# Bow Tank Question



## dish418 (Dec 29, 2009)

I bought a 28g bow front today. My question is, the middle support. will the light cause any damage? It seems like its plastic and might melt. Thanks


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## WhiteGloveAquatics (Sep 3, 2009)

Mine warped but didnt ever get hot enough to seperate.If you can get the light up about 1/2" inch it wont distort it.

I think its common with center supports, even my 40gT warped.


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## shocktrp (May 24, 2009)

What kind of lights are you using? 
Fluorescent bulbs do not generate heat. 

It should be fine as long as you don't put too much weight on top of it (the weight of real glass tops bent the center supports on my 180 gallon, but the weight of plastic hoods & ballasts did not bend the support in my 55 gallon).


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## Guy (Jan 10, 2010)

shocktrp said:


> Fluorescent bulbs do not generate heat.


What?


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## Guy (Jan 10, 2010)

dish418 said:


> I bought a 28g bow front today. My question is, the middle support. will the light cause any damage? It seems like its plastic and might melt. Thanks


Find a sterilite container with a white plastic lid. Cut a strip of the white plastic big enough to completely cover your center brace and use it as a sacrificial heat sink to protect the center brace. A few dabs of silicon are all that's needed to raise it above the brace slightly and hold it in place.


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## shocktrp (May 24, 2009)

Guy said:


> What?


Turn on a fluorescent bulb, leave it on for a few minutes, & then touch it. 
(Try the same thing with an incandescent bulb.)


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## WhiteGloveAquatics (Sep 3, 2009)

Shock, flourescents do heat up, they just dont put off the heat an incadescent does as they are completely different types of bulbs, true that flourescents run cooler but by no means do they produce ZERO heat.

either way you kinda want the light off the glass itself including the bulb housing. I just put a magnum 350 on my 52g planted tank yesterday I have two t-12 40w 48" bulbs on there, I felt alot of noticable warmth at the top under the glass with water 2" below the top so yes they do produce, just either use feet for the light fixture or like guy suggested slap a heat sink on there.


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## Guy (Jan 10, 2010)

shocktrp said:


> Turn on a fluorescent bulb, leave it on for a few minutes, & then touch it.
> (Try the same thing with an incandescent bulb.)


OK, let me be sure I understand. A flourescent bulb isn't as hot as an incandescent bulb so that means


shocktrp said:


> Fluorescent bulbs do not generate heat.


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## choylifutsoccer (Jan 2, 2010)

> Fluorescent bulbs do not generate heat.


Like WhiteDevil said, fluorescent bulbs do generate heat, just not as much as incandescent bulbs. 
It is always recommended that lighting fixtures are raised as far away from any surface as possible (but close enough to give adequate lighting). Putting lighting fixtures right above a glass top can crack it, so I'm sure putting it right above plastic will also warp it.


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## shocktrp (May 24, 2009)

Guy said:


> OK, let me be sure I understand. A flourescent bulb isn't as hot as an incandescent bulb so that means


OK, you're right. In an 80 degree room a florescent bulb might reach 95 degrees. 

Your body temperature is 98.6 degrees - can you hold onto the plastic on top of your tank and melt it or is this a non-issue?


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## squirrelcrusher (Sep 23, 2009)

I believe shocktrp was trying to say is that flourescents shouldn't put off enough heat to warp plastic. 

On my 30g the light did not touch warp the brace, but it was also suspened between 1/8 and 1/4 of an inch above it. If your worried about it warping, just suspened the light a little bit somehow. Craft stores have these little rubber feet you can stick onto the corners of the light and suspend it that way.


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## Guy (Jan 10, 2010)

shocktrp said:


> OK, you're right. In an 80 degree room a florescent bulb might reach 95 degrees.
> 
> Your body temperature is 98.6 degrees - can you hold onto the plastic on top of your tank and melt it or is this a non-issue?


95 degrees, how interesting. I must be running them wrong because I think mine get warmer than that.


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## squirrelcrusher (Sep 23, 2009)

I don't know exact temps, but my t8s don't get very warm. After then have been on all day I can touch them without it hurting. Just last night I bumped them a few times and they were warm, but far from hot


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## Guy (Jan 10, 2010)

I'm sure there are people here with VHO or Compact Flourescent that would disagree that the tubes stay cooler than body temperature. I was just suprised someone would suggest that fourescent lighting produces no heat. No biggie. I still advise against setting the bulbs directly on a plastic center brace.


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## squirrelcrusher (Sep 23, 2009)

comparing a VHO or CF to a regular flourescent is unfair. You might as well compare a RF to an incendascent house bulb.


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## Guy (Jan 10, 2010)

squirrelcrusher said:


> comparing a VHO or CF to a regular flourescent is unfair. You might as well compare a RF to an incendascent house bulb.


They are flourescent bulbs. The quote was "Fluorescent bulbs do not generate heat". I guess they don't generate heat on their own but if you turn them on they generate heat. Some generate a lot of heat, some only a little.


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## shocktrp (May 24, 2009)

Guy said:


> 95 degrees, how interesting. I must be running them wrong because I think mine get warmer than that.


OK, then why don't you take a thermometer & find out?


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## squirrelcrusher (Sep 23, 2009)

Okay smartass. *NA* When people are talking about a VHO or CF they specify that is what they are talking about. When just the word flourescent is used it is usually in reference to a t-8, t-12, or a regular t-5(which are marketed as producing very little to no heat) So when someone said the flourescents don't create heat, they were correct. But i will reword it for you since you are having a hard time understanding what they were trying to say.

A regular, plain jane, flourescent light (t-12,8,5) won't produce very much heat and can be touched with a bare hand.


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## Guy (Jan 10, 2010)

shocktrp said:


> OK, then why don't you take a thermometer & find out?


NO output bulb was 142F, VHO was more than 190F (limit of the sensor).


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## Guy (Jan 10, 2010)

squirrelcrusher said:


> So when someone said the flourescents don't create heat, they were correct.


We'll just have to agree to disagree :animated_fish_swimm


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## shocktrp (May 24, 2009)

Guy said:


> NO output bulb was 142F, VHO was more than 190F (limit of the sensor).


Funny, all of mine run at 97.3 degrees & they're not all from the same manufacturer.


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## Guy (Jan 10, 2010)

shocktrp said:


> Funny, all of mine run at 97.3 degrees & they're not all from the same manufacturer.


That is funny *r2


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## squirrelcrusher (Sep 23, 2009)

Guy said:


> We'll just have to agree to disagree :animated_fish_swimm


Yes we will because I just used my scientific testing, grabbing the bulb, to figure out that the t-8 6500k bulbs i have do not get hot. Warm yes, but not enough to be uncomfortable or melt plastic.


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## Guy (Jan 10, 2010)

squirrelcrusher said:


> Yes we will because I just used my scientific testing, grabbing the bulb, to figure out that the t-8 6500k bulbs i have do not get hot. Warm yes, but not enough to be uncomfortable or melt plastic.


I can agree that your NO T-8s probably won't melt plastic. I will not agree that they produce no heat.


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