# lights and lids



## dpwell (Jan 4, 2013)

Hi

I just bought an LED light and stopped using my old canopy with the neon light. I'm finding that there is a lot of evaporation and so have decided to use a canopy or lid again. The old canopy doesn't fit with the new light, so I was thinking I would use a solid piece of plexiglass or acrylic or something as a lid, and suspend the light above it. My question is, will the lid filter out too much light and render the lamp too weak?

thanks,
David


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## Reckon (Jul 25, 2012)

Possibly, especially if you let the glass get dirty.
I had glass covers over my planted tank and noticed that it had affected my plants - I decided to have a bare top again.


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## Rockman (May 19, 2013)

I've used glass tops for years without any problems. I can't see it being a huge issue (aside from the cleaning thing). Glass/acrylic is pretty good at being transparent to visible light (which is why they make windows out of them); you'd get much more attenuation from the water in the tank.


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## dpwell (Jan 4, 2013)

hi - i going to go with plexiglass - real glass scares me on account of its fragility and lexan is, from what I've read, not as good as plexi/acrylic for aquaria. Would anyone have any recommendations regarding thickness of the lid? 1/8"? 1/4"?

thanks.


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## tony1928 (Apr 22, 2010)

Thicker is usually better. I find that larger sheets of acrylic will tend to sag from its own weight without some support. Depends on what size of opening you are trying to cover and if there's center braces that will help to support the weight.


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## charles (Apr 21, 2010)

Even a thick acrylic will sag. Use a thin glass for the top.


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