top.
Also I now think that If I have the fans sucking air out, It'll be more wear&tear on the motors as the salt air will burn out the bearings quicker.
I dint have enough room to make the hood 18" wide.