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Top Shelf Aquatics

Cover Glass or No?


Foogoo

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Should I put a coverglass between my 55 watt PC and the water surface? Some people say yes as it protects the light and prevents fish from jumping but others say it will block UV and other colors and decrease the amount of light that reaches the tank.

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FOO you answered your own question.

 

Yes.

a lot of airborne particles will foul your tank and reduce surface tension.

Just keep the glass clean every 4 days or so with a razorblade. It will be fine. YOU MIGHT WANT TO INCREASE YOUR LIGHT too... a single 55 watter (smartlamp I assume?) is no where near enough

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Guest AbSoluTc

No, DO NOT use glass.  It prevents proper air/water gas exchange, it gets dirty and blocks your expensive light.

 

If you want to prevent jumping and some splash, use EGG CRATE.

 

Keep clear of glass.  It also builds up heat.

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I use acrylic.  I just bought a piece from the hardware store and cut it to fit.  fyi.. make sure you get a thick piece or else it will warp under your lights...  it lets through more light then glass.. i dont know about gas exchange though.. im just a noob

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I have a cover glass over my 10 with the same lighting.  I made my hood so that the back is completely open, allowing the heat to disperse.  Also, the coverglass ends 2-3 inches before the back of the tank, and I have an AC200 running, providing enough surface aggitation for more than ample gas exchange.  That said, my temp has not exceeded 83 degrees with the lights on 12hrs/day.  The room my nano's in has AC which I'm sure helps.  I do plan on adding a fan to the back of my canopy to keep the temp more stable before I start adding corals.  Personally, I think scraping salt of one piece of glass beats the hell out of trying to clean bulbs and reflectors.  

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Lunchbucket

forget the glass and same you some trouble!!!!!

 

there is no real purpose for covering tanks...so i don't know why people do it.

 

Lunchbucket

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I use a glass cover and it seems to help keep the tank temp more stable. It's a standard glass cover and I leave the back plastic part off. Plus I'd rather clean the glass every few days not the PC bulbs. And it helps slow down the evaporation, which for me is a plus. If it ever become a problem I'll just take it off, no big deal.

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Lunchbucket

keep the tank temp more stable...i doubt that unless your heater is too small and your room is WAY cold.  it will hold heat in which will make it fluctuate more.

 

heck i only had to clean my bulbs about 1x a month and they were about 3" from the water

 

limiting evap...evap is a good thing...cools your tank.  

 

i am not a fan of tops...too many bad things: cleaning, hold heat in, limit gas exchange, decrease light penetration, etc

 

Lunchbucket

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