Lighting help?

[EasternShoreman]

Hey everyone, I am in the planing stages of building my very large vivarium. still haven't decided on dimensions yet, I am thinking of 6'x6'x8' OD vivarium. ID would be about 4'-6' tall. if that makes sense. anyway i have a ton of T8 duel bulb shop lights, some were giving to me others i had from planted aquariums. i am wondering if the T8 light with the 6500k 32w bulbs will be enough for a maximum of 6' to the substrate. (this example is the Max height inside vivarium.) i would rather not have to buy T5 or anything. I know all about lighting an aquarium. and i would think that it be easier lighting a vivarium due to the water won't be blocking the light. but everything i have read so far says to use t5HO or MH, but all of those tank they talk about are 2 feet or less front to back. and are trying to over come the background shadow, (according to what i have read on one site) where mine will be 3 feet or more front to back. just looking for help so i can plan this thing and know what i can do and what i can't.

thanks.

[deranged chipmunk]

A lot is going to be determined by your planting and plant selection. If you plan on using t8's, you'll want to stick primarily with plants that prefer more shade, like ferns and aroids. Growth will be very slow. Agonizing, even. For a tank that is several feet in depth, you'll need to run 2 banks of lights, one bank won't give you enough coverage, especially as plants start to grow.

Ideally, t5ho or led would be the way to go, especially if you want to grow any flowering plants, since most prefer brighter lighting. led's will pierce through heavy plant mass and reach the substrate with some intensity, the others will be filtered by plant mass. It's not much different than a planted tank, the difference is that instead of water filtering the light, lowering par values, you will have plant mass to deal with.

I use t5ho, LED and t8 shop lights over my tanks. Each light is matched to the tank and the flora planted inside. For example: no orchids in my t8 tanks, they only get t5 or led. The shop light tanks keep all shade loving plants. Your best bet would be to combine lighting, a bank of t8 shop lights, supplemented by a few higher output fixtures.


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[EasternShoreman]

Thanks Bill. yeah i am fine with low light plants, for the time being. but eventually i will up grade to higher lighting, but at moment. to get started and to create the forest floor i don't mind. Besides i like ferns, they are like my fav. plant. but i have enough light to cover every inch of a 6'x6' including some clamp lights lol. but these shop lights are real narrow only 4 inches wide with side mount reflectors or 2 1/2" wide with out reflectors they are really small for width, a few of them i might even turn into super t8's for my aquarium's just to see how much more they add to it. but like i said i am still in the planning stages of it so i want to get all the help and technical help can.

thanks,

[deranged chipmunk]

Ferns are awesome plants, and my favs as well. I think i keep somewhere around 40 species. Not many people are ok with shady, slow growth. It takes a lot of patience.

The planning stage is my favorite part. My honest opinion though, if you intend on upgrading lighting later, just do it now. Work it into your budget, especially with a custom built tank. It's always easier to build to suit than to build with one piece of equipment and then trying to retrofit an upgrade later.


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[EasternShoreman]

You know the shady slow growth actually doesn't bother me. It's kinda like my aquariums, less i have to cut and trim the plant the better i am. I hate trimming my tanks. lol. but the vision i have for the set up is always changing, my biggest problem is i am never set on anything. lol. and I hate the planning stage for that reason. tho i love the building stage. its' always fun. so i been trying to figure out how to incorporate a water feature, that will be deep enough to hold fish say 8 to 12 inches. but i am unsure if my 1/8 tempered can successfully hold 12 inches of water, i know the 10g tanks hold that much water but they don't have the bow factor like i would on the same glass.

Also i was thinking of making a side door for the viv, so that the front viewing windows will be none opening, is there anything wrong with that, the door would be big enough for me to climb into to build and plant and all, but it would make it harder to catch a frog if i had to for what ever reason. i also considering it due to large saftey factor of the dogs and house guest. any opinions on this?

[deranged chipmunk]

Side access will be crucial in a Viv the size you are talking about. I think it's the right way to go. An access panel on each side will be needed to access for maintenance.




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[Krispy]

T5ho's gobble up the juice man. And produce insane heat. I have a 4ft t5 on my anole tank and it holds at 85f average. Just the light. Did awsome for the pothos, moss, and some heartier plants. Sucker absolutely fried my smaller ground plants and flowers. Choose plants wisely. Its a royal pain to change out plants in big fella tanks, especially when its occupants move 100mph and theres a ton of them lmao.

Maybe get a 4 bulb fixture and build a nice topper for it to set in? Or mix up the strengths and time them for brighter/hotter times of day? Lmao if you could see my house, like a messed up hydro experiment/workshop.

[EasternShoreman]

I am going to do some sketching on sketchup next few days and see how i can work this tank. and go over some old sketches until i come up with something that will work for me. is there anything that might be a help to me as i plan this that i haven't thought about? or i need to consider while designing this viv?

@Krispy that's funny, My place looks like a warehouse for Aqueon Aquariums. (not hoarding, just storing haha) but yea I hung t5Ho light up in a store once, it's a shame i didn't take the extra's the owner had at the time. i could of got the extra 4 bulb fixtures for $10 a piece. brand new in the box never opened. but that was before i was into aquariums. and vivs. years ago. i guess i will have to figure lighting out once i get close to the planting stage.

[deranged chipmunk]

I am going to do some sketching on sketchup next few days and see how i can work this tank. and go over some old sketches until i come up with something that will work for me. is there anything that might be a help to me as i plan this that i haven't thought about? or i need to consider while designing this viv?

Man, I could go on for days about all the contingencies. My biggest piece of advice is to remember this: water, whether we're talking misting water, or even water vapor from humidity, gets EVERYWHERE!! Make sure your water proofing is spot on. Inside and out. Don't skimp on materials when waterproofing. Products like 2 part marine epoxy are invaluable for sealing a wood enclosure.

Otherwise, take your time, don't rush anything, and you'll be fine.



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[EasternShoreman]

yeah that the big issue about lighting as it is, after thinking about it late last night it stays fairly warm in summer here we normally keep the ac on around 77. but some days we leave the windows open and it can get 80 in here if so Lighting will be an issue, when it comes to heat. But i am thinking of downsizing to about 3 ft tall for the land section and adding a drop down for the water section. tho nothing is certain. The frog i am thinking of is Oophaga pumilio. tho i am still planing it, i also like Dendrobates auratus el cope. But Like i said in my first thread i am wishy washy. hard to make up my mind. lol.

and I know not to skimp on the water proofing, I think i am going to build my plywood tank first, to test my skill and see what is best that way if it leaks it be outside, where as if i build this viv i can't move it, will be part of the house. so my plywood tank will be my learning test tank lol.

[deranged chipmunk]

T5ho's gobble up the juice man. And produce insane heat. I have a 4ft t5 on my anole tank and it holds at 85f average. Just the light. Did awsome for the pothos, moss, and some heartier plants. Sucker absolutely fried my smaller ground plants and flowers. Choose plants wisely. Its a royal pain to change out plants in big fella tanks, especially when its occupants move 100mph and theres a ton of them lmao.

Maybe get a 4 bulb fixture and build a nice topper for it to set in? Or mix up the strengths and time them for brighter/hotter times of day? Lmao if you could see my house, like a messed up hydro experiment/workshop.

This is the precise reason all my lights, save for led's, are suspended a minimum of 8" above my tanks. Allows for better air circulation. And since light passes though air without issue, I don't lose any par value until I hit the glass, like on any other tank. Also, buying quality fixtures with either fans or massive heat sinks helps control the heat.


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[Krispy]

This is the precise reason all my lights, save for led's, are suspended a minimum of 8" above my tanks. Allows for better air circulation. And since light passes though air without issue, I don't lose any par value until I hit the glass, like on any other tank. Also, buying quality fixtures with either fans or massive heat sinks helps control the heat.


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I was fortunate enough to inherit my old head friends entire basement of stainless hydroponics lights. We learned humidity the hard way. Hes still teaching me light quality vs heat and all that noise. Overall though, saved me a ton of $ though. Made setting up store bought junk seem easy lmao.