On Sep 25, 10:34 am, "Reel McKoi"
wrote:
"ClownPleco" wrote in message

ps.com...

Hi all,

The other night I was trying to replace the bulbs (straight 4-pin 65
watt) and the endcaps pretty much crumbled in my hands. I have found
replacement endcaps on-line. In the meantime, I went back to my old
tube florescent bulbs. The tubes were silent as compared to the
compact fixture. I'm sure it is the fans.

1) Is it normal for the fans to make that much noise. They are
similar to computer fans, which also make some noise.

Yes, some fans are noisy, or become noisy over time. You should perhaps
call the place you bought them from and inquire.



2) Would I be crazy to just remove the fans - would the bulbs get too
hot and create all sorts of dangerous problems.

If they're the fans that came with the unit you should not remove them!



3) Any suggestions for quiet lighting - looking for 110+ whats for my
54 gallon Corner tank. I'm thinking about looking into an LED
fixture, but my guess is that they are pricey.

How are they for brightness?



Thanks in advance for any help you can provide.

--

RM....
Zone 6. Middle TN USA
~~~~ }((((* ~~~ }{{{{(ö



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LED lights have come a long way and probably improve more. Currently
most higher end LED do not have the best lumens per watts ratio
compared to many other higher end lights, LED are also rather pricy.
You might consider the SHO which can be placed into a standard
incandescent fixture and have very high lumen out put in the 6500 K
models.
Other good high end bulbs include the T-5 bulbs and the even newer
high end T-2 bulbs (which are good for smaller tanks with higher
lighting requirements. Helios also has a VHO power compact coming out
that I have seen demonstrated at the Aquarium Trade shows.

I recommend reading this lighting article for more information:
http://www.americanaquariumproducts...._Lighting.html

Carl