# T5 lighting for a Fluval Roma 90litre tank



## grandb3rry

Hi I have a Fluval Roma 90litre tank with two T8 15w x 2 (46cm) bulbs. As I'm doing an iwugami aquascape  including HC cuba (Dwarf Baby tears) + other carpet hairgrass plants. I want to upgrade my lighting with two T5 or ideally four T5 bulbs.
My question is: Is there a way to add those to my existing factory fitted T8 luminaire? (if this option is chosen then I guess I have no way of adding four T5 as I have about 12-15cm gaping between two T8 bulbs) Maybe one can advice where I can get a ready made cheap luminaire to screw it into existing T8 luminaire in between T8 bulbs? Or any suitable overtank type T5 luminaire any one knows of? My tank is 60cm long.

Thank you guys!

Arthur


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## spider72

You can try this http://www.123aquatics.co.uk/products/a ... -1568.aspx for hood upgrade, 

or this http://www.zooplus.co.uk/shop/fish/tech ... ghts/81529 as over tank luminaire.

24W should suit your tank length.


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## Ajm200

I had similar question a week or so ago.  There is a post a long time ago about someone upgrading to 24w t5 by cutting holes in the hood but I couldn't get more info.   Glo make a t5 luminare that can be clipped over the tank (search T5 inline GLO) but not sure if it could be clipped over the oversized plastic rim.  If the plastic can be safely removed it would be a great option.  I had to give up on the idea of the luminaire as I have two toddlers who love to feed the fish.  To them feeding is about availability ans accessibility rather than suitability so our tank has to remain covered.

I'd love to know how you get on though..

Maybe someone here has successfully removed the plastic rim from their Roma and can advise


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## grandb3rry

Ajm200 said:
			
		

> I had similar question a week or so ago.  There is a post a long time ago about someone upgrading to 24w t5 by cutting holes in the hood but I couldn't get more info.   Glo make a t5 luminare that can be clipped over the tank (search T5 inline GLO) but not sure if it could be clipped over the oversized plastic rim.  If the plastic can be safely removed it would be a great option.  I had to give up on the idea of the luminaire as I have two toddlers who love to feed the fish.  To them feeding is about availability ans accessibility rather than suitability so our tank has to remain covered.
> 
> I'd love to know how you get on though..
> 
> Maybe someone here has successfully removed the plastic rim from their Roma and can advise




Hehe... funnily enough I had this tank in my storage for over a year now from my girlfriend, as I purchased a large custom made 170 litre tank for her. However I bought myself Fluval Edge last summer to see crappy it is...long story...in the end I  just gave up my hope! So I'm about to sell my Fluval Edge after I set up Fluval Roma 90.

About my Fluval Roma 90:
I came in black colour (trim colour), but I have painted it in white and it looks stunning!
I'm doing iwagumi layout (will take pictures soon)
So far I have a substrate and rocks placed....outstanding things to do:
1. upgrade my internal fluval 2 filter with eheim 2222 I guess
2. replace an internal heater with eternal one
3. upgrade T8 with T5
4. CO2 system (any ideas on this one?)

Regarding taking the plastic trim off, I thought about it, but I'd rather have a modified white trim than 90 litres of water on my floor. If one prefers rimless tank (including me) should buy a rimless one! This is the conclusion I came to after browsing on the net looking for answer. It might be perfectly safe to remove it but I'm not prepared to risk it.


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## Ajm200

Have you considered suspending a luminaire above the tank maybe from the underside of a shelf on steel wire or chains?


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## grandb3rry

It is an option but a messy one  I will try to take the existing T8 lighting unit apart and see whether I can replace it with this guy: http://www.fish4aquatics.com/en-gb/dept_58.html
 I'll let you know guys how I get on!

Cheers!


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## Ajm200

This is the workaround that my husband has just found on eBay that will at least improve the lighting a bit.
They come in 8w (40cm) and 6w (30cm) and should fit on the glass inside the hood above the water line. 
2x8w and 2x6w might at least make it look light the lights are on in the day.  May not be enough for your needs though.

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Submersible-Aquar ... dZViewItem


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## grandb3rry

Thanks for sharing, but I think I should approach it more seriously as I have HC cuba plans waiting to be planted and I have no room for mistakes sadly. I'm actually dissembling the T8 lighting unit as we speak. I dunno what I end up doing or having...I'm scared :\


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## grandb3rry

I have finally received Arcadia T5 2x24W electronic add-on unit + 2x24W 438mm T5 Juwel bulbs. So what I'm going to do is add T5 ballast to existing T8 hood. In the end I should have 2x15w T8 and 2x24w T5 = 78w altogether (should be enough for 90 litre tank).
The way I'm doing it at the moment is quite scary, but should prove to be space saving and good looking in the end  I want to place T5 ballast inside T8 hood (together with T8 ballast) and cut small holes through plastic to feed T5 end caps....god help me


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## grandb3rry

I have upgraded my luminaire successfully. Hooraay!

Tips:

Original T8 luminaire: When trying to open up the plastic cover in original luminaire you have to be extra careful not to break it as it is tightly glued together. Best tool for the job is a small putty knife!
T5 Arcadia ballast: If you opt for this product, you need to strip it down to internal electronic ballast (see pic above) and cables with T5 caps on them. This is a tricky task so make sure you don't damage the item! As well as this, cables CAN BE DISCONNECTED from internal electronic ballast, but make sure you don't mix the cables!!
Attaching T5 Arcadia luminaire inside T8 Fluval Roma: I used very small screws to attach it (you need to have a short screwdriver for this one)
Drilling through plastic: do your maths in order to find a perfect fit  as drill bits come in different sizes and what have you. After you feed the cables through holes, use silicon of some sort to stop any condensation coming through.
Fixing T5 bulbs to T8 bulbs [well this is what I decided to do]: I used some transparent plastic/rubber cable ties. Obviously this one is up to you, but as I decided to keep T8 as a backup light.

Now I will let the pictures speak for themselves:

























































Any questions please ask!


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## Smoothy

Thanks for this post ... I've been struggling with lighting for my Roma 125 and this looks like it will work out perfectly


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## grandb3rry

Smoothy said:
			
		

> Thanks for this post ... I've been struggling with lighting for my Roma 125 and this looks like it will work out perfectly



Hi yeah! Sorry for late reply. I've been quite busy lately so had no time even to check my posts


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## stonec0ld

Hi, I know this is an old thread, but I'm thinking about doing the same to my Fluval Roma 240 litre tank after getting fed up of my plants not having enough light.

I was going to use this ballast 

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Arcadia-Aquarium- ... 4cf4040f75

with these tubes

http://www.aquaessentials.co.uk/arcadia ... p-800.html


Does it matter that these tubes are 8 inches smaller than my current tubes? I don't think it will as I'm just going to clip them on, but I thought I'd check. 

Will the ballast fit in my current lighting unit do you think?

Thanks for any help


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