# Fixture without a splash guard over an open tank?



## epicfish (Sep 11, 2006)

It's fine.


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## hokuryu (Jan 6, 2009)

epicfish said:


> It's fine.


I guess I'm puzzled, epic - what happens if water strikes the bulb - esp. if it gets any heat buildup? If it strikes the sockets?


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## epicfish (Sep 11, 2006)

Water just sizzles off the bulbs...but there's not that much splashing in my tank because of the CO2 anyways. Water splash is a problem, but not as much as SW splash or salt creep. The reflectors can always be wiped clean in a FW setup.

The drawback of having a splash guard with a setup that's not actively cooled is reduction in light output due to running the bulbs out of spec...ie: bulb temperatures are too hot.

With that said, all of my lighting setups have been run without the acrylic splash shield, with the exception of my MH lighting units which need the UV glass shield. No problems yet. Not saying that it's not possible that a problem will creep up, I just think it's not going to be very likely.

Alternatively, you can find a Home Depot/Lowes/OSH that would probably trim the piece of acrylic you have for a nominal fee, or even free.


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## hokuryu (Jan 6, 2009)

OK - learning something new all the time - hadn't thought of the heat buildup _with_ a splash guard, and between the reduction in output due to temp, and a splash guard that turns more opaque over time, hadn't thought of how that might reduce output. Thanks, epic.


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## epicfish (Sep 11, 2006)

hokuryu said:


> OK - learning something new all the time - hadn't thought of the heat buildup _with_ a splash guard, and between the reduction in output due to temp, and a splash guard that turns more opaque over time, hadn't thought of how that might reduce output. Thanks, epic.


Just a another little tidbit of information you might find interesting. It matters which end of the bulb is cooled. A friend of mine had access to a PAR meter and determined the "correct" end of a T5 bulb will increase output while cooling the "wrong" end will either not affect light output or even decrease it slightly. I've forgotten the more intricate details. I have to find out which end is which again.


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## hokuryu (Jan 6, 2009)

epicfish said:


> Just a another little tidbit of information you might find interesting. It matters which end of the bulb is cooled. A friend of mine had access to a PAR meter and determined the "correct" end of a T5 bulb will increase output while cooling the "wrong" end will either not affect light output or even decrease it slightly. I've forgotten the more intricate details. I have to find out which end is which again.


Interesting, indeed. Any idea what physics are involved?


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## epicfish (Sep 11, 2006)

hokuryu said:


> Interesting, indeed. Any idea what physics are involved?


Haven't a clue. Physics isn't exactly my forte.


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## moogoo (Dec 7, 2007)

you could always purchase the acrylic cutter from home depot and cut the piece they sent you to the appropriate size.


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## imeridian (Jan 19, 2007)

This is actually a topic I've been somewhat curious about. My orbit has a splash shield, but it also has active cooling. I had been previously wondering if adding the splash shield would cause issues with a Tek t5ho since it is passively cooled, even though they offer one.


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

Hokuryu

I just bought and received the Catlina 1 x 48 inch SOLAR T5 HO - 4 X 54W with out a splash guard as well. I contacted the company and received the following reply from the company. (If you want to see the email, pm me and I'll forward it to you.) Hope this helps:

"This hood doesn't come with a splash guard - a lot of our hoods do not and we've sold very many with no problems. Unless you have splashy fish you should be ok.

We do have a splash guard kit available in the category Lighting/ Light Accessories if you are still interested."


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## epicfish (Sep 11, 2006)

Splashy fish. Heheh.

So, some more details. Cooling the label side of the bulb to keep it within the temperature range of 110-110*F will give maximal light intensity.


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## Minsc (Jul 9, 2006)

I good splash when the bulbs are hot *can* blow the bulb, at least on a pc. Stupid cories


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## hokuryu (Jan 6, 2009)

sewingalot said:


> Hokuryu
> 
> I just bought and received the Catlina 1 x 48 inch SOLAR T5 HO - 4 X 54W with out a splash guard as well. I contacted the company and received the following reply from the company. (If you want to see the email, pm me and I'll forward it to you.) Hope this helps:
> 
> ...


Thanks, Sewing. I spoke more with the company, and have come to better understand the issue, now. I am fairly confident it's a non-issue, based on what folks here and on other sites have said as well. The woman I have spoken with at Catalina has always been very helpful, and she does this over her saltwater reef tanks - she said the only issue, even there, is salt buildup, and she just wipes the salt down, eventually. 



Imeridian said:


> This is actually a topic I've been somewhat curious about. My orbit has a splash shield, but it also has active cooling. I had been previously wondering if adding the splash shield would cause issues with a Tek t5ho since it is passively cooled, even though they offer one.


Learning something new all the time. Your Orbit is a fan-cooled PC, yes? What do you have it over?



Minsc said:


> I good splash when the bulbs are hot *can* blow the bulb, at least on a pc. Stupid cories


This was a concern of mine as well, as I have a PC, now, as an extra fixture and I use it over my 10. Although Catalina said the same thing obtains with PC's - no guard really needed - because of the added heat with a PC, to feel more sanguine, I'm keeping the guard in place.



epicfish said:


> So, some more details. Cooling the label side of the bulb to keep it within the temperature range of 110-110*F will give maximal light intensity.


Interesting.


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

You're welcome. Want to hear something funny? I have glass canopies on my tank due to jumpers and guess what? I cannot open them with my new lighting. Argh!


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## Minsc (Jul 9, 2006)

hokuryu said:


> This was a concern of mine as well, as I have a PC, now, as an extra fixture and I use it over my 10. Although Catalina said the same thing obtains with PC's - no guard really needed - because of the added heat with a PC, to feel more sanguine, I'm keeping the guard in place.


To be fair, it took my fish over six months of practicing before they finally managed to do it. It can happen, but it is very rare.


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## jargonchipmunk (Dec 8, 2008)

I have my T5HO from Catalina running with no splash guard over my open top tank with no problems. This weekend I'm installing the suspension kit, but prior to that it's been less than three inches from water's surface at all times. In fact, when I do waterchanges I leave the canisters running and aside from dunking the fixture I doubt you could GET more splash lol (not the smartest thing on my part, but no problems yet) so I doubt a few splashes from a fish tail is going to do anything to them. Maybe PC has problems but the T5HO bulbs seem to take it in stride. I love my Catalina fixtures, and to be fair, it does mention on the site that they ship without the fixtures and that they're available for a fee ($30) this is why your 4x54W fixture was so darned cheap for the quality of light you got! 

I myself was actually pretty surprised that they came without one until I thought about the cost and quality put together, it's no wonder you have to pay extra for the legs/brackets/splash guard/moonlights!

hope all goes well with your lights. I'd hate to have stuck my foot in my mouth unknowingly lol

*edit* I have one of the 4x54w fixtures as well as one of the 4x80w fixtures and I did notice the bulbs in the 6' fixture are staggered so each bulb has one side a smidge more "exposed" than in the 4' fixture. I doubt this would affect anything notably, but I thought it might be worth mentioning.


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## hokuryu (Jan 6, 2009)

jargonchipmunk said:


> I have my T5HO from Catalina running with no splash guard over my open top tank with no problems. This weekend I'm installing the suspension kit, but prior to that it's been less than three inches from water's surface at all times. In fact, when I do waterchanges I leave the canisters running and aside from dunking the fixture I doubt you could GET more splash lol (not the smartest thing on my part, but no problems yet) so I doubt a few splashes from a fish tail is going to do anything to them. Maybe PC has problems but the T5HO bulbs seem to take it in stride. I love my Catalina fixtures, and to be fair, it does mention on the site that they ship without the fixtures and that they're available for a fee ($30) this is why your 4x54W fixture was so darned cheap for the quality of light you got!
> 
> I myself was actually pretty surprised that they came without one until I thought about the cost and quality put together, it's no wonder you have to pay extra for the legs/brackets/splash guard/moonlights!
> 
> ...


Jargon, my only issue is that I specifically asked the company, on my inquiry via their site, whether the unit came with a splash guard, because of the open tank - the person mistakenly responded that the unit in fact did come with a guard, for $100, the listed price:



Catalina said:


> if your 20H is a 20 high, i'm assuming it's 24 inches long. In which case, a 54w is too long of a bulb.
> 
> You can get a 2x24w T5 HO for $100, it's a Solar T5, here's the link on our web site http://www.catalinaaquarium.com/product_info.php?cPath=71_136&products_id=1410. This is a 24 inch bulb hood which will fit a 20 H. If you want legs, they are extra for $10, it has a splash guard. Each bulb has its own german polished 99.9% aluminum reflector.
> 
> ...


It's OK, we're good, but this did inform my initial decisions.


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