12 gal. JBJ Nanocube 12DX lighting upgrade?

humandrive · 02/27/2009, 04:15 PM

Iâ€™m shooting for anywhere between 70-150w MH or equivalent for my JBJ Nanocube 12 DX ideally with the stock hood. Iâ€™m wondering if 150W might be overkill for a 12 but Iâ€™m working on the assumption that it will be fine for mostly softies with a few SPS.

Planning on removing the PCs and starting with a clean hood, might leave the moon lights in for the heck of it. I donâ€™t know if it is possible to keep the stock hood with the MH setup but Iâ€™m pretty sure that I could get the LEDs to work with the stock hood and splash guard.

LED Setup

From what I gather it would be 6 white and 5 Royal Blue?

Heatsink ( I can cut to fit or the small might be better) $25
http://www.heatsinkusa.com/asfdas.html

LEDs $60
2x (10 total) - 21mm KD CREE Q5 WC LED Star Board 5 pack (why not have some extra?)
http://www.kaidomain.com/ProductDeta...ProductId=1809

LEDs $45
6 - CREEXRE-RB, Royal Blue (more or less if needed)
http://www.ledsupply.com/creexre-rb.php

Drivers $60
3 - 3023-D-E-1000P, Wired BuckPuck (700mA for the blues? Or just dim them with the pot)
http://www.ledsupply.com/03023-d-e-1000p.php

Powersupply $60
I'll find a few 24v ones later

Wire, screws, nylon washers, heat paste, and the like. $30 (guess)

Total $260

MH setup

One big driver for initially planning a 150W setup over a 70W is the much wider selection of bulbs. A concern would be how high I would need the 150W off the water to prevent overheating the tank (donâ€™t want to have to buy a chiller) and how much evaporation I would see. Iâ€™m very happy with how little my tank seems to evaporate off as all the condensation seems to drip back in with the stock hood. Also the height would shape any canopy I would make. I donâ€™t want to have a 10â€ tall canopy over a 13â€ deep tank. All parts would be an easy swap to a 70W equivalent. Perhaps also have a glass top on the tank?

Reflector $40
150W Metal Halide HQI Parabolic Reflector with Lens
http://www.aquacave.com/150w-metal-h...lens-1536.html

Ballast $130
IceCap 150W Metal Halide HQI Ballast
http://www.aquacave.com/icecap-150w-...llast-872.html

Bulb $60
Phoenix 150W 14,000K Metal Halide Lamp, Double Endedhttp://www.aquacave.com/phoenix-150w-14000k-metal-brhalide-lamp-double-ended-398.html

Wire, adaptors, hood materials $50 (guess)

Total
$280

The LEDs seem like they would actually be cheaper up front and then in the long run with bulb changes and power consumption. If this seems like a viable plan (and I can get the funding released, biggest hurdle) I might turn this into a build thread.

Of course the cheapest and easiest option would be leave the thing alone.

02/27/2009, 04:15 PM	#1
humandrive Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: Wilmington, NC Posts: 3	12 gal. JBJ Nanocube 12DX lighting upgrade? Iâ€™m shooting for anywhere between 70-150w MH or equivalent for my JBJ Nanocube 12 DX ideally with the stock hood. Iâ€™m wondering if 150W might be overkill for a 12 but Iâ€™m working on the assumption that it will be fine for mostly softies with a few SPS. Planning on removing the PCs and starting with a clean hood, might leave the moon lights in for the heck of it. I donâ€™t know if it is possible to keep the stock hood with the MH setup but Iâ€™m pretty sure that I could get the LEDs to work with the stock hood and splash guard. LED Setup From what I gather it would be 6 white and 5 Royal Blue? Heatsink ( I can cut to fit or the small might be better) $25 http://www.heatsinkusa.com/asfdas.html LEDs $60 2x (10 total) - 21mm KD CREE Q5 WC LED Star Board 5 pack (why not have some extra?) http://www.kaidomain.com/ProductDeta...ProductId=1809 LEDs $45 6 - CREEXRE-RB, Royal Blue (more or less if needed) http://www.ledsupply.com/creexre-rb.php Drivers $60 3 - 3023-D-E-1000P, Wired BuckPuck (700mA for the blues? Or just dim them with the pot) http://www.ledsupply.com/03023-d-e-1000p.php Powersupply $60 I'll find a few 24v ones later Wire, screws, nylon washers, heat paste, and the like. $30 (guess) Total $260 MH setup One big driver for initially planning a 150W setup over a 70W is the much wider selection of bulbs. A concern would be how high I would need the 150W off the water to prevent overheating the tank (donâ€™t want to have to buy a chiller) and how much evaporation I would see. Iâ€™m very happy with how little my tank seems to evaporate off as all the condensation seems to drip back in with the stock hood. Also the height would shape any canopy I would make. I donâ€™t want to have a 10â€ tall canopy over a 13â€ deep tank. All parts would be an easy swap to a 70W equivalent. Perhaps also have a glass top on the tank? Reflector $40 150W Metal Halide HQI Parabolic Reflector with Lens http://www.aquacave.com/150w-metal-h...lens-1536.html Ballast $130 IceCap 150W Metal Halide HQI Ballast http://www.aquacave.com/icecap-150w-...llast-872.html Bulb $60 Phoenix 150W 14,000K Metal Halide Lamp, Double Endedhttp://www.aquacave.com/phoenix-150w-14000k-metal-brhalide-lamp-double-ended-398.html Wire, adaptors, hood materials $50 (guess) Total $280 The LEDs seem like they would actually be cheaper up front and then in the long run with bulb changes and power consumption. If this seems like a viable plan (and I can get the funding released, biggest hurdle) I might turn this into a build thread. Of course the cheapest and easiest option would be leave the thing alone.