How to build a DIY 6' canopy for T5HO lighting, that gives easy of access to tank?

20 20 · 04/26/2006, 06:55 PM

Yes, another 'show me your DIY canopy' thread. But, specifically I'm looking for designs for (as the thread title says) a 6' canopy with T5HO lighting. The bulbs need to be close to the water, 5" or so. I also want it to be easy to open the canopy up and have plenty of room to work in the tank. I've seen lots of canopy designs, but none that seem to work well for T5 bulbs that also give easy access to the tank. Any opinions/designs would be greatly appreciated! And I mean GREATLY!!!!

Bagz · 04/26/2006, 11:53 PM

in the same boat anyone

dalbrecht · 04/27/2006, 09:07 AM

I'm in the same boat as well.

My ideas are to either allow the entire hood to swivel open maybe with a counter weight. Or suspend the t5 fixture on chains with s hooks within a larger canopy. This way I can raise the light fixture to accomodate tank maintenence.

20 20 · 04/28/2006, 08:02 AM

Well, here are 3 examples of canopies I've found that I've been considering using pieces of the designs:

The first one is a low canopy, with a fixed front. Easy to build, but you need to pick up the complete top to feed, and you've got that 6 to 8 inch board in front to contend with whenever you want to get in the tank.

This second picture is very intriguing to me. It can be opened up from the front for feeding and minor access, but can be completely opened up for 'major' access. Issues I can see are that my tank is 6 feet long, how would 3 foot long front doors look/work? Also, that board in the front is a bit tall, does it need to be that tall for stability, or could I use a 1x2" board there? The back wouldn't be completely closed, just a board across the back top for support. Again, I'd have to build a low canopy to keep the T5's close to the water.

The third picture is of a tall canopy with T5 lighting, using a 'lighting rack' on the inside of the canopy that can be raised and lowered via 'Sun Lifts'. Basically pulley's. I'm just wondering if even with the tall canopy and the lighting rack raised, will it be enough room to work in? Say a 12" canopy, in the raised position the light rack will hand down maybe 4-5 inches, so that gives 7 to 8 inches to work with. Not much.

So, right now I'm looking at something like the second picture, but I'm not quite sure yet.

Covey · 04/28/2006, 10:15 AM

It seem to be a big boat. I'm in too.

Here was my idea for my 150G. I guess it is like number 3. I am going to mount supports on the back side of the stand. It will run up the back side on the tank and allow me to hang the lights. I am going to make the rack around 12 inch tall too. Though I could go higher for more room.

The unique part of my idea is that my light and my canopy are going to be completily separate so when I want to do cleaning in the tank I can remove the canopy and raise the lights and have plenty of safe room to monkey around in the tank.

emilese · 04/28/2006, 11:09 AM

The boat's getting bigger - I'm also in. I was talking to some local reefers before I saw this thread and they suggested #3 as well since I already have a tall canopy.

I also had an idea like your's Covey, but how would you raise and lower your lights?

Miles

20 20 · 04/28/2006, 11:28 AM

Covey, with your idea, is the canopy open top?

GARFVolunteer · 04/28/2006, 12:00 PM

Here is a calculator I made to help with a basic canopy from 7 to 14"...

http://www.idahoreefs.org/Tank/Build...fileCanopy.asp

Thanks,

Scott

Covey · 04/28/2006, 12:37 PM

I haven't built it yet but it will be open top. The "canopy" will really just be more like a 3 sided wall to keep light from spilling out the front and sides. The stand and tank are tall enough that I won't be able to see over it so all the equipment will stay hidden but the top and back will be open to allow plumbing and wiring in and heat out.

20 20 · 04/28/2006, 05:01 PM

Here's another version, close to the first pic above:

Simple, lots of room to work in. Would that work for a 6 foot long tank? But then, you'd have to lift the whole thing for feeding...

Hmmmm....

20 20 · 04/28/2006, 05:49 PM

Maybe put small doors in the front panel...

comatose · 04/28/2006, 10:20 PM

try here: 6' Canopy
Under Tank Canopy.

20 20 · 04/29/2006, 05:32 AM

Excellent looking hood, comatose! How high off the water are your lights? I'm going to be using T5's, so they need to be around 5 inches off the water. I believe that would mean my hood would have to be quite a bit shorter than yours, and I'm wondering if front doors like yours would work at all on a shorter hood. I have my doubts, if you know what I mean. Also, what's it like to work in the tank with that hood? The front doors means easy access for simple tasks, like feeding, but how about anything major? Does the fixed front face present any problems, as in having to reach over it to work in the tank?

comatose · 04/29/2006, 08:26 AM

Thanks
My lights are 7" above the water, if you go shorter by a few inches then you can just make the top open instead of having doors in the front, but i find the doors are the best part cause i dont have to open the hood when i want to do small things like feeding and re-arranging of rocks or adding corals. the only time i use the top part of the hood is when i do major things or when something wont fit in the doors. you could always use an extension to lower your T5's inside the hood.
my stand is a bit higher than most stands so i use a short step stool to get into the tank from the top part of the hood, with the doors i very rarely have to open the top part of the hood tho.
but if you really want a short hood then you could always use another piano hinge in the front so that the whole front face swings up onto the top. that was my original idea for my hood but ended up changing it to the way i have it now.

20 20 · 04/29/2006, 08:37 AM

I'm looking at a hood around 7.5" tall, top to bottom. That would be about 6 inches over the top of the tank, around 1.5" covering the trim. To have my T5's about 4-5" over the water, that's what it would need to be. With a hood that short, I'm trying to figure out if it's worth having doors in the front, or even if it's worth having the complete front flip up with a piano hinge. With the lights that low and that small of an opening I'd only be able to do the bare minimum in the tank without opening the top completely. Unless I went with a taller hood, and used a pulley system like in the third picture in my first post...

Heck, maybe I should just go with a 'pre-built' hood with MH like an Aquaplus Pro. But if I did that, and had no canopy, how would I hide the Calfo-style manifold I'm building for my closed loop?

Decisions, decisions...

mpcart · 04/29/2006, 02:40 PM

Mine is similar to picture #1. The whole top lifts up via a piano hinge in the back. Here is how I have the T5's attached to the canopy top.

-Mike

20 20 · 04/29/2006, 04:12 PM

How high off the water are the T5's? It looks like you've got doors on the front of the canopy also, is that correct? Do you have any 'frontal' shots of the canopy?

20 20 · 04/29/2006, 04:13 PM

Just looked in your gallery, and saw the frontal shots, looks good. How do you find working in your tank with that canopy? Anything you would have done differently with it? And again, how high off the water are the T5's?

mpcart · 04/29/2006, 04:40 PM

The lights are 4-5" off the water. I don't use the doors much because it's easier to prop up the top. I don't have any problem working in the tank other than having to stand on a chair if I need to reach too deep into the tank. However, I'm 6'5" so thats usually not a problem!

-Mike

20 20 · 04/29/2006, 06:30 PM

Heh, well, I'm 6'3", so I guess it wouldn't be THAT bad for me, either!

mfinn · 04/29/2006, 08:32 PM

When I made my canopy, I basicly made a box, with the back open. I ran the box through my table saw lenght ways and put 3 hinges on it so the whole thing opens from the front and lays on the back half. Actually it layes on the ice cap ballasts.
I added some doors on the front for casual work, but when I want to do water changes or anything that requires decent access, just lift the front up.
I used a little bit of trim to make it look presentable, but it's just a box split down the middle.

kroe · 04/29/2006, 09:47 PM

Check out my gallery for pics of my T5 canopy design. It gives plenty of room to get chunks of rock out and whatnot. The only thing I was worried about was the wire flexing and breaking, but replacing a couple feet of the IC 660 wiring harness's solid core wire with stranded has held up for almost two years now... so I don't worry about it any more.

ambaratur · 05/02/2006, 09:10 AM

Are any of you using 4' bulbs to light a 6' tank?

20 20 · 05/03/2006, 06:27 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by comatose
try here: 6' Canopy
Under Tank Canopy.

Comatose, that wainscoting. Was it the 4' lengths, or larger? Basically, is the top made from one piece, or two?

comatose · 05/14/2006, 09:25 AM

sorry for the delay,
it comes in a package of 6 pieces and they are each 8ft long,
i dont understand your last question, one piece or two?

04/28/2006, 12:00 PM	#8
GARFVolunteer Premium Member Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: Boise, Idaho Posts: 1,108	Here is a calculator I made to help with a basic canopy from 7 to 14"... http://www.idahoreefs.org/Tank/Build...fileCanopy.asp Thanks, Scott __________________ Proud Member Idaho Marine Aquarium Society A fair and biased reef hobbyist. "If I were going to set up a tank, and I am going to make some people mad here, I would use VHOs" Dana Riddle 3/2/2007 Current Tank Info: Brand new 150 gallon tall Reef trying Bonsai method, 60 gallon soft coral tank (not GARF style).

04/29/2006, 08:32 PM	#21
mfinn Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2002 Location: Olympia. WA. Posts: 8,648	When I made my canopy, I basicly made a box, with the back open. I ran the box through my table saw lenght ways and put 3 hinges on it so the whole thing opens from the front and lays on the back half. Actually it layes on the ice cap ballasts. I added some doors on the front for casual work, but when I want to do water changes or anything that requires decent access, just lift the front up. I used a little bit of trim to make it look presentable, but it's just a box split down the middle. __________________ 240 gallon soft coral tank 50 gallon lps tank

05/02/2006, 09:10 AM	#23
ambaratur Premium Member Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Flagstaff, AZ Posts: 776	Are any of you using 4' bulbs to light a 6' tank? __________________ "God is dead." - Nietzsche "Nietzsche is dead." - God Click my red house for my 125 gal. tank build thread. Member of Northern Arizona Marine Aquarium Society (NAMAS) Current Tank Info: 125g AGA MegaFlow - 150lbs Fiji live rock - 50g DIY sump/fuge - Tunze 9010/9015 Skimmer - Eheim 1260 - 2x Seio 1500 - 5x 80w IceCap T5 Retro - PhosBan Reactor 150 - AC Jr. Controller - Typhoon III RO/DI - Mixed Reef

04/26/2006, 06:55 PM	#1
20 20 Premium Member Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Stewartstown, PA Posts: 1,246	How to build a DIY 6' canopy for T5HO lighting, that gives easy of access to tank? Yes, another 'show me your DIY canopy' thread. But, specifically I'm looking for designs for (as the thread title says) a 6' canopy with T5HO lighting. The bulbs need to be close to the water, 5" or so. I also want it to be easy to open the canopy up and have plenty of room to work in the tank. I've seen lots of canopy designs, but none that seem to work well for T5 bulbs that also give easy access to the tank. Any opinions/designs would be greatly appreciated! And I mean GREATLY!!!!

04/26/2006, 11:53 PM	#2
Bagz Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: cali Posts: 366	in the same boat anyone

04/27/2006, 09:07 AM	#3
dalbrecht Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Oak Park , IL Posts: 540	I'm in the same boat as well. My ideas are to either allow the entire hood to swivel open maybe with a counter weight. Or suspend the t5 fixture on chains with s hooks within a larger canopy. This way I can raise the light fixture to accomodate tank maintenence.

04/28/2006, 08:02 AM	#4
20 20 Premium Member Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Stewartstown, PA Posts: 1,246	Well, here are 3 examples of canopies I've found that I've been considering using pieces of the designs: The first one is a low canopy, with a fixed front. Easy to build, but you need to pick up the complete top to feed, and you've got that 6 to 8 inch board in front to contend with whenever you want to get in the tank. This second picture is very intriguing to me. It can be opened up from the front for feeding and minor access, but can be completely opened up for 'major' access. Issues I can see are that my tank is 6 feet long, how would 3 foot long front doors look/work? Also, that board in the front is a bit tall, does it need to be that tall for stability, or could I use a 1x2" board there? The back wouldn't be completely closed, just a board across the back top for support. Again, I'd have to build a low canopy to keep the T5's close to the water. The third picture is of a tall canopy with T5 lighting, using a 'lighting rack' on the inside of the canopy that can be raised and lowered via 'Sun Lifts'. Basically pulley's. I'm just wondering if even with the tall canopy and the lighting rack raised, will it be enough room to work in? Say a 12" canopy, in the raised position the light rack will hand down maybe 4-5 inches, so that gives 7 to 8 inches to work with. Not much. So, right now I'm looking at something like the second picture, but I'm not quite sure yet.

04/28/2006, 10:15 AM	#5
Covey Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Davenport IA Posts: 2,018	It seem to be a big boat. I'm in too. Here was my idea for my 150G. I guess it is like number 3. I am going to mount supports on the back side of the stand. It will run up the back side on the tank and allow me to hang the lights. I am going to make the rack around 12 inch tall too. Though I could go higher for more room. The unique part of my idea is that my light and my canopy are going to be completily separate so when I want to do cleaning in the tank I can remove the canopy and raise the lights and have plenty of safe room to monkey around in the tank.

04/28/2006, 11:09 AM	#6
emilese Registered Member Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: Taiwan (formerly, Atlanta area) Posts: 199	The boat's getting bigger - I'm also in. I was talking to some local reefers before I saw this thread and they suggested #3 as well since I already have a tall canopy. I also had an idea like your's Covey, but how would you raise and lower your lights? Miles

04/28/2006, 11:28 AM	#7
20 20 Premium Member Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Stewartstown, PA Posts: 1,246	Covey, with your idea, is the canopy open top?

04/28/2006, 12:37 PM	#9
Covey Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Davenport IA Posts: 2,018	I haven't built it yet but it will be open top. The "canopy" will really just be more like a 3 sided wall to keep light from spilling out the front and sides. The stand and tank are tall enough that I won't be able to see over it so all the equipment will stay hidden but the top and back will be open to allow plumbing and wiring in and heat out.

04/28/2006, 05:01 PM	#10
20 20 Premium Member Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Stewartstown, PA Posts: 1,246	Here's another version, close to the first pic above: Simple, lots of room to work in. Would that work for a 6 foot long tank? But then, you'd have to lift the whole thing for feeding... Hmmmm....

04/28/2006, 05:49 PM	#11
20 20 Premium Member Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Stewartstown, PA Posts: 1,246	Maybe put small doors in the front panel...

04/28/2006, 10:20 PM	#12
comatose Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2004 Location: Flyers, Eagles, Phillies country Posts: 1,437	try here: 6' Canopy Under Tank Canopy.

04/29/2006, 05:32 AM	#13
20 20 Premium Member Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Stewartstown, PA Posts: 1,246	Excellent looking hood, comatose! How high off the water are your lights? I'm going to be using T5's, so they need to be around 5 inches off the water. I believe that would mean my hood would have to be quite a bit shorter than yours, and I'm wondering if front doors like yours would work at all on a shorter hood. I have my doubts, if you know what I mean. Also, what's it like to work in the tank with that hood? The front doors means easy access for simple tasks, like feeding, but how about anything major? Does the fixed front face present any problems, as in having to reach over it to work in the tank?

04/29/2006, 08:26 AM	#14
comatose Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2004 Location: Flyers, Eagles, Phillies country Posts: 1,437	Thanks My lights are 7" above the water, if you go shorter by a few inches then you can just make the top open instead of having doors in the front, but i find the doors are the best part cause i dont have to open the hood when i want to do small things like feeding and re-arranging of rocks or adding corals. the only time i use the top part of the hood is when i do major things or when something wont fit in the doors. you could always use an extension to lower your T5's inside the hood. my stand is a bit higher than most stands so i use a short step stool to get into the tank from the top part of the hood, with the doors i very rarely have to open the top part of the hood tho. but if you really want a short hood then you could always use another piano hinge in the front so that the whole front face swings up onto the top. that was my original idea for my hood but ended up changing it to the way i have it now.

04/29/2006, 08:37 AM	#15
20 20 Premium Member Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Stewartstown, PA Posts: 1,246	I'm looking at a hood around 7.5" tall, top to bottom. That would be about 6 inches over the top of the tank, around 1.5" covering the trim. To have my T5's about 4-5" over the water, that's what it would need to be. With a hood that short, I'm trying to figure out if it's worth having doors in the front, or even if it's worth having the complete front flip up with a piano hinge. With the lights that low and that small of an opening I'd only be able to do the bare minimum in the tank without opening the top completely. Unless I went with a taller hood, and used a pulley system like in the third picture in my first post... Heck, maybe I should just go with a 'pre-built' hood with MH like an Aquaplus Pro. But if I did that, and had no canopy, how would I hide the Calfo-style manifold I'm building for my closed loop? Decisions, decisions...

04/29/2006, 02:40 PM	#16
mpcart Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: O'Fallon, IL Posts: 2,465	Mine is similar to picture #1. The whole top lifts up via a piano hinge in the back. Here is how I have the T5's attached to the canopy top. -Mike

04/29/2006, 04:12 PM	#17
20 20 Premium Member Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Stewartstown, PA Posts: 1,246	How high off the water are the T5's? It looks like you've got doors on the front of the canopy also, is that correct? Do you have any 'frontal' shots of the canopy?

04/29/2006, 04:13 PM	#18
20 20 Premium Member Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Stewartstown, PA Posts: 1,246	Just looked in your gallery, and saw the frontal shots, looks good. How do you find working in your tank with that canopy? Anything you would have done differently with it? And again, how high off the water are the T5's?

04/29/2006, 04:40 PM	#19
mpcart Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: O'Fallon, IL Posts: 2,465	The lights are 4-5" off the water. I don't use the doors much because it's easier to prop up the top. I don't have any problem working in the tank other than having to stand on a chair if I need to reach too deep into the tank. However, I'm 6'5" so thats usually not a problem! -Mike

04/29/2006, 06:30 PM	#20
20 20 Premium Member Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Stewartstown, PA Posts: 1,246	Heh, well, I'm 6'3", so I guess it wouldn't be THAT bad for me, either!

04/29/2006, 09:47 PM	#22
kroe Premium Member Join Date: Apr 2004 Location: Wallingford, CT Posts: 1,211	Check out my gallery for pics of my T5 canopy design. It gives plenty of room to get chunks of rock out and whatnot. The only thing I was worried about was the wire flexing and breaking, but replacing a couple feet of the IC 660 wiring harness's solid core wire with stranded has held up for almost two years now... so I don't worry about it any more.

05/14/2006, 09:25 AM	#25
comatose Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2004 Location: Flyers, Eagles, Phillies country Posts: 1,437	sorry for the delay, it comes in a package of 6 pieces and they are each 8ft long, i dont understand your last question, one piece or two?