T5 to T5/LED combo

[MrsGsClassroom]

Hello! I have a 75gallon tank in my classroom I use as a teaching tool for my 8th grade science students. I also run a "Marine Titans" club that includes 3 local middle schools and the high school. Anyway, we had a 8 bulb T5 fixture donated to our classroom and my students were wanting to tweek it into a T5/LED combo. We were thinking 4 T5 bulbs and some type of LED strips as well. (the fixture is 1'x 48'). Has anybody every DIYed that before? Where would I buy LED strips. My LFS is about 35 miles away so its not easily accessible- we order most of our stuff.

 

[theatrus]

Some fixtures are easier to convert than others - know which one you have? An 8-bulb is pretty overkill for a 75g

When looking for LEDs, if you want to actually have any light output for coral growth, you want to be using pucks or strips with 3W LEDs on them, not the cheap general lighting flexible strips. Those flexy strips are fine for algae reactor or refuges (with enough), but you'd need quite a few to replace the output of a T5 bulb.

Depending on how you can mount the heatsink and how much room you have to work with, there are a number of LED reef pucks out there.

 

[MrsGsClassroom]

I only run 4 of the at a time, they are on timers to for a "sunrise/set" effect, all 8 only run for about an hour at noon. The only thing I know about it is that is a made by Current. It was donated last year by a parent of a student who upgraded his tank. Unfortunately his child has moved up to the high school and I can no longer look up his contact information to ask him.

 

[theatrus]

Probably this one? http://www.marinedepot.com/48_inch_...urrent_USA-CU01120-FILTFIT58U-CU01123-vi.html

The trick with those is the one-piece reflector assembly, its going to take more work than just taking out a few bulbs and the reflector to retrofit. You can always use a strip light on a heatsink *below* the light its self of course, and not modiy it at all. If you match up a length of extrusion from HeatsinkUSA for example. Not everything would be contained in the fixture.

 

[MrsGsClassroom]

Ok I think I understand. Thanks for the advice!

 

[golferbud101691]

Plenty of diy stuff you can do to a fixture. A lot of it depends on the actual fixture and what your tank needs are. Tell us a little more about the tank lighting needs. Is there a canopy? Post some pics so we have an idea of what everything looks like. Depending on how the ballasts are configured to each light, you may have to rewire some lights to make it work. Do you know how many ballasts you have? Another option is to take out the 4 middle lights, and recess your leds that way.

 

[AZRippster]

Here is the one I did with two 8 lamp 48" fixtures. It might give you some ideas.

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2568330&highlight=aurora+hybrid+8+