Reef Central Online Community

Go Back   Reef Central Online Community > General Interest Forums > Lighting, Filtration & Other Equipment
Blogs FAQ Calendar

Notices

User Tag List

Reply
Thread Tools
Unread 02/07/2008, 06:08 AM   #1
PedriCronje
Registered Member
 
Join Date: Jan 2008
Location: South-Africa
Posts: 41
Question Light reflectors

Hi, I tried to post this here, but it ended up in the Coral Propagation and Aquaculture section . (Can a admin please delete it from there?)

Anyway,

Can I use mirrors as Light reflectors, and has anyone ever tried these. The space on my tanks is limited (12" x 12"), and I'm currently using 2 10W t8's.

Thanks

Pedri


PedriCronje is offline   Reply With Quote
Unread 02/07/2008, 07:56 AM   #2
indydog1
Registered Member
 
Join Date: Jan 2007
Location: round lake, il
Posts: 1,590
tagging along on this one.


__________________
Learn from the mistakes of others.
You can't live long enough to make them all yourself

Current Tank Info: 210 gal
indydog1 is offline   Reply With Quote
Unread 02/07/2008, 07:59 AM   #3
glxtrix
Registered Member
 
glxtrix's Avatar
 
Join Date: Nov 2005
Location: ATL, GA
Posts: 882
this has been a topic few have touched on....from a guessing stand point my reef club thought that it was a bad idea. mainly because the reflective property of a mirror is only made by paint. And its possible that the paint could bubble under the heat of the lamps. But seeing as tho you only have 2 T-8's, I guess you could give it a try. Personally tho I'd rather get some reflective metal from HD or lowes and make my own reflector to fit.


glxtrix is offline   Reply With Quote
Unread 02/07/2008, 08:38 AM   #4
PedriCronje
Registered Member
 
Join Date: Jan 2008
Location: South-Africa
Posts: 41
Thanks glxtrix,

The reason that I'm thinking of using Mirrors, are as follows: Around here, I need to order reflectors from a local supplier, who then tells me that I need to wait up to a month for the reflectors to arrive as no one stocks them.

I'll give it a trial, and let you know what happened.

Thanks

Pedri


PedriCronje is offline   Reply With Quote
Unread 02/07/2008, 10:34 AM   #5
dsanfilippo
Registered Member
 
dsanfilippo's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2007
Posts: 151
it is not the paint that is reflective, it is a thin layer of metal plated to the mirror, that is then painted to protect the plating from scratches.


dsanfilippo is offline   Reply With Quote
Unread 02/07/2008, 11:28 AM   #6
TomRep
Registered Member
 
TomRep's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jan 2004
Location: Fleetwood, PA 19522
Posts: 1,219
I've also read mirrors aren't good to use as the light has to travel through the glass twice (into the glass to get to the mirror, then back through the glass to be reflected) and greatly reduces the stregth of the light. Not sure if it lowers par or what exactly, just what I've read.
tom


__________________
"I got me a big wave, ride me a big wave, got me a big..WAVE!" Ed Vedder
It's a reef thing, you wouldn't understand!

Current Tank Info: 50 breeder w/o sump mixed reef, sps dominant. NEP T5 fixture with no stock bulbs, Bermuda Rogue HOB skimmer, canister filter, DIY hang on fuge, 2x modded MJ400's, Tunze Osmolator ATO, Randy's 2 part dosed with and Aquamedic twin
TomRep is offline   Reply With Quote
Unread 02/07/2008, 12:54 PM   #7
DarG
Registered Member
 
Join Date: Dec 2006
Posts: 5,515
I think I read that white paint is a better reflector than a mirror. Id just save some money on the mirror, use white paint while waiting on some actual reflectors.


DarG is offline   Reply With Quote
Unread 02/08/2008, 02:01 AM   #8
PedriCronje
Registered Member
 
Join Date: Jan 2008
Location: South-Africa
Posts: 41
Thanks all,

Maybe I should just wait for the reflectors, it seems that the mirror Idea isn't as good as I thought.

Pedri


PedriCronje is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply


Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is On



All times are GMT -6. The time now is 01:28 PM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.4
Copyright ©2000 - 2025, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.
Powered by Searchlight © 2025 Axivo Inc.
Use of this web site is subject to the terms and conditions described in the user agreement.
Reef CentralTM Reef Central, LLC. Copyright ©1999-2022
User Alert System provided by Advanced User Tagging v3.3.0 (Pro) - vBulletin Mods & Addons Copyright © 2025 DragonByte Technologies Ltd.