SeaClear System II and lighting

Skeeve wrote:

Hi All,

I have a 40 Gallon SeaClear System II tank. The included hood sits in
the opening of the aquarium. See
http://www.petsmart.com/global/produ...T%3C%3Eprd_id=
845524441778940 for an image. The problem with this hood is that it
only holds a 24" bulb which limits me to 2 x 20 Watts. Looking at my
plants, I have a feeling that that's not enough ;-) Is there any way
to put 2 x 40 Watts into a 24" hood?

Thanks,
Skeeve


If you have 22" length and 2" height available inside the existing
hood, you could strip out the existing lighting and retrofit with a 55W
CFL and reflector from www.ahsupply.com. I think that would deliver
much more light than two 24" bulbs, and would get you to the point
where you could get started with the lower light plants. Maybe that's
all you need unless you are going to also supply CO2.

To increase light beyond this, the existing hood is limited by being
made of plastic and not providing a good way to let heat escape. If you
can provide the ventilation then you could consider a 2x55 retrofit. Or
just eliminate the Seaclear hood and use a ready packaged light
fixture. Since the filtration in the back of the aquarium reduces the
front-back dimension, I think a more narrow single lamp solution is
going to be easier to work with. If you must have two lamps then a dual
T5 solution could be your best bet, but expect a price penalty.

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