Lighting inside canopy

chimbo84 · Apr 21, 2022

I recently purchased a tank setup that came with an 8" Planet Aquariums Canopy and two AI Hydra32 lights. Currently, the lights are mounted on arms over the tank and the canopy is in my garage because I haven't yet worked out how to mount everything inside the canopy. What I am thinking is to get one of the AI HMS mounting bars (LINK) and attach it inside the canopy so that I can mount the Hydras and have side to side adjustability and can add more Hydras at a later date without having to fiddle with more mounts. Given that these lights will only be ~10" above the water surface, I will supplement with reef bright strips at the front and rear of the canopy.

Two issues I can think of. (1) how to mount the HMS rail inside the canopy. The rail has T-track on the sides that I could use some angle mounts but sizing might be an issue. (2) Splashing. With the lights so close to the water's surface, I worry about small drops landing on the lenses and burning them out. May need to design a diffuser or sacrificial lens to go in front of everything.

Any suggestions or tips would be appreciated. I really like the look of the canopy and am trying to figure out a way to make this work. Planet Aquariums also makes a 12" canopy for $750 that I could get but I am not sure if that is worth the extra 4" in height.

blaxsun · Apr 21, 2022

Personally, I'd hang the lights and not worry about attaching them to the canopy.

chimbo84 · Apr 21, 2022

blaxsun said:
Personally, I'd hang the lights and not worry about attaching them to the canopy.

How would you suggest hanging them inside the canopy?

blaxsun · Apr 21, 2022

chimbo84 said:
How would you suggest hanging them inside the canopy?

I'd hang them from the ceiling.

chimbo84 · Apr 21, 2022

blaxsun said:
I'd hang them from the ceiling.

I think that might be missing the point; I want to use the canopy. It was one of the main reasons I bought this setup. I like the look of the canopy and would like to figure out how to integrate it.

blaxsun · Apr 21, 2022

chimbo84 said:
I think that might be missing the point; I want to use the canopy. It was one of the main reasons I bought this setup. I like the look of the canopy and would like to figure out how to integrate it.

Part of the challenge is that it's only an 8" canopy, and you probably want the lights at least 8" off the water, so you're going to probably see the lights sticking out on top of the canopy (I assume this isn't the look you're after).

Dburr1014 · Apr 21, 2022

chimbo84 said:
I recently purchased a tank setup that came with an 8" Planet Aquariums Canopy and two AI Hydra32 lights. Currently, the lights are mounted on arms over the tank and the canopy is in my garage because I haven't yet worked out how to mount everything inside the canopy. What I am thinking is to get one of the AI HMS mounting bars (LINK) and attach it inside the canopy so that I can mount the Hydras and have side to side adjustability and can add more Hydras at a later date without having to fiddle with more mounts. Given that these lights will only be ~10" above the water surface, I will supplement with reef bright strips at the front and rear of the canopy.

Two issues I can think of. (1) how to mount the HMS rail inside the canopy. The rail has T-track on the sides that I could use some angle mounts but sizing might be an issue. (2) Splashing. With the lights so close to the water's surface, I worry about small drops landing on the lenses and burning them out. May need to design a diffuser or sacrificial lens to go in front of everything.

Any suggestions or tips would be appreciated. I really like the look of the canopy and am trying to figure out a way to make this work. Planet Aquariums also makes a 12" canopy for $750 that I could get but I am not sure if that is worth the extra 4" in height.

Seems pretty simple to make a clear cover, glass or plexi to protect the light.
The rail you could probably drill a hole on each side thru the t track and just screw it in to the top. May need some stoppers so the lungs don't walk off. The question is, does the canopy open in front or top? Front, no problems, top, you may need to make a couple spacers to keep the lights from swaying every time you open it.

Dburr1014 · Apr 21, 2022

Another thought,
Disco effect if they are not high enough.
Do they make a cover for that?

Dburr1014 · Apr 21, 2022

blaxsun said:
so you're going to probably see the lights sticking out on top of the canopy

What does this mean?
Is the canopy wood? It's enclosed I presume. How would they stick out the top?

Dburr1014 · Apr 21, 2022

My canopy is about 4" and my reefbreeders lights are mounted inside.
Took out the lenses, covered the top of the tank for protection. No disco at all, everything hidden.

chimbo84 · Apr 21, 2022

Dburr1014 said:
Seems pretty simple to make a clear cover, glass or plexi to protect the light.
The rail you could probably drill a hole on each side thru the t track and just screw it in to the top. May need some stoppers so the lungs don't walk off. The question is, does the canopy open in front or top? Front, no problems, top, you may need to make a couple spacers to keep the lights from swaying every time you open it.

Thanks. It is a front open canopy so there shouldn't be any interference with mounting the lights inside. I did some looking and there are diffusers available for the Hydra32 so that is an easy solution to the splashing concern. I will be adding two more hydras at some point to help even out the spread but the tank is fairly new right now with small frags so the reef bright strips will provide ample fill until I purchase the additional Hyrda modules.

LeftyReefer · Apr 21, 2022

Dburr1014 said:
What does this mean?
Is the canopy wood? It's enclosed I presume. How would they stick out the top?

There are open canopies, and closed canopies. Sounds like the OP is wanting to use a closed canopy.

Dburr1014 · Apr 21, 2022

chimbo84 said:
Thanks. It is a front open canopy so there shouldn't be any interference with mounting the lights inside. I did some looking and there are diffusers available for the Hydra32 so that is an easy solution to the splashing concern. I will be adding two more hydras at some point to help even out the spread but the tank is fairly new right now with small frags so the reef bright strips will provide ample fill until I purchase the additional Hyrda modules.

I would do a quick search on the diffusers and see how high people mount the lights with them. Just to make sure it will work for you.

chimbo84 · Apr 21, 2022

Dburr1014 said:
My canopy is about 4" and my reefbreeders lights are mounted inside.
Took out the lenses, covered the top of the tank for protection. No disco at all, everything hidden.

That looks awesome! Would you mind providing a pic of the inside of the canopy for reference?

Dburr1014 · Apr 21, 2022

LeftyReefer said:
There are open canopies, and closed canopies. Sounds like the OP is wanting to use a closed canopy.

Yes, I see now. I never liked the look of open ones.

Dburr1014 · Apr 21, 2022

chimbo84 said:
That looks awesome! Would you mind providing a pic of the inside of the canopy for reference?

Mine opens from the top

chimbo84 · Apr 21, 2022

LeftyReefer said:
There are open canopies, and closed canopies. Sounds like the OP is wanting to use a closed canopy.

Yes, it is a closed canopy. Here is a pic of the tank and canopy when it was delivered:

blaxsun · Apr 21, 2022

chimbo84 said:
Yes, it is a closed canopy. Here is a pic of the tank and canopy when it was delivered:

Does it have anything in the top of the canopy for ventilation, ie: slits, vents, etc.? Is there any lid on the top of the canopy or is it completely closed off/sealed? The reason I ask is that the Hydras have a fan on top of the heat sink for the light.

chimbo84 · Apr 21, 2022

blaxsun said:
Does it have anything in the top of the canopy for ventilation, ie: slits, vents, etc.? Is there any lid on the top of the canopy or is it completely closed off/sealed?

The front opens up and the back is open for cords but I am thinking that I'll need a fan on some sort of timer to circulate air through the canopy.

blaxsun · Apr 21, 2022

chimbo84 said:
The front opens up and the back is open for cords but I am thinking that I'll need a fan on some sort of timer to circulate air through the canopy.

Gotcha - so you've got airflow through the back and have some limited access to the tank through the front.

If you don't need to do anything other than feeding, the lid on the front should be more than sufficient. It looks like the easiest way to mount the lights would be to run a HMS rail along the top of the canopy (drilling holes in probably 3-4 locations). I don't know what the top of the canopy is made of nor if it's thick enough to accommodate the weight of the lights.