# DIY hood



## davfish (Mar 20, 2014)

Howdy!

I can easily frame out a basic "box", and skin it appropriately for a hood. I am thinking I put in a dual T5, giving myself space to expand to a second (if I feel so inclined to down the road). How much heat do these lights put out? I was thinking about adding cooling fans to create a current through my hood. Open to ideas/criticism/suggestions/etc

This is for my 4' 55gal mbuna tank.

Also would like suggestions on lighting; bulbs, fixtures, schedules, moon lighting, etc

Thanks so much!


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## dsiple3 (Mar 4, 2014)

My tank won't be in place until Saturday, but the T5 fixtures I used in my canopy are duals from Home Depot. I have 2 3' fixtures ($30 each) in a 6' DIY canopy. Since I do most of my tank work in the evenings, I run the canopy lights to give me more light than the garage light does. When I have had my hand near or even on them while working in the canopy, there was no major heat that I felt, unlike the sizzling sensation you get when you grab an incandescent bulb. This was a few hours after they had been on.

I think the only lights that generate less heat than the T5's are LEDs. I just wasn't willing to spend that kind of money at this time.

IMHO, I would go with a 4' dual T5. That way you can interchange bulbs to get the light you want in the tank. Since each tanks lighting needs vary, you may want to experiment - Budget willing.


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## Thalas_shaya (Mar 10, 2014)

I know all the canopies I've seen with T5s have incorporated simple fans in the ends to manage heat. I would build them in, and if you find you don't need to run them, unhook them. Better to have and not need, right? You may find you don't need them in winter, but do in summer.

I had T5's on my reef tank and loved the ability to have one warm and one cool temperature bulb, especially for creating fun visual effects like sun-up and sun-down. It's been too long for me to have any valid suggestions about brands or specific fixtures, sorry!


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## davfish (Mar 20, 2014)

I was also concerned about humidity levels inside the canopy, so I figured moving some air through would be a good option.

I will start gathering some materials, and I will post an update when I can! Thanks for the input


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## Mcdaphnia (Dec 16, 2003)

I am kind of burned on T5's. The bulbs may not get super hot, but the holders and the wiring do. I always used fans but still when I needed to change a burned out bulb, I would find the wiring and the holders so heat damaged that the lights needed to be rebuilt. DIY LED's are getting lot cheaper. I have changed over most of my fish room to LED.


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