Two 55-watt compact fluorescence retrofit into an All-glass hood quite
easily and (relatively) cheaply. I've done it with kits from
www.ahsupply.com

kush

Flandry wrote in message
om...
I've been reading, reading, reading about aquascaping and plant
lighting setups, and there's a lot of good material available online.
However, i'm still left with a few questions that i hope somebody can
answer for me.

1- I read in several places that MH (metal halide) lamps are MORE
efficient than fluorescents. That means that they convert more of the
electrical energy into light energy. The figure i read on one page
said 'twice' as efficient as regular fluorescents. Ok, so why does
everybody talk about how hot MHs are, compared to normal output (NO)
fluorescents or compact fluorescents? It seems that the same amount
of light from NOs would produce more heat than a comparable MH setup,
because they're less efficient. What gives here?

2- I bought a used 55Gal that came with the All-Glass deluxe hood, and
i'm finding out that the single F40T10 48" fluorescent bulb isn't
going to work for a planted tank. There are, as i see it, four
options, and cost is definitely a big factor for me.

* Try to stuff a double 22" 55W PCF retrofit from ahsupply into the
current single-tube light strip. I'm not sure if this will fit, but
if so it could be a complete solution (albeit expensive one) that lets
me keep my current setup. The retrofit is quite expensive and the
bulbs are around $20 apiece and have to be replaced about every year,
which means this could be expensive over the time.

* Do away with the whole deluxe hood and buy some glass canopies and
some 48" T8 double or triple bulb fixtures to set on top. Not the
most attractive result, but possibly the least expensive in the long
run (the bulbs are supposed to be available for around $5). It's hard
to tell looking at the pictures of the All-Glass versa top if there is
sufficient room behind the hinged area to fit a triple-bulb setup.
Can anyone using the versa top verify this?

* Get an extra 24" light strip and put it on top of a sheet of acrylic
in place of the left door. I could move the fixture easily when i
need access to that side. This is the cheapest, but also the least
conclusive solution, because it only adds 20W and isn't going to look
very good.

* Do away with the current hood and make a completely new one. This
isn't a viable option right now because i haven't any shop or access
to power tools.

So, has anybody else found themselves in the same situation? What did
they do?

Thanks