My new 120 upgrade

[mattseattle]

well in that picture I'm just using the cheap ReefMax 10k bulbs to test it out. I didn't want to accidently break the Reeflux bulbs. so the color should definitely get better.

i have to put in the starboard and seal it today or else i would fill it with water and test it out! so it's going to be a few days.

krish - did you put weight on top of your starboard after you siliconed it down?

I love the color! Nice and crisp! I guess the real moment of truth will be when the water gets in, but no doubt it will look even better

 

[mattseattle]

standing them off enough to install a fan & suck the heat straight up through the top of the hood like Krishes but that just just a thought don't know how well it would work.

you mean put a fan right above the reflectors? i have a 102 cfm fan right between the reflectors to suck out the heat. also, yeah i was thinking of putting a spacer or something to drop down the reflector a little bit to get it some breathing room but could not figure out how to do that yet.

as far as the glass, i may not be able to use it anyway. i think it's going to be a pain to get on and off while the canopy is on the tank. i'll have to see how it works in the real world.

 

[Krish]

krish - did you put weight on top of your starboard after you siliconed it down?

Yeah, I did it just to be safe and make sure it was going to be stuck down good. I also, ran a bead around the whole perimeter as well to fill in any gaps

 

[mattseattle]

Yeah, I did it just to be safe and make sure it was going to be stuck down good. I also, ran a bead around the whole perimeter as well to fill in any gaps

ok..... that is what i was planning to do as well but needed validation!

 

[Krish]

ok..... that is what i was planning to do as well but needed validation!

LOL...Watch out if you have a yellow tang! I had to take pieces of silicone out of my tank everyday for about 2 weeks because my tang thought it was funny to go around the tank and pull it up around the edges where he could get to it!(LOL) He didn't eat any...He just liked tugging on it!

 

[Scooterman]

Actually they make the kits that you cut a hole in the reflector & mount the fan so it sucks air from inside. I know they make the ac models but i also saw where it can be retro to remove the hot air.

 

[mattseattle]

LOL...Watch out if you have a yellow tang! I had to take pieces of silicone out of my tank everyday for about 2 weeks because my tang thought it was funny to go around the tank and pull it up around the edges where he could get to it!(LOL) He didn't eat any...He just liked tugging on it!

yeah, I have a yellow tang as well. I'll try to smooth it out as much as possible.

 

[mattseattle]

Actually they make the kits that you cut a hole in the reflector & mount the fan so it sucks air from inside. I know they make the ac models but i also saw where it can be retro to remove the hot air.

good idea - i'll see how the heat does and if need be i'll do that down the road. thanks for the tips.

 

[Scooterman]

Yea I wouldn't touch it unless it really needed it.

 

[mattseattle]

Yeah, I've learned that lesson a few times.

 

[plack]

6.5"tall I can see why having a full size one that wont fit nicely into my small canopy either thanks again for the info
Paul

 

[mattseattle]

it was not the tallness of the reflector that caused me to go with the mini but it was the length and width of the regular lumenarc.

here is the size of it: 19.5” x 19.5” x 8.5” tall.

19.5" would not fit into my canopy well.

the minis work extremely well in my application so glad i went with them.

 

[bc_slc]

matt -
Quick question - how far in from the edges of the canopy do you have the center point of each reflector?

I kinda consider the luminarc mini's like a DE pendant (PFO or ROIII) in that they focus a lot of the light downward into the tank. I found with my tank, after getting 2 pendants in, plus all the rock and water etc, that the center really needed a final pendant. I was kinda planning on having 3 from the beginning but may have been able to get away with 2 if I moved them both a bit more to the center.

Mat

 

[mattseattle]

i mounted them pretty much over the center of the canopy on the edges of the openings of the tank. i tried to put equal distance between them and to the end of the tank if that makes sense. i also pushed them a little more forward than being centered from front to back due to live rock and coral placement. i think they should be fine but if i need to add a 3rd light down the road then that is ok as i definitely have enough bulbs!

 

[bc_slc]

so, if I understand correctly, you divided the space in the canopy into 3rds, one between and one on each end. And then pushed them forward a bit.

Mat

 

[mattseattle]

something like that....i didn't do an exact mathematic calculation though. i mainly tried to get them over the openings in the tank and towards the front of the tank. how did you position yours? and is your tank a 60" or 72"? and you said you had 3 DE pendants?

 

[plack]

Looks fabulous
I'd love to see those mini's and the omni flex in operaton.
Congrads on your work it looks very nice

 

[bc_slc]

sorry Matt, missed your reply.

My tank is 60" and I have 3 pendants. They are (1) directly in the center 30" from either edge and then the other 2 are 16" in from the edges.

So 16" to bulb #1, 14" to bulb #2 (center), 14" to bulb #3 and then 16" to the other edge. They are pretty well spread out but favor the center a bit more to help with overlap and keep the light off the edges.

Mat

 

[szidls]

More Pics....More Pics

 

[mattseattle]

Thanks Mat... That is good information. I may have to end up adding a 3rd light but I'll see how the 2 with the mini's work out.

Well I had a 2 day set back. I filled the tank with RO water on Friday and put salt in yesterday morning. After about 2 hours it did not clear up so I left it till last night and it was still super cloudy. I don't know what happened but it did not clear up even after about 14 hours of running. So I drained the tank and started over. The first salt mix I used was a new one that I had never used before which I know is stupid but I heard good things about. About 3 hours ago the tank finished filling...all I can say is thank god for a booster pump on my RO unit or else it would've been a week filling this tank. So I just finished adding the salt and it's already almost clear.... whew! so I'm going to let the salt mix today and part of tomorrow then probably start aquascaping. Finally...I never thought this day was goign to arrive.

I'll take pictures tomorrow but right now it's just a tank with water in it which is a good thing!

So I know people are going to ask what salt mix I tried and I tried OceanPure after reading quite a few good things about it. I don't know if I added the salt too quickly or what I did but I think the calcium precipated or something happened but it was almost like water downed milk in the tank. I have never seen a salt mix do this. I was stupid for taking such a risk. So I used Reef Crystals the second go around and so far so good.