ok i did a search on diy reflectors for MH's. I found from that search is that it is better to paint the inside of your hood gloss white than to make a diy reflector. What I was planning on was to use that aluminum reflective tape over some old faded reflectors that i got used. What is your opinion on this situation and do you have any good ideas about diy reflectors ?? Please dont say i am better off spending $60 on new reflectors. Looking for DIY stuff.

Thanks,
Chris

polish! lol the old ones should be able to be cleaned and polished.

leveldrummer you must keep busy on here lol

IMHO, that's rubish about the white paint. Polished aluminum would do a better job. If I were making a DIY reflector, I'd borrow one that wasn't too complicated and copy it to the best of my ability. Good luck, and let us know how it goes.

I made one from roof flashing. I buffed and polished it to make it even more "shiny". Then, I copied the style of the spider reflector and bent it to shape. Worked brilliantly..way better than white paint.

white paint is not better than reflective aluminum. that's kak!

if your really up for a diy, go get some small mirrors cut, and work that into a good shape, i dont think you can polish anything to look as good as a mirror!

I was thinking about sayin that too mainly cuz capp bay utilizes mirrors on some tanks, but they are angled and not directly shining at the water. Would a full mirror light hood generate too much light tho, like enough to burn the corals? Hmmmm.

it definatley wont burn the corals; remember, people use 1000 watt halides without problems.

I think the problem with using the mirrors was they would corrode easily. The reflective part of the mirror is the stuff attached to the back of the glass and I think it is weak. Can't really remember though. would have to do a search on rc.

Try mylar or even foil. Keep in mind that the design of the reflector has an impact on PAR as well.

I have some polished stainless steel,.. and access to a metal break. I was thinking of doing this myself. I would think that is all you need.

i wonder if anyone ever lined the entire inside of their canopy with mirrors?? just silicone the seams if corrosion is an issue.

I have seen at least one install that did it in mylar which would be much easier and less dangerous than mirrors.

thanks for the ideas , i found some diamond plate "free" so i am gonna cut and bend it to the shape of a regular reflector. Ill cean it up a bit and it should do a real good job. Thanks again

let us know how it looks after words. and some pics are always nice.

ooh, I bet diamond plate will give some cool reflective properties. Post pics when your done.

It probably will not bend easily, it might break into, so don't be alarmed. There are more than a 1000 different types of aluminum. Some with different compositons than others for hardness.Plate is usually made harder.

You are going to loose some of the light output if you go with the mirrors. The light is filtered and some is lost when traveling thru glass. Using a mirror the light travels thru the glass, hits the reflective material, and then has to travel thru the glass again before reaching the water. Too much is lost in my opinion.
Some well polished roof flashing or bent aluminum would be much better.
I had a schematic for a DIY Reflector that looks just like a LUMINARC

I am with Cameron, I would suggest Mylar or foil, just be very careful with heat output in something like a hood, esp. with mylar, as there is a very good reason it's used for emergency hypothermia blankets. Additionally, instead of mirrors, what you might consider bits of glass silvered on the outside, as is done on some automobiles (where legal). As mentioned by others above, unless you use really high-quality optical glass designed for just such a spectrum-transmission, any kind of silvering on the backside of the glass won't work, but any silvering on the side closest to the lamp itself ought to work nicely. I don't think the stuff necessary to do the silvering yourself would be cheap enough, but you could probably get a glass shop to make the panels for you with the reflective coating on the proper side, assuming it wouldn't corrode.

Really, Mylar is liable to be your cheapest and most effective solution, I think (assuming you're like me and too lazy to polish aluminum flashing).

You can get the spectral aluminum at Aquaticco.com I believe it is $7 a sq. ft.
Got the best reflective properties of anything ive seen.

I remember reading an article a number of years ago that stated white paint was actually a much better reflector of light than a mirror when used to light aquariums or grow plants because of the issue that JustOneMoreTank mentioned about. Hamilton also uses white paint in many of it's fixtures so there must be something to it.

46bfinga: Great find, thanks for that! :D

mufret: I can see that... White IS highly reflective, hence its use in clothing and building materials in high-heat environments. However, while it might be better in this applitcation than a mirror, this is probably related to the wavelengths that the glass itself will absorb and scatter. A properly mirrored surface without glass to travel through is still probably best... I'd be interested to see more research in this regard... I'll have to look up more on it when I get home from work.

wow ok lots of bad info here.

Mirrors are bad, you will loose light as it must go through the glass twice to get reflected, and the reflective surface on the back will peal off or corrode very easy.

Mylar and similar materials are usless as well as they will burn off, if you get it anywhere near a halide.

White paint inside the hood helps, but it is by no means anywhere near as good as any reflector. The white will help keep the heat in the surrounding air so it can be removed by fans instead of being absorbed into the wood.

Polishing your Al will work, but you wont get it anywhere near as nice as a good spectral sheet of Al(95-98% reflectivity as opposed to maybe 80-85% with standard polishing)

Most cheaper reflectors use hammered or diamond plate material to diffuse the light to avoid hot spots produced by the halides, these are simple not very effective designs when you want maximum light transfer.

Now then get yourself some nice spectal Al, and make yourself a break(metal bending tool) you can do it simply with a set of 2x4's and some clamps. Cut the metal with a cut off wheel(dremel will work) not shears as they deform the metal. For simply good designs the spider or parabolic reflectors work very well(i would recommend cutting some flat end peices for full enclosure)

If you can get your hands on a better break so you can bend 1/4" tabs then its not that hard to make a good luminarc style reflector. I cant seem to attache the templet for the lumin arc but pm me and ill send it to ya.

Unless your planning on using good quality Al, dont bother trying to make one it just wont be worth it, your better off spending the $30 for a spider reflector.

Ender is right.

I did find a skematic posted a while back on RC. This shows some dimensions for a L u m e n a r c style reflector. You can modify the lengths as you need to make whatever size you are looking for.
Using the Spectral Aluminum you should get a nice piece. I have seen pictures of really well made units on RC.
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y156/JustOneMoreTank/DIY%20Stuff/CAODG5GF.jpg

Thanks for the good info Ender and JOMT.

any tips on where to get spectral aluminum??

You can get the spectral aluminum at Aquaticco.com I believe it is $7 a sq. ft.
Got the best reflective properties of anything ive seen.

see above

thanks again for all your replies. I got the diamond plate. I cut it to size and bent it using the proper equipment. KH971 aluminum and most metals will bend as long as you bend against the grain and use the proper equipment " thanks though for looking out" - In will post pics on here next weekend so you can check out the diamond plate reflectors. Also 46bfinga thanks for the info on spectral aluminum i will keep that in mind for my next project. :)

Since our club bought a PAR meter the determination is that the reflector makes more of a difference than the ballast or the bulb. It seems that you get what you pay for in a reflector. The PFO's that I have reflect at about 8x what the PAR ratings are on Sanjay's data. The Reefoptix 3 reflectors put out about 20x the Par ratings on Sanjay's site.

Here is a link that explains what was found with different bulbs and reflectors.

http://www.bnarc.com/modules.php?name=Forums&file=viewtopic&t=652

This shows what I have described. I would say skimp on your ballast and even the bulbs but not the reflectors. This is where you get your money's worth.

a&m supply in marietta has polished aluminum sheets 4'x8' for 100 bucks I made enderg60 and myself lumenarc style reflectors with this .

mufret pm box full

Check out these DIY Reflectors.

This is a long read but good info.
http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=1120189

Site with step by step and materials required.
http://www.reefdiversity.com/DIYPage/DIY_HTML/DIY_TBRC_ReflectorIndex.htm

Dimpled polished Al works very well, i say the best, if i can find it i would use it instead of my polished ones.

Oh hell yes.... You guys just saved me about about 700 worth of luminarc reflectors....

Anyone know of a place south of atlanta that might have the polished aluminum sheet? (McDonough/Stockbridge area?)

Since our club bought a PAR meter the determination is that the reflector makes more of a difference than the ballast or the bulb. It seems that you get what you pay for in a reflector. The PFO's that I have reflect at about 8x what the PAR ratings are on Sanjay's data. The Reefoptix 3 reflectors put out about 20x the Par ratings on Sanjay's site.

Here is a link that explains what was found with different bulbs and reflectors.

http://www.bnarc.com/modules.php?name=Forums&file=viewtopic&t=652

This shows what I have described. I would say skimp on your ballast and even the bulbs but not the reflectors. This is where you get your money's worth.

Wow preety amazing. Does anyone else have any links to MH reflector testing? I love DIY stuff but has anyone tested there DIY refectors against...

Recap, great reflectors = free light!

For what these might cost to make ~$15 each, I don't think it will be a big deal. I was about to order 8 luminarc reflectors (2 for my display, 6 more for the 3 large prop tanks I'm setting up).

Thats $800 worth of reflectors, or ~$100 if you build them yourself.

I'm going to build at least 2 for my display tank. I'll be happy to take PAR readings (assuming I can borrow the meter) after the tank is setup and running. Goal is to have it wet in 2 weeks.

Yeah i no $700 is allot of $$$. Ive made my own reflectors in the past (T-5s)and have the scares to prove it. They did not come close to the store bought parabolic jobs. I don't no how close your DIY MH reflectors will come to the Luminarc 2s. It would be awesome to find out their just as good.

I'm amazed as to the difference between the spiders and the Luminarc 2s
Its like 3- 4 Xs the PAR. You could run a 175 watt lamp that put more light than a 400 because of the reflector. If they covered a bigger area you could potentially use less lamps, fixtures, and Power.

What size tanks are you building?

75 display, and 3 more 4' frag tanks, 1 for SPS and the other 2 for zoo's/rics/softies. SPS will be it's own system, split from the softies.

I'm debating on running 2 400 20K's on the 75. The color is great, and the PAR is there as well. I'm concerned about the heat though. A chiller wasn't in the plans, but I would run fans on the canopy, and I could put a fan on the sump as well.

Maybe a single 400 with the luminarc style reflector would provide enough spread?

The 400w 20K bulb has much better PAR than the 250, by far!


As far as the prop tubs, I'm back and forth really. I was planning on a T5 setup for all, 20 bulbs in total. But with the high startup costs of the T5 (reflectors and end caps are ~50 per bulb), and now finding the DIY reflectors, I'm heavily leaning toward MH. The prop tubs are only 12" deep, I would think a 250 20k would be plenty, a 175 would probably work just fine as well. I wonder if a single 400 sitting up a bit would work fine on a 50x30" tub.... would save me even more $$$.

BTW< the 75 will be setup as a BB tank. 400's are probably way to much for that tank being a BB. 250's ought to suffice even with 20K.

Try the below link. She is ReefArtist (http://reefcentral.com/forums/member.php?s=&action=getinfo&userid=132223) on ReefCentral and made several. They work great if you have the right aluminum. There is also a thread on reefcentral in the Tampa forum about it. I think it was last summer sometime.

http://www.reefdiversity.com/DIYPage/DIY_HTML/DIY_ReflectorIndex.htm

Allied Metal Supply has 4x8 sheets that they will sheer for me for $100 each. I can make 2 of the large 24" reflectors with one sheet, or 4 of the 18" ones.
Mirror anodized aluminum is the material. Total cost will be $32 for the small reflector, 59 for the larger one (rivets/mogul socket included)

HOPEFULLY the 24" ficture suspended about a 50x30 vat will light it up without needing a second one.

I'm stoked about this. I can use the $400 I'm saving for initial stocking, other equipment, etc.. :D

A 24" x24" reflector will easily light a 5ft tank. I've tried it, so I know. I don't know how your growth would be though.

As far as the frag tanks, why don't you run a lower kelvin bulb to get more par? Running a 20k doesn't make much sense since you won't be looking at the stuff much. You could run a 10k or 6500k bulb and get fantastic growth. You'd even be able to step down to 250w then. The 250w iwasaki 6500k and xm 10K have higher par that any 400w 20K bulb!

Well, the frag tanks are only 12" deep. I suppose the only way to know for sure is to test out a 250 against a 400 at a height great enough to light up the tank, and see what the PAR is.

I don't want to much, and I also want great coloration on the frags as well. From what I saw (and I could very well be wrong), the 20k 400 watt bulb has as good a PAR as the 10k ushio, and will provide better coloration as well.

6500 would be an option if I had some place to color up the frags, but I don't :( I suppose I could do a tub for growth and a tub for color, 6500 on one and 14-20k on the other?

Yes the xm 20K 400w has a comparable par to the Ushio 10K 250w.

For the frag tanks to be efficient, you want faster growth. You would get this with the 6500k or 10k. The coloration will pop more with the 20k. to have the best of both worlds, I would make the growth tanks with a higher par bulb, and then add a coloration tank with a 20k. You can move the frags into that tank at the end of the cycle to color them up. It should take 4 weeks max i would think.

Well crap....Eitehr I spelled the name wrong, or I was crazy. I can no longer find allied metal supply anywhere.....they were supposed to be in or around hapeville. 411 = nothing, can't find it in the phone book. Anyone else heard of them, or perhaps has a phone number?

Found it :)

Only thing left to figure out is how to print out the template so I can cut the pieces out.

did you order the material? I want to make some reflectors too.

I would think we can print the template at kinkos since they can make ginormous prints.

Good call. I did order just one sheet, but they have tons of it in stock. I'll be heading up that way on monday to pick up at least one sheet, probably 2. Maybe we can do some sort of workshop to put these things together?

sounds good! what's their website?

how large is a sheet and how much?

Not really sure if they have a website or not, I looked them up on www.yellowpages.com

4'x8' sheet of mirror polished aluminum is ~$100. Good enough to make 2 24" reflectors, or 4 18's. Might be able to get 6 or the smaller ones out of it. I plan on building 2 18's and 3 24's so I need 2 sheets

There are plans floating around for diy lumenarc reflectors.

There are plans floating around for diy lumenarc reflectors.

There sure are, which is why I'm making them.