# DIY 10 Gallon Lighting?



## SvenBoogie (Jul 3, 2009)

Anyone have good suggestions or links for DIY fixtures or solutions for relatively cheap lighting for a standard 10 gallon?


----------



## Hoppy (Dec 24, 2005)

One way to do this is to use an AH Supply 36 watt light kit, and make an enclosure for it. I am currently making one for a 15H tank which is the same footprint as a 10 gallon. http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/diy/90402-another-light-fixture.html I'm very pleased so far with how easy this has been to make, and it should look very good. My costs will be about $25, but I already had the AH Supply kit.


----------



## Vladdy (May 6, 2008)

I used two 15-watt 6500K spiral fluorescent bulbs for my light fixture that is actually meant for incandescent bulbs. I bought both bulbs together for less than six dollars. The lighting is pretty good- 3 watts per gallon.


----------



## SvenBoogie (Jul 3, 2009)

Hoppy said:


> One way to do this is to use an AH Supply 36 watt light kit, and make an enclosure for it. I am currently making one for a 15H tank which is the same footprint as a 10 gallon. http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/diy/90402-another-light-fixture.html I'm very pleased so far with how easy this has been to make, and it should look very good. My costs will be about $25, but I already had the AH Supply kit.


Yeah, I really like the AHsupply kits, but once you price it all out, the kit, shipping, and building a hood/enclosure, you're not really saving anything, which is fine, but trying to be a cheapskate on this particular project if I can get away with it. :icon_mrgr


----------



## Hoppy (Dec 24, 2005)

http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/l...choides-blyxa-2-5g-lighting-2.html#post837592 is an excellent post that should give you some ideas and information about using screw-in "power saver" bulbs for an aquarium light. This is certainly potentially the cheapest way to light an aquarium, and it can work very well.


----------



## SvenBoogie (Jul 3, 2009)

Hoppy said:


> http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/l...choides-blyxa-2-5g-lighting-2.html#post837592 is an excellent post that should give you some ideas and information about using screw-in "power saver" bulbs for an aquarium light. This is certainly potentially the cheapest way to light an aquarium, and it can work very well.


Wow, thanks, thats was very informative... now if only he'd write something up for lighting a 10g specifically! :icon_mrgr


----------



## Hoppy (Dec 24, 2005)

The data there is actually very good for a 10 gallon tank. The test tank he used is approximately half a ten gallon tank, same height, measured from substrate to bulb, about the same front to back, and half the length. Based on that:
Two 19 watt bulbs mounted horizontally in a fairly good reflector give low light intensity at the substrate, and it is pretty uniform light too. Two 23 watt bulbs, mounted the with the socket end up, instead of horizontal, same reflector, give medium light (which I would rate as high light). Mount that same bulb horizontal, and you get low light again. With 14 watt bubs mounted with the socket end up, you get low light too.

Two things this shows very well: only two of those bulbs are needed to uniformly light the tank, if they are in reasonably good reflectors, similar to those shown, and, mounting the bulbs so the socket end is at the top and not at the side gives a lot more light per bulb or per watt. Another thing, the differences between 19 and 23 watt bulbs isn't very great, nor is the difference between warm white and cool white.

If you want high light you could use 4 bulbs, equally spaced and almost certainly get it, if the bulbs are mounted socket end up.

I am quite sure that using the typical box like fixture, with just the flat wall behind the bulbs as a reflector, would not give as much light as the shaped, metal reflectors he used. One thing I may try some day is to mount about 3 of those metal reflectors in a tall box, so the reflector bases are up, and see if that gives high light in a 10 gallon tank. I suspect it would, but not as uniformly as might be desired.


----------



## VisionQuest28 (Apr 18, 2007)

SvenBoogie said:


> Wow, thanks, thats was very informative... now if only he'd write something up for lighting a 10g specifically! :icon_mrgr


X2...that was a great read, i learned a lot.


----------



## SvenBoogie (Jul 3, 2009)

Hoppy said:


> The data there is actually very good for a 10 gallon tank. The test tank he used is approximately half a ten gallon tank, same height, measured from substrate to bulb, about the same front to back, and half the length. Based on that:
> Two 19 watt bulbs mounted horizontally in a fairly good reflector give low light intensity at the substrate, and it is pretty uniform light too. Two 23 watt bulbs, mounted the with the socket end up, instead of horizontal, same reflector, give medium light (which I would rate as high light). Mount that same bulb horizontal, and you get low light again. With 14 watt bubs mounted with the socket end up, you get low light too.
> 
> Two things this shows very well: only two of those bulbs are needed to uniformly light the tank, if they are in reasonably good reflectors, similar to those shown, and, mounting the bulbs so the socket end is at the top and not at the side gives a lot more light per bulb or per watt. Another thing, the differences between 19 and 23 watt bulbs isn't very great, nor is the difference between warm white and cool white.
> ...


Thanks, yeah, based on this, I have my solution, and I should be setting it up today. The reflectors he used in his pictures look identical to lights they sell at lowes for 7.50 each. 

Should I up the wattage if I'll be using a glass top?

EDIT: My obstacle now is replacing the tank as when I modified the position of the existing light to get more even lighting, I noticed there is a huge scratch in the front glass... at least the tank was a freebie off craigslist!


----------



## s10blaza (Jan 5, 2009)

I made my own using a sheet of 18 ga. stainless and rivets and a 3 bulb bathroom vanity light I bought for $9. I have like $25 into the whole thing including bulbs. The sheet of stainless was already polished so I don't really need a reflector


----------



## SvenBoogie (Jul 3, 2009)

WOW... very very nice... how did you shape the SS into the hood? I'm not exactly familiar with metalworking...


----------



## Basilisk (Mar 1, 2004)

It's been ages since the last time I posted.

Here's the cheapest lighting fixture I have ever made. 

It costed me nothing, I scavenged all the components from junk in the office, old reflectors, dozens of small ballasts and bulbs, etc. The box was a drawer from a bed.

You could of course use screw-in's instead. 

It was originally a temporary fix, but it worked so well that I later cut the drawer to fit and painted it matt black, and is still in use. 




















Cheers.


----------



## s10blaza (Jan 5, 2009)

SvenBoogie said:


> WOW... very very nice... how did you shape the SS into the hood? I'm not exactly familiar with metalworking...


I know a bit about metalworking but don't have the tools to do it "right", instead of a brake i just clamped down the stainless on my work table with a piece of 2x4 and bent it by hand, and on the rolled edges I clamped it down the same and left about 3/8 off the edge and gently bent it with a deadblow hammer a little at a time


----------



## customdrumfinishes (Apr 4, 2008)

Heres what im using in 10g and 29g hoods. ge spiral compact bulbs 6500k


----------



## SvenBoogie (Jul 3, 2009)

customdrumfinishes said:


> Heres what im using in 10g and 29g hoods. ge spiral compact bulbs 6500k


Hehe, that is exactly what I'm going to be using in mine now, with the only difference being I'm using these for fixtures/reflectors:


----------



## GhostShrimpBoo (Mar 8, 2009)

Vladdy said:


> I used two 15-watt 6500K spiral fluorescent bulbs for my light fixture that is actually meant for incandescent bulbs. I bought both bulbs together for less than six dollars. The lighting is pretty good- 3 watts per gallon.


Me too! At first though, I only had a couple 14 watt 5500K lights. A couple months ago I went out and got a couple 15 watt 6500K lights. Much more noticeable than I thought. I don't believe you can fit anything bigger in there, though. I tried a couple 26 watt bulbs but they wouldn't turn on. 

It's great for the money. The only thing I don't like is that I have to remove the entire hood to do anything inside the tank (water change, trim, etc.). It keeps the light from scattering and helps slow evaporation.


----------



## dj2005 (Apr 23, 2009)

GhostShrimpBoo said:


> Me too! At first though, I only had a couple 14 watt 5500K lights. A couple months ago I went out and got a couple 15 watt 6500K lights. Much more noticeable than I thought. I don't believe you can fit anything bigger in there, though. I tried a couple 26 watt bulbs but they wouldn't turn on.


Is it the AGA incandescent fixture - http://www.petco.com/product/7395/All-Glass-Aquarium-Incandescent-Strip-Lites.aspx? If so, it should be able to handle up to two 25w bulbs.


----------



## GhostShrimpBoo (Mar 8, 2009)

dj2005 said:


> Is it the AGA incandescent fixture - http://www.petco.com/product/7395/All-Glass-Aquarium-Incandescent-Strip-Lites.aspx? If so, it should be able to handle up to two 25w bulbs.


Nope. That should also work well for cheap. 

This is what I am using. You are correct in saying it can handle up to two 25 watt bulbs. I tried a couple 26 watt bulbs and they just did not physically fit. When I screwed them in they were scraping on the small reflector piece. I clicked the button to turn it on and they did not light up. I believe the two 15 watt bulbs I have in there now are the largest (physically) that will fit. It is a great fixture for ~$25. 









EDIT: Sorry. Yes, I believe it is an All-Glass Aquarium fixture. Just not the one you linked.


----------



## SvenBoogie (Jul 3, 2009)

Here is the solution I came up with for my work 10 gallon:

2 x 26w spiral CF

Total cost, including bulbs, aprox $25


----------



## c_sking (Aug 4, 2008)

The only thing with these fixtures with all the metal, please make sure you have them plugged into a GFI and if not have them grounded.

Your normal 3500k lamp in your office plays havoc with fixture wires now give it a 6500+ k your wiring, tomb stones and sockets can all be affected if not ceramic which can shatter if its hot and gets wet. Just be safe thats all.


----------



## fisfan (Mar 27, 2010)

s10blaza said:


> I made my own using a sheet of 18 ga. stainless and rivets and a 3 bulb bathroom vanity light I bought for $9. I have like $25 into the whole thing including bulbs. The sheet of stainless was already polished so I don't really need a reflector


very nice


----------



## [email protected] (Jul 17, 2008)

Check out local thrift shops, charity shops, Craig's list, and garage sales. 
Look for a incandescent hood, which usually run about $1.00. Add two small screw in daylight spiral compact bulbs and you're set.


----------



## g33tar (Jan 8, 2010)

The CFL way is the way to go...if you're looking for the cheapest route. Ive got three of the shop lights you posted earlier hanging from a conduit piping hanger that I made. Im a cheap-ass and really could not bring myself to pay the money for the professional lighting. Espescially on a small tank. On a deep tank, I would probably buck up the money for a real set of lights. 

To be honest, if I were to do it again with all the money in the world, I would do it the same way. I like the shop light / industrial feel it has. Plus, the plants grow very well.

Ive got three 26w bulbs in there now...raised quite a bit off the tank. I tried three 15w bulbs lower to the water, but the 26's up higher make the light more even...but with that being said, the light is not focused just on the tank as it might be with a real fixture. It lights up the top of my dresser around the tank, too.

The best picture Ive got of my lighting sitch


----------



## Hoppy (Dec 24, 2005)

http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/diy/112294-hd-worklight-light-fixture.html


----------

