MH Hanging Suggestions

[31-2c]

I am looking for suggestions on how to hang a MH canopy. I can not hang it from the ceiling. This is a Hamilton MH system. I would like to get it about 6" above the tank. I would also like it to move for easy access to the tank.

This is a 48" system over a 55g tank

David

 

[jsteinman]

Is it a vaulted ceiling, thus creating the inablility to hang it? If so I have a work around. I hung my Hamiltons from a vaulted ceiling using some small black chain and a couple of pully's that I spray painted black. I bought these at Home Depot and I think my total cost was $15. Basically you measure/get the chain, paint the pully's and then use pot hangers to mount the assembly to the ceiling. They will hold the fixture just fine. If you are lucky you may be able to screw some hanging screws right into the ceiling beams, but I was not so lucky so I used black pot hangers. You can use a 4' level and tape to find the center of you tank, then fromthe centermeasure out half the length of the hamilton. Use the level and something longer like a 1x2 to approximate the spot to mount the pot hangers. Once mounted, you can hook the pullys to the pot hangers. Now for setting up the Hamilton. Split you chain in half. The length muct be twice the distance from your floor to ceiling. This will give you extra to set up the fixuters and for the middle piece (more on this later) which will hold you lights when you want them out of the way. Take one chains end and attach it to the Hamilton edges by using an upside down "Y" configuration. You basically cut an equal length piece of chain and attach it to the equal distance from the end of the chain and this makes an upside down "Y". Then attach the ends of the "V" (now the bottom of the "Y") to your Hamilton. Do this for both ends. After chaining both ends of your Hamilton, run the end of each chain through each corrisponding pully and then "MEASURE" (with the Hamilton raised above the water exactly where you want it to be during opperation) where you want to attach it to the either the wall behind the tank or the the stand just below the tank edge. You can attach the end to anything. Mine was to the stand, in the back. Once measured, with the lights in their proper place, attach the end of the chain. Now your lights are mounted, but the last touch is to link the two seperate chains together. This is done on the length of chain coming down from the pullys and that attaches to the the wall or tank. It should be in a comfortable place above the lights or below that is easily accesable. Then put another Pot Hanger into the wall at teh point where you want the lights to be in their raised for working on the tank position. Basically you have created a way to mount you lights and raise them to work on the tank. I have pictures on the first version of this using mongul 250 MH's, but not the Hamiltons. No digital camera.
Let me know if this link works...

http://communities.msn.com/CoralReefers/shoebox.msnw?action=ShowPhoto&PhotoID=1

 

[jsteinman]

Just for clarification...

Linking the two chains together is more of a bridge between the two pully systems. It makes it easy to use one hand to pull down on the bridged chain and then hook it underneith the pot holder attached to the wall. This raises and lowers the fixture evenly.

 

[shadetree]

I have a 4" tall frame that sits on top of the tank with my PFO fixture resting on top. This puts the lights about 5-6" away from the water, prevents any light from spilling out and blinding people sitting on the couches and still gives me an open top tank.

Scott

 

[31-2c]

Shadetree

Did you build that frame, or did it come with the tank?

If you built it, what are you using to hold it onto the rim of the tank?

David

 

[Anonymous]

I've got something similiar to what Shadetree does:

I had a carpenter build me a wooden support frame to sit on top of the tank, with the lights sitting on the frame. Apologies for the lack of detail on it in that pic, but it's the only one I have uploaded at the moment.

 

[Anonymous]

I hung my CSL horizontal pendant from two brackets attached to the wall behind my 58G tank. The fixture was then suspended by black chain from home depot. The brackets are the same type used for hanging plants.

mitch

 

[31-2c]

cjdevito, What do you think of that refugium?


Mitch, How big was your csl pendant. I am not sure 2 of those brackets would hold the hood that I have. It is made of Solid Oak.

 

[Anonymous]

cjdevito, What do you think of that refugium?

It's handy. I grow some macro algae in it, use it as a holding cell for crabs and a settling tank. I'm not really using it for all that much, and I haven't made any special effort to light it (it gets some spill over illumination from my fixture, but not much), I just find it a convenience.