I have harnessed the power of the Sun!!!!!

[Texreefer]

This was a no brainer decision once i saw the results.. Pics soon of my 18" skylight..:applause:

[Texreefer]

this took a little less than 3 hours with a couple of water breaks,(its HOT on that roof!). The first couple of pics are the tubes, the attic where the tubes will run and the hole that was cut in ceiling.
Putting tubes together
http://i122.photobucket.com/albums/o258/itili/DSC01636.jpg

underside of roof deck where hole will be cut
http://i122.photobucket.com/albums/o258/itili/DSC01635.jpg

The Hole!
http://i122.photobucket.com/albums/o258/itili/DSC01634.jpg

My fat head for size reference!
http://i122.photobucket.com/albums/o258/itili/DSC01637.jpg

[Texreefer]

Dome installed!
http://i122.photobucket.com/albums/o258/itili/DSC01638.jpg

Tube from roof to ceiling!
http://i122.photobucket.com/albums/o258/itili/DSC01640.jpg

The old empty tank lit by sun power
http://i122.photobucket.com/albums/o258/itili/DSC01639.jpg

The actual light!
http://i122.photobucket.com/albums/o258/itili/DSC01641.jpg

What it looks like from the road!
http://i122.photobucket.com/albums/o258/itili/DSC01642.jpg

This can be easily done by one person but much simpler to do it with another person.
Thanks Ace!

[DrMark]

very impressive. Single story homes facilitate this......
mark

[cpreefguy]

Mike, that is awesome!
Im sure it will be well worth it in the long run.
I cant wait to see it with that tank filled and some actinics!

[tony]

wow, that takes guts! and an understanding spouse

[Kristy]

Nice! Love the picture of you peeking down.

Can't wait to see how it works on the corals.

[seamonkey2]

I was just going to say( before Tony stole my thunder), man your wife is sooooooo understanding :)

Jose

[seamonkey2]

also how much did this cost you?

Jose

[Texreefer]

Yes, I have a Wonderful Wife!!!!.. this 18" skytube with 8' of tube was about $450 Shipped! not bad considering my two halides and reflectors cost me that much and this shylight is WAAAAAAAYYYYYY brighter than those two 250w halides.. Plus I only need light in my fishroom at night if I want to work in there because this thing lights up the entire room

[tony]

i can haz fish?



http://www.ceiling-cat.com/ceiling_cat.jpg

[joelb]

wo wo wo wow! i cant imagine what youd do on the rulette table in vegas. ($400 on black 29)
thats what i call a solar powered reef

[ErikH]

WOW! :bigsmile:
Time for water!

[The Butcher]

That looks like a lot of work, but obviously the payoff is priceless.

[dustint21]

:applause:That is so freaking awesome! Why do i have to rent? As soon as i am out of the Army and have my own house i am going to do this! Very nice job!!!:thumbs_up:

[Texreefer]

you should see the slow dimming effect as the sun moves towards the horizon! Very cool. I can't wait for the next full moon!!!

[sharkboy]

Very resourceful to say the least....nice work!

[LoneStar]

Nice job Mike! I'll be following the progress once you get your replacement tank installed.

So how many t5 actinics are you gonna run with the skylight?

[rz1a]

what is that a 10k or 6,500k bulb? lol

nice! do you have a build thread for this or is this thread THE build thread?

[CoryDude]

Saw the Solatube thread the other day. Glad you tried it. Looks great. I would really like to know how this works in the long run, so please keep us updated. Thanks!

[glennr1978]

Just out of curiousity, does it produce any heat?

Great job btw!!

[sly fox]

sweet :)

[mikedelgado]

very tempting

[LoneStar]

Just out of curiousity, does it produce any heat?

Great job btw!!


Thats a good question....haven't thought of that before. If its a lot less intense than halides, that would be awesome.

[RayAllen]

WOW nice job Mike. Watching the changes of day and night, weather and seasons will be so cool.

[caferacermike]

No the 3 of them that I installed add zero heat.

[Texreefer]

6-54 watters

[Texreefer]

agree with Mike,, almost no heat

[aimaike]

What then happens when inclimate weather moves in for several days? Thinking more along the lines of winter than summer, but is there a cutoff point at which you say, "Enough days of not enough sun, let's supplement?"
Also, is there a way to disperse then light over a longer tank, or do you just have to install multiples?

[hobogato]

i am gonna put three 14" tubes over my 8' long tank. as far as inclement weather, even on a cloudy day, there will be lots of light. also, in nature corals deal with hurricanes and long periods of clouds, etc.

[cpreefguy]

It's kind of funny to think about all of the money people spend on controllers for the dusk/dawn effect, moonlights and mimicking the moon's cycle, etc...

[Texreefer]

I will also have 324 watts of T5's to suppliment

[Triggerman]

how well does it seal up from any potential water leaks during heavy rain?

[Texreefer]

how well does it seal up from any potential water leaks during heavy rain?

It slips up under the shingles and Is just like any other flashing. I haven't the slightest worry about leaking.. I was looking around my neighborhood and several houses have smaller versions installed.

[Texreefer]

Figured this would be fun.. Ignore the ugly empty tank,, just look at light!
I will post a pic every hour till the sun is down to show the natural sunset effect.
Mid day shot.
http://i122.photobucket.com/albums/o258/itili/DSC01651.jpg

here is the 6pm shot
http://i122.photobucket.com/albums/o258/itili/DSC01644.jpg

7 pm pic
http://i122.photobucket.com/albums/o258/itili/DSC01647.jpg

8 pm pic
http://i122.photobucket.com/albums/o258/itili/DSC01648.jpg

[LoneStar]

Is that shot with just the tube? or with the t5's as well?

Either way it looks great!

[Texreefer]

just the tube my t 5s are on my holding tank

[Captain Jack]

Might as well put a hole in all the rooms in the house, and cut almost all indoor lights!

[Texreefer]

added 7 pm pic

[cpreefguy]

8:01 and no pic... :cry_smile:

[Texreefer]

8 pm pic added

[apedroza]

Wow Mike, you never cease to amaze me!!! Your giving me all sorts of ideas!!! Can't wait to move!!!

[aimaike]

Wow, that is really something! Do you happen to have a pic of the tube from the inside of the house looking up? My tank is not an in wall setup, so appearance is quite an issue to the missus.

[Texreefer]

All light was gone by 9 pm / 8.30 was about the last of the light in the tank

[Texreefer]

Wow, that is really something! Do you happen to have a pic of the tube from the inside of the house looking up? My tank is not an in wall setup, so appearance is quite an issue to the missus.


there is a shot of it in the first pics I posted at the top of this thread

[aimaike]

Yup, sorry, missed that one. How deep is your tank? I was also under the impression that sunlight would give rise to algae problems. Apparently I was mistaken. Really can't wait to see how this matures. The idea of getting rid of these electricity sucking lights and chiller gives the the warm fuzzies.

[cpreefguy]

You will have to let us know when the next full moon comes around. I cant wait until you get it filled up again.

[TinyTanker]

I dont want to sound like a moron, My tank is next to the window and i have to black out the window, cause where the sun hits the water it just BLOOOOOMS the algae to no tommorrow. I hope its different for you since its direct top to bottom.

[aimaike]

TT, exactly my question. I have an arch-shaped window that must be kept covered or any tank in the "line of fire" experiences algae pretty quickly.

[Texreefer]

There will be an adjustment period, but as long as you maintain a healty system theres nothing to worry about

[jroescher]

How far above the tank is the opening of the tube?

[Texreefer]

How far above the tank is the opening of the tube?

About 26"

[aimaike]

Do any considerations need to be made for the distance? I have a vaulted ceiling where my tank is, so a tube would be a good 10+ ft. Does the distance of the tube from the tank need to be taken into account?
As for the adjustment period, how do you reduce the light in the beginning, just covering the tank or will you put something over the tube?

[caferacermike]

Aimake if you have a vaulted ceiling make sure you could even get to the area you need to work in. My vaulted ceiling (see my dead "boring" thread I started months ago about all this) prevented access to the area where I needed to do the work. This was another reason I opened the ceiling for access to the fittings.

[littlewrentx]

Will you still need a chiller?

[Texreefer]

I will because my tank is in the garage but it will work WWWAAAAAYYYY less than it used to.

[aimaike]

Ouch, well that takes me outta the game. There is certainly no attic space, so it would be about the same as installing a skylight.

[aimaike]

Mike, I see now how you did that. Clever, very clever.

[tropicana]

Hey Im definitely gonna watch this as it progresses. Keep us updated with some pictures. If this does well for you, When I move out and Purchase a Home, I would like to tackle a project like that since I would Upgrade my tank currently to a Much larger system and If this does really well Id love to try it.

Keep us updated and Great job on making it look like it belongs there!

[Texreefer]

Added a MID-Day shot just for comparison.. very bright!

[RayAllen]

that is bright, cant wait to see what it looks like with water. Right now that shot reminds me of that annoying bright sunlight creeping in the blinds to wake me up in the am.

[tropheusmaster]

man you are serious about getting the sun in your tank