LED lights in an incandescent hood

[McB00STED]

Hey everyone, so the tank I purchased came with one of those incandescent lighted hoods, since I didn't think I would care too much about the lighting of my tank. Well I could not have been more wrong haha, I dont like the look of the current lights, and I am now looking to replace them. Can I replace the incandescent bulbs for LED or CFL bulbs, or would I need to buy a whole new hood and lighting system? Thank you for taking the time to read!

[tonyjuliano]

The short answer is yes. As long as you don't exceed the receptacles maximum rated wattage, which would be very difficult to do with either LED's or CFL's.

Edited June 23, 2021 by tonyjuliano

[McB00STED]

On 6/23/2021 at 9:44 AM, tonyjuliano said:

The short answer is yes. As long as you don't exceed the receptacles maximum rated wattage, which would be very difficult to do with either LED's or CFL's.

Thank goodness! I read that while LED's put out less heat, they were more sensitive to overheating should it happen. I would definitely keep the watts to what the hood can handle though, so I'm glad it seems like I'll be ok, thank you!

[lefty o]

should be ok to do, as long as you dont go crazy. i took my old 48" flourescent hood light, gutted it, and put a 46" led light bar under it. a lot less heat from led, and less energy consumption.

[CT_]

On 6/23/2021 at 9:49 AM, McB00STED said:

Thank goodness! I read that while LED's put out less heat, they were more sensitive to overheating should it happen. I would definitely keep the watts to what the hood can handle though, so I'm glad it seems like I'll be ok, thank you!

If you're worried and this is a standard A19/A21 bulb then look for a bulb that says it's "damp rated" and for "fully enclosed luminaries".  These are actually pretty common features these days since you need that for outdoor bulbs, many ceiling luminaries and bathrooms.  Personaly I'd buy a 5000k+ "daylight" bulb for a fish tank because I think it looks better than a 2700k bulb in a fishtank.

[tonyjuliano]

On 6/23/2021 at 4:06 PM, CT_ said:

Personaly I'd buy a 5000k+ "daylight" bulb for a fish tank because I think it looks better than a 2700k bulb in a fishtank.

Yes, 6500k is ideal.

[Streetwise]

It is interesting how lighting temperature is a factor in plant growth, photography, film, software, emotion, and graphic design.

[tonyjuliano]

On 6/23/2021 at 11:37 PM, Streetwise said:

It is interesting how lighting temperature is a factor in plant growth, photography, film, software, emotion, and graphic design.

More important than intensity, IMO.

[CT_]

On 6/23/2021 at 8:37 PM, Streetwise said:

It is interesting how lighting temperature is a factor in plant growth, photography, film, software, emotion, and graphic design.

Indeed.  I suspect a good portion of human opinion about it is cultural though. 

 

[Tanked]

On 6/23/2021 at 12:39 PM, McB00STED said:

Hey everyone, so the tank I purchased came with one of those incandescent lighted hoods, since I didn't think I would care too much about the lighting of my tank. Well I could not have been more wrong haha, I dont like the look of the current lights, and I am now looking to replace them. Can I replace the incandescent bulbs for LED or CFL bulbs, or would I need to buy a whole new hood and lighting system? Thank you for taking the time to read!

I've been using 65 watt daylight LEDs for 9 months, and CFLs before that.  No issues so far.  

[gardenman]

In my limited experience with the 6500K  daylight LED bulbs in an old incandescent hood, they worked great, but were much shorter-lived than expected. I was replacing them every three months or so. Whether it was the horizontal orientation, or the lack of ventilation, they didn't come close to getting the 50,000 hours one would typically expect from an LED. After a year or two I ended the experiment and just bought a cheap LED fixture instead. It ended up being cheaper than replacing the bulbs.