Lightsluvr's 340G Upgrade

[Lightsluvr]

Re: Re: Christmas...

Re: Re: Christmas...

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=15155507#post15155507 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by melev
Once you start to assemble it, you'll be able to determine how it hangs, weight-wise. I have a feeling a cluster of them on either side will be an issue, compared to centering them somehow.

Calvin's super long nano tank needed the ballasts to be placed in specific spots, and wiring up to 12' long in the canopy. He used some bridge bars to easily connect and disconnect the wiring to his T5s. Have you read his thread yet? Odds are it is in the DIY forum.

I agree that a cluster on either side would need to be balanced...my "cluster" will be centered on the rear 96" bar...
I'll weigh one of the ballasts when they get here... If I am really good at new math, I can calculate the weight of the ballasts and how it will offset the cantilever effect of having 10" of the light rack forward of the front hanging rod. If my center of gravity is right behind that hanging rod, all 16 wheels of the track system should stay on the rails...

Time will tell.

LL

 

[edandsandy]

Re: Re: Re: Re: Lighting decision

Re: Re: Re: Re: Lighting decision

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=15141554#post15141554 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Lightsluvr
Change in the light rack plans:
The pocket door tracks and wheels are on the way. The track is 8' in length, giving plenty of room to get things out of the way for tank or light maintenance. The wheels are rated at 150 pounds. We will suspend the rack by threaded rods instead of chains. The threaded rods will allow precise adjustment and leveling of the rack.

LL

George,

sorry we have not responded earlier - internet and life issues...

I am sure your ideas will work fine. We have taken many ideas from others and modified them to fit our circumstances...

On the use of the rods versus chains - the chain is connected to the rack with threaded I bolts. I can take up links to raise the light and use the threaded I bolts for precise adjustments. I wanted as little as possible protruding below the fixture and this aided that goal as well.

I do not know what metal you are using for the rods but past my experience with boats and aquariums has taught me to be cautious with electrolysis. I notice you were using angle brackets to connect the frame. If dis-similar metals come into contact you will likely experience electrolysis. We used plastic connector for the light frame. I used tephlon blocks in the corners where the I bolts are located to prevent contact between the stainless I bolts and the aluminum frames. All rivets were aluminum as well.

 

[edandsandy]

George,

On your ballast - we built an SO cord that runs from the wall to the light frame. The SO cord connects to a junction box on the frame. I installed connectors to allow for quick disconnects.

This moved the weight off the light frame... Also; the ballast are adjustable and having them lower on the wall allowed for quick access. When new corals are added we put them exactly where we want them and adjust the ballast for a few days to allow the coral time to acclimate to the brighter lights.....

 

[Lightsluvr]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=15157315#post15157315 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by edandsandy
George,

On your ballast - we built an SO cord that runs from the wall to the light frame. The SO cord connects to a junction box on the frame. I installed connectors to allow for quick disconnects.

Thanks for all the tips!

What is a SO cord?

LL

 

[edandsandy]

The SO CORD is a bundle of wires/cords like an umbilical cord that supplies power to multiple items. For example I have tie strapped in a bundle, power cords for the T5's, fans, and MH's. All of the wiring terminates in a singe location on the rack in an electrical box. All of the wiring is bundled together down to the side of the wall where it spits off to the different components such as ballast and in most cases to a power supply. It gives a very clean look on the rack and works well when the rack is moved.

Let me know if you have a specific question on the RO/DI tank set up. The goal was to be able to move water from any where to any where. We still have to hook up a line (ready made) to move water to the display tank and remove water from the display tank. I have a banjo connector for the ADD WATER set up that allows for a quick connect to add water to the display tank. The ATO is the only connection to the display tank. We can tank some pics I you would like to see more.

 

[Lightsluvr]

What a rookie!

What a rookie!

Sheesh, I feel like such a rookie... all my experience with aquarium lighting has been limited to deciding which manufactured system I was going to toss on top of the tank...

Well, this afternoon I took delivery of a 30 pound box brimming with ballasts, red, yellow and blue power harnesses, waterproof end caps, standoffs, and I don't know what all!

I don't have a clue where to begin...

I won't be dissuaded - so online to learn how to assemble all these pieces...

Any tips for an illustrated "how to" course?

I'll be back... :eek1:

LL

 

[Lightsluvr]

A deep breath...

A deep breath...

OK since that last post, I consumed a cold beverage, opened the other two boxes in the ReefGeek shipment, and gosh darn, there were actually INSTRUCTIONS in the box with the IceCap reflectors!

I found a few photos of end cap / standoff installations online, so I don't feel quite so ignorant.

I plan to run the two bulbs on each ballast side by side, that is making one row on the 96" rack. Blue wires on one end, red wires on the opposite end, and the common yellow wires in the middle, where the endcaps are back-to-back. Any problem with that plan?

(Don't make me go over to the T5 thread )

I'll have photos of the lights tomorrow.

Back to reading...

LL

 

[Lightsluvr]

Light rack / frame build

Light rack / frame build

Yesterday I put the final touches on the light rack... the center supports will be screwed into place after I measure the mounting distance between the Endcap Standoffs with a bulb in place...

LL

 

[pwhitby]

two words George....

KNEE PADS.

other than that...coming along quite swimmingly as we brits say.

The lights are east to wire.....but.....in some of the ones I have done it can be tough to get the wire to catch in the little socket if you have a jumper into it as well (i.e two lines into the same hole). What I did was to take the sigle feed and then connect that with crimped end connectors to two other wires, each of which enter the end cap. (does that make sense) ? so you basically make a "y" shaped feed to each end of each bulb.

I have the crimps and a set of wire pairers at the house you are welcome to borrow. The pairers especially make removing insulation a breeze.

Paul.

 

[Lightsluvr]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=15161797#post15161797 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by pwhitby
two words George....

KNEE PADS.

other than that...coming along quite swimmingly as we brits say.

The lights are east to wire.....but.....in some of the ones I have done it can be tough to get the wire to catch in the little socket if you have a jumper into it as well (i.e two lines into the same hole). What I did was to take the sigle feed and then connect that with crimped end connectors to two other wires, each of which enter the end cap. (does that make sense) ? so you basically make a "y" shaped feed to each end of each bulb.

I have the crimps and a set of wire pairers at the house you are welcome to borrow. The pairers especially make removing insulation a breeze.

Paul.

Good thinking on the knee pads tip...I plan to put the rack up on saw horses this afternoon before I start to install endcaps, standoffs, etc. That way, I can work at table height, icluding drilling many self-tapping screws to hold the hardware onto the rack...

Thanks for tagging along...

LL

 

[edandsandy]

Looking good George!

 

[Lightsluvr]

A perfect puzzle...

A perfect puzzle...

This afternoon I will start assembling a retro kit or two, in order to get final measurements for placement of the light rack center braces.

After that is done, it will be time to start to attach the kits to the rack and make a final decision on how to attach the ballasts. I have considered the ideas of numerous other reefers, and I am still leaning toward placing the ballasts on a "bank".

The power cords from the ballasts would then be directed to an electric connection box with just four connections - one for each sequence in the lighting time cycle.

Here are some photos taken during my "panic" stage following delivery of the light kit compnents...

(24) 47" 54W T5 bulbs:

Ballasts by the case:

A sack of encaps...also in the bag are the T5 bulb clips and hardware:

(12) Wiring harnesses and disconnects:

Everybody tells me, "Just a piece of cake..."

LL

 

[Lightsluvr]

Light rack rhapsody...

Light rack rhapsody...

I'm still fumbling around on this project, so I decided to throw together a couple of the kits and put some bulbs in there with reflectors. This would let me determine the spacing between endcaps and calculate how many bulbs I can fit in the rack.
Here are some photos from the measuring stage. I didn't even remove the entire protective cover from the reflectors for this experiment.

Close-up of the outer end-caps - can almost place the standoffs side-by-side. The hole in the frame is for the 5/16" threaded support rod:

The inner (center) end-cap and stand-off. The green film is the protective coating on the German faceted reflector.

The light rack work station...

After I get the Standoff positions marked, I will start at the front of the rack and start installing the kits, two-by-two.

Thanks for viewing our thread. Say hello when you stop by. We've had over 6200 views, and I'd love more input, comments or questions...

Reef on,

LL

 

[melev]

Before you get too far along, I would suggest you test each pair to make sure they light. That way you can limit the confusion factor when it is time to isolate the cause.

I've done presentations on how to wire lighting before, but I don't even know if I have that info on my site.

 

[Lightsluvr]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=15167292#post15167292 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by melev
Before you get too far along, I would suggest you test each pair to make sure they light. That way you can limit the confusion factor when it is time to isolate the cause.

I've done presentations on how to wire lighting before, but I don't even know if I have that info on my site.

Very good tip...I planned on testing each pair of lights as I progressed in the installation. One ballast = two bulbs = one row. Easy place to conduct the test after wiring...

Thanks, Marc.

LL

 

[Lightsluvr]

The light rack...

The light rack...

I've decided to build the ballast "bank" - very simple. just two vertical pieces of tubing attached to the rack's rear tubing with three "shelves" of 1" aluminum angle about 2-1/2" apart. I will tie wrap the ballasts to the shelves and label them as to what row of bulbs they fire. The ballasts will all be rear-facing in the center of the rack, making for easy access, if needed.

Photos later.

LL

 

[Lightsluvr]

Spacing fro the end-caps...

Spacing fro the end-caps...

Finished up measurements last night - marked locations for the standoffs of the 24 endcaps. Spacing worked out nicely, allowing good placement of the 12 rows of T5s and a 2" gap for the moonlights, which will be attached above the frame. The T5 endcaps are suspended under the frame...

The superintendent showed up and all work ceased...

After he threw his weight around, I started all over again... Do I look delighted?

Here are the R2 Moonlights which also arrived on 6/9/2009. Each 48" fixture has 24 dimmable blue LED lights which should look stunning over the tank. These will be controlled by the Neptune Systems' Apex controller.

Thanks for reading... please take a moment and say hello.

LL

 

[pwhitby]

Hello

 

[pwhitby]

Ok, being serious now...

Looks great George. I am really pleased when someone has the same idea as myself, then follows it through before i get round to it. They say practice makes perfect....so once Ed builds me the light racks I'll give you a shout out!

I really think you will be very happy with what you are assembling. There is a great deal of satisfaction in DIY and the aesthetics of a "nice" build. What are you doing is very durable and will no doubt last.

Keep the pictures flowing....

P.

 

[Lightsluvr]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=15170123#post15170123 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by pwhitby
Ok, being serious now...

Looks great George. I am really pleased when someone has the same idea as myself, then follows it through before i get round to it. They say practice makes perfect....so once Ed builds me the light racks I'll give you a shout out!

I really think you will be very happy with what you are assembling. There is a great deal of satisfaction in DIY and the aesthetics of a "nice" build. What are you doing is very durable and will no doubt last.

Keep the pictures flowing....

P.

Thanks, Paul. I am really going to like being able to roll the lights a complete 5 feet back from the tank in order to 1.) work over the tank w/o ducking the light array, and 2.) being able to stand on the floor and do maintenance on the T5s, reflectors, ballasts, etc.

Oh by the way, just finished the mysterious "ballast bank"... that will be documented in the following post.

LL