SolaTubes for reef tanks
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RedEyeReef
Active member
Keep us posted. How is the relation of the tank and your roof? Meaning, is your house a rancher or is the tank located up stairs? I think I am SOL for Solar tubes, my 360 is in my basement.
Wow, I just read this entire thread, like reading a short book. I have ordered a few sun tubes for my house and one will be used for a reptile enclosure( 4 Somalian Uromastyx lizards). I also want to use a 21" tube to light a small seagrass bed in my kitchen. I spoke with Calfo at a reef club meeting here in Denver a few months ago. He said success can be achieved but the uv blockage of the roof top dome is critical. Apparently, low 80's is an ideal percentage of uv blockage. All domes I have seen tout 95% or greater. I was thinking of having one custom made. Anybody have ideas about what material should be used and how to get it manufactured?
dvups1
Premium Member
Well according to my local Solatube dealer there in on way to remove the UV block from the dome. It blocks almost all UV and I think that just won't work. I contacted Sun Tube today and they assured me that for an extra $100 they could provide a dome for their 13" tube that did not block any UV. They claim that Solatubes materials are not UV stable and that is why Solatube has to have the UV dome. Sun Tube apparently dosen't have that problem so they are now my choice supplier.
Question? How much UV does a reef aquarium filter? The way my plans are laid out, my tank will be directly behind my dark brown leather ofa. Does anyone know if I am going to get considerable sun damage/ wear on the tops of the sofa?
Question? How much UV does a reef aquarium filter? The way my plans are laid out, my tank will be directly behind my dark brown leather ofa. Does anyone know if I am going to get considerable sun damage/ wear on the tops of the sofa?
This thread rocks!
How dear is mirrored acrylic. What about having a rectangular hole in your ceiling a bit smaller than the size of your tank and covering the insides with mirrored acrylic? Having the hole a bit smaller would add the coned effect. Surely this would create the most possible light for your coral as the light collection area would be much bigger than solar tubes. Depending on the roof design it could be difficult to make in an existing house though. It would be very easy in my house. Shame about the tall buildings and trees that create shade on my roof.
How dear is mirrored acrylic. What about having a rectangular hole in your ceiling a bit smaller than the size of your tank and covering the insides with mirrored acrylic? Having the hole a bit smaller would add the coned effect. Surely this would create the most possible light for your coral as the light collection area would be much bigger than solar tubes. Depending on the roof design it could be difficult to make in an existing house though. It would be very easy in my house. Shame about the tall buildings and trees that create shade on my roof.
Actually, there is a company patenting a square sun tube...for lack of a better term. I don't recall the name of the company and they didn't have it for sale yet, but they used a pyramidal shaped mirrors with a square skylight (like a obelisk with the top cut off for the skylight) . Creates sharper angles vs. the shallow angles created by the tubes.
I figured one of those could be built around the bottom of a standard sun tube, to better contain and focus light. It's in the plans.
I figured one of those could be built around the bottom of a standard sun tube, to better contain and focus light. It's in the plans.
Instigator
New member
DennisRB said:
Nice idea! But...
Does acryllic filter/absorb UV?
Would direct sunlight warp or discolor acrylic? What is the wear potential of this material.
I would go with the thinnest acryllic sheets possible. The shape would also help maximize the space between raffters or studs. I would go with a more straight design and put a cone shape near the bottom though. Because you would be using flat mirrors I would suggest some type of diffuser lens either at the top or bottom of the tube to prevent the "hot spot" from driectly moving accross the tank (unless you want that effect).
I read the entire thread......a lot of great info here! Here's my question......I have a patio that will be enclosed. The roof is flat and about 9' high. I live in sunny Arizona, so daily sunligt is not a problem even in the winter. I have no trees or other shading devices over/near the patio. Should I install a couple 21" solatubes or a larger skylight panel? The roof rafters are spaced out at 24" o.c. and has no insulation(open ceiling). Also if I do install the "tubes" should they extend as close to the tank top as possible? I'll be growing out sps's in one or two of these tanks. At present time I'm running 250/400w MH's and VHO's (about 2500 watts total over the two tanks). I was planning on installing a simple AC window unit to ensure temperature. Thanks!
Blue
Blue
SAT
Premium Member
Blue,
I like my tubes. It sounds like it wouldn't be too hard for you to install. However, don't expect them to be a replacement for your main lighting. I think during the summer (April through August) a 21" tube is approximately equal to a 250W MH bulb. In December, even in Arizona, it's probably equal to a 40W NO fluorescent lamp (the angle of the sun is what matters, not the brightness).
If you do install it, yes you should push the output down as close to the water as you can manage.
I like my tubes. It sounds like it wouldn't be too hard for you to install. However, don't expect them to be a replacement for your main lighting. I think during the summer (April through August) a 21" tube is approximately equal to a 250W MH bulb. In December, even in Arizona, it's probably equal to a 40W NO fluorescent lamp (the angle of the sun is what matters, not the brightness).
If you do install it, yes you should push the output down as close to the water as you can manage.
filters
filters
sorry if this has already been covered. I'm still a ways from finishing this thread, but you can use Rosco theatrical filters which come in 20*30" sheets at around $10 each. THey've got a kelvin calculator that'll tell you what filter combo to use, going from 6000 to 10000K would use a sheet of 3204 half-blue. I've used these to good effect when my 10K bulbs burned out & had to run 3200K for a few weeks during a re-order.
-jamie
filters
SAT said:
sorry if this has already been covered. I'm still a ways from finishing this thread, but you can use Rosco theatrical filters which come in 20*30" sheets at around $10 each. THey've got a kelvin calculator that'll tell you what filter combo to use, going from 6000 to 10000K would use a sheet of 3204 half-blue. I've used these to good effect when my 10K bulbs burned out & had to run 3200K for a few weeks during a re-order.
-jamie
RGibson, most any theatrical supply company. If you look under theatrical / theater supply in your phonebook there will hopefully be something. Otherwise their website is: http://www.rosco.com/
If you call or email them they'll send you the Kelvin Calculator excel spreadsheet so that you could get your exact needs taken care of. You can also look up on the website the specs for any gel (what they're called) so you could see for example that a single sheet of 3204 would block 52% of the light...
-jamie
If you call or email them they'll send you the Kelvin Calculator excel spreadsheet so that you could get your exact needs taken care of. You can also look up on the website the specs for any gel (what they're called) so you could see for example that a single sheet of 3204 would block 52% of the light...
-jamie
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