what does everyone cover their tanks with?

[Beemo]

i just bought a satellite 2x40 pc light with the legs but it says dont use with a glass cover, well how am i going to keep my critters in the tank?
its a 10g nano, i dont have yet but i plan on a yellow goby or lawnmower blenny.
so what can i do to keep my critters in the tank instead of on the floor?
what does everyone use?

[SeanT]

Most people don't cover their tanks.
Glass covers keep heat in, lessen gas exchange and need constant cleaning.
If you have animals that are jumpers you can use eggcrate.

hth,
Sean

[Beemo]

any chance of knowing where i can find an egg crate? silly question i know lol sry but im a dummy when it comes to diy.
what about needlepoint plastic canvas mesh? i see this can work well but im wondering about it possibly burning or melting under the lights? any thoughts on this? its pretty thin material

[NbMaxx13]

Pastina , you can find egg-crate for usually about 10 dollars per sheet @ any home depot or lowe's ...its in the lighting / ceiling department .... easy enough to cut w/ a pair of plyers ...

[NbMaxx13]

p.s. I use egg-crate on 4 out of 5 of my tanks and works great never been an issue w/ the lights thus far

[Beemo]

thnx so much
for some reason i thought i was like an egg carton or something lol
i never would have thought to look in the ceiling or lighting section :lol:

[HBtank]

Hmm I swear my orbit said to USE the glass cover...

Doesn't the egg-crate block some of the light?

Also, how do glass covers lessen gas exchange? I really can't see this being an issue unless it totally covers the tank sealing it...

I do know that without a cover my water evaporates at least 4x as fast.

And as for cleaning, well pick one, the lens or the glass... I personally would rather clean the glass because I get the added benefit of reduced evaporation.

[Beemo]

HB you are correct :D and im glad yay....i went over the instructions and yes it said best used with a glass cover or plexi glass, i was so happy when i read that i had to do a cart wheel hehe
problem solved, im out to buy a glass cover :rollface:

[Alaskan Reefer]

Before you finish the back handspring, read again SeanT's post -- the glass cover can be very limiting on gas exchange, blocks / bends considerably more light than eggcrate, traps heat, and is much more of a pain to clean. The orbit most likely wants you to use the glass cover to prevent damage to the fixture since I'm guessing it doesn't have a lens of its own? If it's got a lens then I can't see any real reason to put a cover on -- even if it didn't I personally would just raise it to keep the splash off. Depending on what you do to the tank, you want some evaporation rather than heat build up -- evaporated water is easily replenished with plain RO or kalkwasser if you need calcium / alkalinity replenishment. I personally appreciate the evaporation because it allows me to dump in enough kalk (which is cheap) vs. getting a calcium reactor (less cheap) or two part additive (not cheap at all).

Bottom line is that probably 95% of reef tanks are open top or eggcrate top (mine is to keep the six line wrasse inside) for several good reasons...

...and if the glass tops that came with my 75 will fit your tank, they're still in the original boxes from 5 years ago.

[djtodd]

...a thick coating of money.

[Beemo]

is there anyway i can see a picture of these egg crates on a tank? im dying to know what they look like
i just cant picture them
:D

[cato]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6696834#post6696834 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Alaskan Reefer
Before you finish the back handspring, read again SeanT's post -- the glass cover can be very limiting on gas exchange, blocks / bends considerably more light than eggcrate, traps heat, and is much more of a pain to clean. The orbit most likely wants you to use the glass cover to prevent damage to the fixture since I'm guessing it doesn't have a lens of its own? If it's got a lens then I can't see any real reason to put a cover on -- even if it didn't I personally would just raise it to keep the splash off. Depending on what you do to the tank, you want some evaporation rather than heat build up -- evaporated water is easily replenished with plain RO or kalkwasser if you need calcium / alkalinity replenishment. I personally appreciate the evaporation because it allows me to dump in enough kalk (which is cheap) vs. getting a calcium reactor (less cheap) or two part additive (not cheap at all).

Bottom line is that probably 95% of reef tanks are open top or eggcrate top (mine is to keep the six line wrasse inside) for several good reasons...

...and if the glass tops that came with my 75 will fit your tank, they're still in the original boxes from 5 years ago.

I agree with Alaskan Reefer. Gas exchange and evaporative cooling are my main reasons for no top. I've been thinking of trying some egg crate since I have a curious 3 yr old and would like to get a couple firefish.

[balberth]

I'm in a situation where I try to control evaporation ( don't want it too humid in the house after all ), and I use acrylic tops. I went to some trouble to special order some 1/4" thick Acrylite OP4 acrylic which passes more UV than regular acrylic.

OP4 is designed as a tanning bed shield material, so it passes the near visible UV from my actinics. The acrylic does warp a little bit because one side absorbs moisture while the other side is dry. It works for me, though.

--Albert

[Alaskan Reefer]

Patina -- I should be able to take some photos tonight of the stuff. Basically, it's a white grid across the top, and you trim it to fit nicely into the grooves designed for the glass top (and of course around anything you have hanging in the tank). Balberth has a good solution if you feel you need to have a top.

[milesm]

regarding eggcrate, if you take a real close look at both sides, you'll notice that one side has thicker "walls". this side should be facing up, under the lights; the thinner side should be facing the water surface.

the tapering of the walls is used to either focus (thick side up) or diffuse the light (thin side up).

hth.

[robsmith32]

I was using 1/8" acryllic to cover mine, but with getting clam, i just replaced with eggcrate, its amazing how much will build up on those covers and block light.
You pay a fortune to buy and electricity to un halide.. and you take out a lot of its potency by putting a glass/acrylic top. Those mesh screens you mentioned are great for acclimating new corals, as they block a good deal of light.

As for gas exchange, i'm sure going through overflow to sump and the skimmer produces a good bit.

[Beemo]

hmm..so i can use those mesh screens to acclimate corals? hey thats a good idea lol thnx
i ordered 2 of them online, they were pretty cheap the total was only 5 bux with shipping
after researching and reading these forums i think i will try and go "bare" topped.
but i will have that mesh and put them to use now that you gave me that idea :rollface:

[ReefDoberman]

I say leave it open...