# No-wiring, easy DIY nano-tank lighting system



## dekstr (Oct 23, 2007)

Well I've been noticing more and more people are interested in planted tanks everyday. They usually start off with small tanks because they are cheaper to start with.

Two of the major investments in a planted tank are the lights and substrate. Plant substrate you cannot get away from without paying a lot. But lighting you can if you can build your own.

Some limitations that discourage people from building their own lights include fear of electrical dangers from improper wiring, don't have a lot of time to build one, etc.

I've been thinking of ways to build cheaper lighting systems. So just this past weekend I came up with a DIY lighting system that involved no electrical wiring involved, no complicated design, easy to build and very cheap price.

This works great for nano tanks. Recently Home Depot came out with a 6500k spiral bulb, either 13w or 15w option, so I knew it was feasible to use that bulb for a building project. Cheap, works great for plants, intense lighting. Some light is lost due to weird shape of spiral bulbs causing restrike, but can be partly compensated with a good reflector.








For canopy, items required: 
Some particle board and wood panels
Some wood glue, some nails + screws
Optional: Paint

Lighting system:Two 13w compact fluorescent spiral bulbs, 6500k (I bought at Home Depot, 6 for $20, so 20/6x2 = $6-7)
Extension cord ($5)
Plug-in socket, medium base ($3.28 + tax, you can substitute one with a dial switch as an extra feature. It costs more and I already use a timer, so no point)
Twin light socket, medium base ($3.58 + tax)

Reflectors:
Some sheet metal ($3-5, I bought a metal air duct part and use the material)
Extra: some mylar sheeting (usually bought in bulk, but you can find it inside those shiny helium ballons or the inside of a chips bag.
You can also substitute sheet metal for PVC pipes cut in half to make a semi-cylinder as the reflector.
Add it up, it should cost you about $20-30.

Basically, build a canopy, cut a hole in the back to fit the plug-in socket through. Build a reflector, glue some mylar sheeting on to make it shiny (you can substitute mylar with white gloss paint).

Screw in the 2-way light socket into the plug-in light socket, screw in the bulbs into the 2-way light socket.

Plug into to extension cord and there you have it, 26w of nice light.

If this doesn't work, you can always buy a Home Depot full spectrum power compact desk lamp.


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## Ciddian (Mar 15, 2006)

Thats awesome!!! you smarty!!!

You should enter that into this months POTM


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## Brian (Mar 14, 2006)

I second that and maybe James should enter his condo fishroom stand setup majiggy


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## dekstr (Oct 23, 2007)

Oh this month's POTM is set-up ideas?

It's nothing special though..just some cardboard, light bulbs and light receptacles built by some sober college student with free time, no plans and no money.

Okay I'll enter for fun.

I like JamesG's chances though, his stands are very well built, I'm actually building my new rack after his design.


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## Shattered (Feb 13, 2008)

Nice walls!!! That's a very innovative project, I wish the home depot in my area had those lights in stock. It would have saved me a ton of time.


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## dekstr (Oct 23, 2007)

Shattered said:


> Nice walls!!! That's a very innovative project, I wish the home depot in my area had those lights in stock. It would have saved me a ton of time.


Thanks!

There's a Home Depot in Barrie according to the homedepot.ca website: http://www.homedepot.ca/webapp/wcs/...lect+Province&city=barrie&postalCode=&x=0&y=0


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## Shattered (Feb 13, 2008)

I know it very well, as well as the Rona, but I checked with both on a few occasions and they don't seem to stock them for a weird reason. Guess there's not enough demand for them yet. 

(that's why I went with two slim fluorescent fixtures and t8's)


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## Sameer (Sep 30, 2007)

cool, custom lighting is very easy to do. All I did was get a 50 Watt compact bulb(like in dekstr post but 50 Watts) and its unit. I took out the trashy tube off my canopy and filled this in there. Since its 50 Watts it does get hot, so I took a spare computer fan and put it on the grill.

Not a nice pic but heres the inside my canopy. I think the image is upside down. Its been a very long time since Ive taken these shots.


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## dekstr (Oct 23, 2007)

Sameer said:


> cool, custom lighting is very easy to do. All I did was get a 50 Watt compact bulb(like in dekstr post but 50 Watts) and its unit. I took out the trashy tube off my canopy and filled this in there. Since its 50 Watts it does get hot, so I took a spare computer fan and put it on the grill.
> 
> Not a nice pic but heres the inside my canopy. I think the image is upside down. Its been a very long time since Ive taken these shots.


Good to know my little DIY project has application!

It took me a while to figure out the first photo, but I see the bulb. Looks great!

Here are some more pictures to clarify things just in case:
Hm... the socket adapters should be in the electrical section of Home Depot. Lemme take some pictures:


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## dekstr (Oct 23, 2007)

Sameer said:


> cool, custom lighting is very easy to do. All I did was get a 50 Watt compact bulb(like in dekstr post but 50 Watts) and its unit. I took out the trashy tube off my canopy and filled this in there. Since its 50 Watts it does get hot, so I took a spare computer fan and put it on the grill.
> 
> Not a nice pic but heres the inside my canopy. I think the image is upside down. Its been a very long time since Ive taken these shots.


Good to know my little DIY project has application!

It took me a while to figure out the first photo, but I see the bulb. Looks great!

Here are some more pictures to clarify things just in case:
Hm... the socket adapters should be in the electrical section of Home Depot. Lemme take some pictures:

 light bulbs
 twin socket adapter

 plug adapter


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## gucci17 (Oct 11, 2007)

sorry for thread jacking guys. I was really interested in the stand setup you guys mentioned that JamesG built. I'm in the process of collecting ideas on DIY stands. I tried searching for it but nothing really came up for me. Perhaps someone wouldn't mind directing me to the link? Thanks in advance!


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## JamesG (Feb 27, 2007)

Good thing I stumbled upon this thread.

http://condofishkeeping.blogspot.com/

If you have more questions by all means ask. I am thrilled with this construction design as it has zero problems, paint still looks great and overall it just suits my style of fishkeeping.


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## gullyfourmyle (Feb 10, 2009)

*Fire hazard*



dekstr said:


> This works great for nano tanks. Recently Home Depot came out with a 6500k spiral bulb, either 13w or 15w option, so I knew it was feasible to use that bulb for a building project. Cheap, works great for plants, intense lighting. Some light is lost due to weird shape of spiral bulbs causing restrike, but can be partly compensated with a good reflector.
> 
> For canopy, items required:
> Some particle board and wood panels
> ...


Using particle board for a canopy is a recipe for disaster. Particle board is made of tiny wood chips and glue. When wet, the wood chips swell and the glue loses its hold. Over a fairly short period of time, your canopy could easily become a fire hazard and if the bulb and socket fall into the tank the resulting short, besides killing all the fish would likely burn your house or apartment to the ground in less than three minutes.

Homemade canopies have been in use since the beginning of the aquarium hobby. But for many years there were no fire codes. Now there are.

If your house or apartment burns and it turns out your homemade canopy is found to be the epic centre of the blaze, no insurance company would pay for the damage. Essentially you would lose everything assuming you survive the blaze.

Aquarium canopies that you buy from the store all come with UL or CSA stickers. Those stickers mean the canopy design conforms to government approved safety regulations and was made with material that will not combust or will take time to combust in the event of an accident. Not every eventuality can be anticipated of course. If you stick the fixture and your arm in the water, you're going to die.

If you absolutely have to make your own fixture, and it is going to be made from wood, then it should be metal or plastic lined. Use silicone to hold the pieces in place and then seal the joints.

Make sure the light socket is firmly secured to the fixture and that the wires are properly fastened in the fixture and that the correct plastic grommets were used to fasten the cord to the fixture where the cord passes through the end of the canopy.

When you are finished, show it to an electrical inspector and get his signature approving its intended use. Without it, you have no home insurance as noted earlier.

It is possible to have a sheetmetal worker make you an aquarium canopy if you have an oversized tank or an odd shape. That can be expensive but the result can be quite good.

Another alternative is to build an aquarium cabinet where the light fixture is part of the cabinet and separated from the water by glass or lexan. Have it wired by an electrician, not you unless you are an electrician.

Wiring a canopy is very simple. But simple as it is, making a mistake could cost you and your family everything.

The only paint to use is marine paint. Every other type of paint is going to release toxic chemicals into the water.

Having painted a fixture, wait a couple of weeks for it to off-gas before installing it over the tank or you'll injure or kill your fish.

Better to paint then put a layer of fiberglass cloth over the paint. Once the fiberglass has off-gassed it's inert and won't harm the fish. This is also a great way to make the entire aquarium. You can make huge aquariums out of 3/4" plywood sealed with fiberglass. Cut port holes, irregular shapes or whatever turns your crank and you can have a spectacular large tank and matching canopy for very little money expended.


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## Sunstar (Jul 29, 2008)

after reading that, I will insist my mother no longer makes her stained glass lamp shades that she wires up herself... because when all is said and done, she'd never make any money on them.


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