I have 14" solar tubes in my living room. They are super bright during sunny days, but dim during cloudy days. I would say that a 10x10 space will have an average 100 fc ambient illuminiation at tabletop. The tube is equip with a difusing lens. It spreads the light very evenly on wall, ceiling and floor.
If anybody has a footcandle meter i can borrow I would gladly take measurements over the winter day. I live in Los Angeles where direct sun is ample.
Below the solar tubes, the direction of greatest illumination is not from directly below, but at an angle related to the azimuth of the sun. Thus mounting secondary reflectors below the solar tube to point the light in the direction of the aquarium will certainly help.
From my impression, if you can hang one 14" dia above the aquarium per 6 ft length, they will light up the tank very well during any sunny days.
A 14" dia will have twice as much light as the 10".
If anybody has a footcandle meter i can borrow I would gladly take measurements over the winter day. I live in Los Angeles where direct sun is ample.
Below the solar tubes, the direction of greatest illumination is not from directly below, but at an angle related to the azimuth of the sun. Thus mounting secondary reflectors below the solar tube to point the light in the direction of the aquarium will certainly help.
From my impression, if you can hang one 14" dia above the aquarium per 6 ft length, they will light up the tank very well during any sunny days.
A 14" dia will have twice as much light as the 10".
I don't know where you'd get one, I'm sure they're available somewhere online. I wonder if they're available with certain levels of diffusion to avoid the "hot spot" problem?
