Another way to hang the Aquatic Life Hybrid fixture

[Troy V]

Tank Dimensions:60"x30"x31" (241g)
Light Mount: 3/4" galvanized conduit.

I've been running 2-Hydra 52 HDs with a single 250 watt MH with some success for almost 4 years. However I've never liked the coverage I would get on the back corners. But I delt with it because my lighting options are very limited because of the high ceilings and I didn't want to add another canopy and limit gas exchange with the room and the 72" fan above. Which also aids in keeping the tank cool in the summer. So I went with a piece of 3/4" bent conduit to hang the lights from. The LEDs were a breeze to mount with the AI Hydra 18" extension between them. The challenge was finding a light that could safely be incorporated with this setup. Enter the Aquatic Life T5 hybrid fixture and the mounting tabs that are design to mount to the LEDs. Except I didn't use the mounting tabs on the LEDs because the mount holes on the Hydras were being used by the 18" extension. So I decided to hang the fixture on the extension with the 4 mounting brackets. The brackets are strong and I feel confident that they will hold the fixture with no problem. Hopefully this will help someone who has thought about this design, but shared the same concern I had about the brackets not supporting the weight. Good luck.

Before:

The mounting:
Excuse the wires I haven't hidden them yet. The top of the fixture is almost 7ft.

After:
Success!! Clam is happy and it thanked me by spawned every evening last week.

 

[Scurvy]

Holy moly, I thought the clam was a Monti cap until you said otherwis. It’s Youge!

 

[kyleinpdx]

Holy moly, I thought the clam was a Monti cap until you said otherwis. It’s Youge!

so did I!

 

[Erick Armanii]

How did you mount it to the wall? I’m looking to do this exact setup

 

[Troy V]

How did you mount it to the wall? I’m looking to do this exact setup

The metal conduit is mounted to the stand not the wall. The tanks are 14" away from the wall so I can access the back of the tank.

This is what I used:

3/4" x 10'

3 of these holding it to the back of the stand.

 

[Erick Armanii]

Looks fantastic thanks!

 

[mav3rick478]

Nice idea but personally I would've gone with 2 pieces of conduit just to distribute the weight and to keep the fixture from spinning. Just my 2¢.

Clam is amazing!

 

[Troy V]

Nice idea but personally I would've gone with 2 pieces of conduit just to distribute the weight and to keep the fixture from spinning. Just my 2¢.

Clam is amazing!

Thank you!

The fact that it can swivel makes it easier to access the top off the tank for cleaning and adding/removing coral. My original design was to use 2 like you said. However, that is why I went with 3 brackets to keep it from swiveling. In retrospect I could've used 2 and coat one with rubber undercoating or something else to grip the conduit.

 

[mav3rick478]

Thank you!

The fact that it can swivel makes it easier to access the top off the tank for cleaning and adding/removing coral. My original design was to use 2 like you said. However, that is why I went with 3 brackets to keep it from swiveling. In retrospect I could've used 2 and coat one with rubber undercoating or something else to grip the conduit.

Didn't think about that and that is a great point but I misspoke, I meant the fixture being able to tilt up and down because the conduit is only mounted to the center of it. I would think in time that would become a problem.