white egg crate for lid will this block lighting??

[vinnyvalentine]

well last night i woke up to my eel slithering across the carpet wow i was lucky he jumped out of the front and i woke up so i had some white egg crate here and made a lid it urned out great looks great but i am worried it will block some lighting getting threw the light is a t 5 4x54 watt on legs about 5 inches above tank when i put lid on i notice a very little bit of darkning do you guys think this is effecting my lighting enough to matter i like the idea of crates for gas exchange and i feel glass lids block alot of light at the hinge any help would be great thanks

[iamwrasseman]

yes mine reduces my par readings by as much as 50 % but most places its about 15 %

[vinnyvalentine]

so do u keep them on your tank any ways???do u think glass would be better????

[iamwrasseman]

glass certainly would have much less effect on the light but the tank that its on is a mushroom dominated tank with a couple of lionfish ,a rinoplasi and a sea gobblin so it doesnt need gleeming light and it actually looks great that way .glass does have an effect on light but a very very small percentage . i can check with my meter and let you know but it would probably be on tuesday evening as i let someone borrow my meter and it SHOULD return on tuesday .

[sedor]

For an eel that likes to escape you would probably be more successful with a lid that secures to the tank. I have personally always heard that eggcrate does not inhibit the PAR reading, but I guess iamwrasseman can prove us wrong if hes done actual readings.

[iamwrasseman]

the eggcrate "funnels" light and limits side lighting ,it isnt as bad with my t-5s but it reall cuts off alot under halides . my 90 gal has two halides but if you only had one then it would be very obvious. thanks for pointing out the eggcrates inabilities with stopping eels escape as they are thin and also active .i will post some actual par readings on tuesday as i said.

[tspors]

Yes a small amount I have 150g with 4-96w dual Act. and 3-150w halides. It will lower a small amount. Possible option for you might be to velcro a fine neting from tank to light fixtures around the tank.

[Agu]

Sounds to me your options are,

1) A dead eel on the carpet.........

2) Eggcrate .... which still allows gas exchange and oxygenation at a minor cost of illumination.

3) Glass .........which transmits more light (if you have a solid piece custom cut) but inhibits oxygenation.

My choice would be option #2

[iamwrasseman]

yes if he cant get through the eggcrate it would be the easiest and more inexpensive option .i have mine because i lost a $350.00 rinoplasi and quickly learned my lesson . i have always had wrasses which are notorius leapers but i have enclosed canopies to eliminate that problem but i never thought a "bottom dweller" type fish like a rinoplasi would find his way out but he did .

[TheH]

iamwrasseman, I hadn't considered it before but it makes sense that eggcrate would be much more detrimental to a point light source than to T5s.

[thegrun]

Use 1/4" birds netting and a plastic screen frame. It will block a lot less light than egg crate. The net is readily available in black, but clear is also available.

[iamwrasseman]

yes i noticed the drawbacks to the eggcrate immediately but its worth it rather than risking a fish suicide . my t-5 tank it isn't as noticeable but the MH tank you really lose alot of light on the ends .

[Korrine]

wish I knew this sooner. I just put a green slimer on the end where he'll have room to grow....good thing I'm hopefully getting my netting put up. Taking some equipment off my tank(hob skimmer) so it'll fit nicely to the top....I think.

Have you tested the PAR under the netting? I imagine it would be very little light loss.