AgentSPS' 300 Gallon ***DreamReef***
- Thread starter AgentSPS
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AgentSPS
New member
Well I have never personally used Galaxy so I cannot comment. FWIW I have yet to hear of anyone having problems with Lumatek's ballasts. Can't say the same for Galaxy.
paulthomas
Premium Member
Stuck with the Spectra... good man. :thumbsup:
How do you like the SLB2R bracket thingamajig? I'm thinking of getting it for my 72" Spectra to avoid drilling into my living room ceiling.
How do you like the SLB2R bracket thingamajig? I'm thinking of getting it for my 72" Spectra to avoid drilling into my living room ceiling.
paulthomas
Premium Member
Light Trees
Light Trees
Hey Erik,
Would you be able to post a photo of where the plates of your Light Tree attach to your Spectra?
Do the LTs come straight up and tight against the back of your tank?
Do you have the 10 or 14" plates?
I spoke to the owner of ZeroEdge and she did her best to describe exactly how these LTs work. I still had questions.
My tank is 30" deep (front to back) and it's got two 20" x 14" x 5" external overflow boxes. She said that the LTs would center the Spectra over my tank. But the OFs were a little little bit of a question. I've got ~ 8", IIRC, from either edge of the tank to the start of each OF, so I think I'm good there. And I would probably mount the LTs on the ends of the back of my stand. It's solid 3/4" oak plywood.
She suggested I use the Giesemann hanging kit with the LTs to give the Spectra full flexibility up and down. I'm thinking I'll like the look of the plates better, though. But then there's that issue of the cords coming out of the Spectra. Mine has only three cords on one end. But I imagine I'd run into the same problem you did with the cords interfering with the mounting plates.
Thanks,
Paul
Light Trees
Hey Erik,
Would you be able to post a photo of where the plates of your Light Tree attach to your Spectra?
Do the LTs come straight up and tight against the back of your tank?
Do you have the 10 or 14" plates?
I spoke to the owner of ZeroEdge and she did her best to describe exactly how these LTs work. I still had questions.
My tank is 30" deep (front to back) and it's got two 20" x 14" x 5" external overflow boxes. She said that the LTs would center the Spectra over my tank. But the OFs were a little little bit of a question. I've got ~ 8", IIRC, from either edge of the tank to the start of each OF, so I think I'm good there. And I would probably mount the LTs on the ends of the back of my stand. It's solid 3/4" oak plywood. She suggested I use the Giesemann hanging kit with the LTs to give the Spectra full flexibility up and down. I'm thinking I'll like the look of the plates better, though. But then there's that issue of the cords coming out of the Spectra. Mine has only three cords on one end. But I imagine I'd run into the same problem you did with the cords interfering with the mounting plates.
Thanks,
Paul
paulthomas
Premium Member
Oops. I forgot that I posted in your thread recently. 
AgentSPS
New member
Hey Erik,
Would you be able to post a photo of where the plates of your Light Tree attach to your Spectra?
Do the LTs come straight up and tight against the back of your tank?
Do you have the 10 or 14" plates?
I spoke to the owner of ZeroEdge and she did her best to describe exactly how these LTs work. I still had questions.
She suggested I use the Giesemann hanging kit with the LTs to give the Spectra full flexibility up and down. I'm thinking I'll like the look of the plates better, though. But then there's that issue of the cords coming out of the Spectra. Mine has only three cords on one end. But I imagine I'd run into the same problem you did with the cords interfering with the mounting plates.
Thanks,
Paul
Hi Paul-
I have posted some photos below. FWIW I don't think the owner of ZeroEdge know how their own products work. They are very nice people but it was difficult getting anything accomplished with them. In the end though I am happy with how my setup turned out.
I should preface everything I am about to write with the caveat that I had them build me custom lamp trees. I don't think they deviate too far from standard ones other than the amount of reach mine provide. They go a full 20" over center of my tank.
As for plates, I would say mine at maybe 6" x 8" but I only have plates where the tree mounts to the stand at the base. Further down at the bottom of the tree you can see how I used a U bolt to secure the tree. I have a steel frame stand so to make it easy I just used two ¾ hardwood ply boards to mount the trees to. The boards bolt directly to the steel frame.
You will noticed that I further customized my trees by having a single cross bar that connects both trees. I drilled holes into this cross bar to hard mount the Spectra. I guess you could use the Giesemann hanging kit but I don't see the purpose since you can adjust the height of the trees. It is a telescoping system with a set screw.
Hopefully this helps.
View of mounting plate and ¾ hardwood ply painted with marine paint
View of the base of the tree with U bolt securing it down
Top down
Gap between tree and tank:
Spectra mounting with cross bar
paulthomas
Premium Member
Erik,
You're awesome. Seriously, bro, thanks for taking the time to explain what you did, your attention to detail and for the pics. It'd be nice to get these things, from ZeroEdge, made ready to go.
The person I spoke to at ZeroEdge was a sweet lady. But I couldn't quite grasp what she was saying. Over the phone, I suppose what we were conveying back and forth got confused.
Your post summed it all up, though.
I asked about making a bar or long plate that would run the length of the Spectra and connect the two trees. I don't think she thought it was necessary. I like what you did. It looks safe, clean, and it still allows the heat to vent from the top of the Spectra.
It looks as though I'm going to have to mount my LTs to my wall though.
My returns would be in direct path of the LTs. She mentioned something about an extension that would add 3", but I think that was for the hanging end and not the mount.
Damn. Now I'm bummed I didn't go with the black Spectra to match the light trees. I went with silver because my stand and moldings/trim throughout the living room are white and I didn't want a white Spectra. She said that they can powdercoat the trees silver. I'll have to see how close to Giesemann's their silver is before ordering. The plus to the black LT is that it hides the cords better once secured. Is that velcro securing your cords to the LT?
Do you think I'll be able to add a bar similar to yours to join the two LTs if I order as is? Or would that need to be a custom deal on my own? The owner did say that these things are made to order. I should send your pics to her and ask if she can do the same.
Thanks again!
You're awesome. Seriously, bro, thanks for taking the time to explain what you did, your attention to detail and for the pics. It'd be nice to get these things, from ZeroEdge, made ready to go.
The person I spoke to at ZeroEdge was a sweet lady. But I couldn't quite grasp what she was saying. Over the phone, I suppose what we were conveying back and forth got confused.
Your post summed it all up, though.I asked about making a bar or long plate that would run the length of the Spectra and connect the two trees. I don't think she thought it was necessary. I like what you did. It looks safe, clean, and it still allows the heat to vent from the top of the Spectra.
It looks as though I'm going to have to mount my LTs to my wall though.
My returns would be in direct path of the LTs. She mentioned something about an extension that would add 3", but I think that was for the hanging end and not the mount. Damn. Now I'm bummed I didn't go with the black Spectra to match the light trees. I went with silver because my stand and moldings/trim throughout the living room are white and I didn't want a white Spectra. She said that they can powdercoat the trees silver. I'll have to see how close to Giesemann's their silver is before ordering. The plus to the black LT is that it hides the cords better once secured. Is that velcro securing your cords to the LT?
Do you think I'll be able to add a bar similar to yours to join the two LTs if I order as is? Or would that need to be a custom deal on my own? The owner did say that these things are made to order. I should send your pics to her and ask if she can do the same.
Thanks again!
paulthomas
Premium Member
Then again, if they add a cross bar, etc., the could weld it so that the trees would mount closer together, thereby allowing me to mount them inside of my returns.
Robert4025
Member
What? Robert never frags...
LOL...I heard that....I have ears everywhere, Eric. I big BIG ears! :lolspin:
As always, awesome looking tank bud! I think yours is almost at Mark's level....almost. You just need few more killer Aussie SPS colonies to catch up...
LOL...I heard that....I have ears everywhere, Eric. I big BIG ears! :lolspin:
As always, awesome looking tank bud! I think yours is almost at Mark's level....almost. You just need few more killer Aussie SPS colonies to catch up...
Easy now Robert, Eric's tank is way nicer that mine
Dave's Reef
New member
All-
Just wanted to let you know I decided to stick with the Spectra afterall. When I purchased the Sfiligoi I did not take into account that it weighed nearly double what the Spectra does. It was going to be a big engineering project to hang it over my tank and it just wasn't worth it in the end. I sold the fixture to a buddy of mine so it worked out okay in the end.
I did, however, swap out my PFO ballast for Lumatek this weekend and am blown away with the results!! For those who are not familiar with these, they are switchable. Meaning you can run them at 250w, 275w, 400w, and 400w overdrive.
Comparing a Reeflux 400w driven by PFO HQI next to a Reeflux 250w driven by Lumatek @ 275w, the 250w bulb was as bright if not brighter than the 400w. Also after an hour of running the Lumatek on both 275w and 400w overdrive it was just slightly warm to the touch. Super impressed so far!
Cool Erik,
I just got some of the switchable Galaxy ballasts and I LOVE em. No issues for me thus far with the old Galaxies or my new ones.
Curious what issues it is you've heard about on them? I've not heard/read about any and would be interested to know? Maybe PM me or something?
Thanks
Robert4025
Member
Easy now Robert, Eric's tank is way nicer that mine
LOL...you're killing my buzz man. I am trying to get Eric to spend....more...:lmao::lmao::frog::lmao:
AgentSPS
New member
Paul no problem! Happy to help out as I sure could have used the guidance when I was setting up my fixture.
For me I wanted to use the existing holes where the screw for the hanging kit comes out of the Spectra. Since I was not able to line the LT up with those screw holes, I had to use the 10" ends on the LT. The weight of the fixture just caused the ends to bend downward which was going to warp the LT over time. The solution was to have a single end (crossbar) that would prevent the LTs from warping and provide some more rigidity.
Silver is not a bad choice as it blends better with a white wall. That was one thing I liked about the Sfiligoi I almost installed.
Well its definitely custom and you might be better off finding a local metal shop to do it for you. I waited like 6 weeks for mine and they charged me a fortune. The design is really simple for anyone to do. Just need a 1/2 square tube steel with two solid metal square plugs welded on. These plugs need to match the inner diameter of the 1/2" tube steel. Most metal shops have a powder coater they work with too.
AgentSPS
New member
LOL...I heard that....I have ears everywhere, Eric. I big BIG ears! :lolspin:
As always, awesome looking tank bud! I think yours is almost at Mark's level....almost. You just need few more killer Aussie SPS colonies to catch up...
Haha I was waiting for you to respond Robert! Took you long enough :lol:
I don't have nearly the discipline to compete with Mark but his tank is definitely something to aspire for. I havnt seen his tank in person but given the fact that the pictures look amazing and pictures usually don't even do half justice, its gotta be over the top!
I will definitely swing by soon to check things out. Saw your hookup got a nice shipment in this weekend.
paulthomas
Premium Member
Well, it looks like yours turned out pretty damn nice.
ZeroEdge or the metal shop?
I contacted a vendor and explained what I wanted to do. Two of your pics accompanied the e-mail. If that's OK?
I'll see if ZeroEdge can do it for a reasonable fee. Otherwise I'll go the local shop route. Thanks again, Erik!
AgentSPS
New member
Yes some corals are from the old system. Did treatment during transfer. Never had RB. I hate those much more than AEFW!
AgentSPS
New member
Nice to see you are enjoying the new Galaxies!
Its been a while and I don't remember anything specific other than just ballasts failing. It was just anecdotal and not first hand. FWIW I wouldn't be surprised if both brand ballasts contained the same components inside
paulthomas
Premium Member
I'm sorry to bombard you with questions, Erik. It seems there aren't too many of these fixtures out there. I need all the help I can get.
It looks to me as though your crossbar extends ~ 2.5" beyond each fixture hanging bolt. Does the crossbar bend or bow at all, especially near the bolts, due to the weight of the Spectra? I wanted to know because I'm wondering if I can get away with leaving the cords, that come out of the top of the Spectra, where they are (centered on the grate) and having the crossbar extend only .5" beyond each fixture hanging bolt.
Did that make any sense at all? :crazy1:
I take it you replaced the European hanging bolts with longer, U.S. threaded ones :rolleye1: in order to bolt your Spectra through the 1/2" crossbar? The Spectra hanging bolts are metric and short, IIRC.
Thanks,
Paul
It looks to me as though your crossbar extends ~ 2.5" beyond each fixture hanging bolt. Does the crossbar bend or bow at all, especially near the bolts, due to the weight of the Spectra? I wanted to know because I'm wondering if I can get away with leaving the cords, that come out of the top of the Spectra, where they are (centered on the grate) and having the crossbar extend only .5" beyond each fixture hanging bolt.
Did that make any sense at all? :crazy1:
I take it you replaced the European hanging bolts with longer, U.S. threaded ones :rolleye1: in order to bolt your Spectra through the 1/2" crossbar? The Spectra hanging bolts are metric and short, IIRC.
Thanks,
Paul
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