help! how to hang big lights?

tankedchemist

tankedchemist

Reef enthusiast
Not sure where else to post this, so if I'm guessing wrong please feel free to move it...

Anyway, I just got this hanging kit from marineland. There are no instructions-- just a little plastic bag with two sets of wires in it. Here's pics of the wires assembled (as they came):

utf-8BSU1HMDAxNTMtMjAwOTExMDctMjE0N.jpg


and unscrewed so you can see the "inner workings". Also, I included the loops that I guess are supposed to attach to something in the ceiling... although the thing to go in the ceiling was not included.

utf-8BSU1HMDAxNTUtMjAwOTExMDctMjE0O.jpg


So, here's what I need to know. How can I adjust the length of these wires? They're too long, and the light would hang below the edge of my tank... which clearly won't work! Also, what do I need to attach these to the ceiling? Or could I attach it to a shelf of some sort?

I'm a total newb when it comes to this construction type crap. These lights have been so much trouble, I just want to get them hung and move on :frustrat::frustrat::frustrat:
 
I think its safe to say you loop that cable through the hole at the other end and choke down on th eye hook you install in the overhead, then tighten down on the allen key at the other end to level your light.

tek-hanging-kit.jpg
 
Google Tek light kits, looks like you slide one end into your light, the end with the thread, and hang the loop end on your ceiling hardware. Make leveling adjustments with the allen key lock down on the light end, and slide it back into the light.
 
I have used things like that before to hang light fixtures.

You should be able to push the top down on the cylander and slide the wire through to adjust the height. They work kinda like chinese finger traps.

Then just go to your local hardware store and get a coulple hooks. Look on the package and get ones rated for the weight of your fixture. Then screw those into your ceiling making sure you hit a ceiling joints. You should predrill the hole with a small bit to get it started. Also, make sure that the length of the threaded shaft is long enough to go through the drywall and get the stud. Most drywall is 1/2" or so. I would get it around 1 to 1-1/2 long.
 
I think they must have fallen while she had her head between them and the tank. Knocked her out, shocked and drowned her. :lol:
 
dcantucson said:
I think they must have fallen while she had her head between them and the tank. Knocked her out, shocked and drowned her. :lol:
Click to expand...

gee... thanks :shock::mrgreen:

I haven't been able to put them up. I can't get studs in the ceiling that line up correctly. I think yote said he'd built a shelf to hang his lights from, and I'm trying to figure out how i can do that. I've got a friend from the LFS coming over hopefully tomorrow afternoon to help me hang them up.... those suckers are too heavy/awkward for one person to hang.

so, my question for ya all is, how much space do I need between the shelf and the metal halides? I've made a little figure showing the distances I'm thinking of. The distance from ceiling to top of the tank is 46", the lights are 5" thick. any suggestions? Is that enough space between the lights and shelf, and between the lights and the tank?

possibleshelf.jpg


Also... what kind of wood is strong enough for this? And brackets, too.... :shock:
 
Tanked,I've got about 13 inches or so between the top of my lights and the shelf I hung em from.Then the lights are about 10 inches above the tank.
When I get home from work,I'll take a few pics of what I got and see if that helps you out some.
 
Since you're going to have a shelf (support) right above the tank I would recommend devising a set-up that allows you to easily raise and lower your lighting. It makes it really convenient, I think.
 
You need a small and incredibly handy device called a stud-finder. They will reliably find the stud behind the drywall or plaster. They are not terribly expensive and you will use it a lot. I like to move if left to right along the wall and then in the opposite direction to see exactly where the stud starts and ends.
 
Thanks yote that would be fantastic! I've hung pre-made shelving units before, but never had to hang anything from the shelf... so this is new.

I have a stud finder, although the problem is the little felt padding on the bottom of it gets stuck on the popcorn ceiling crap I've got in my apartment... so it was a slow, painful process but I did find the studs. Problem is, I need them to be aligned differently in order to use them for the lights... basically, I can't arrange a 66" gap where both ends are on studs, without the lights being like 2' off center relative to the tank...which would look stupid.
 
so just get you a 2x4, screw it into the studs on either end of the tank, and any that it spans across over the tank, go 2 foot past the tank on each end if you have to, then just screw your "eye" hooks into the 2x4 whereever you want...
 
Can I do that? :shock::shock:

The other issue is, repairing a popcorn ceiling is a pain in the arse, so when I move out I'd rather repair holes in the wall from shelves than holes in that stupid ceiling. I hate that ceiling
 
whats that light fixture weigh? if its just a few pounds, then you can allways get some 14 inch shelving brackets from homedepot, some sheetrock anchors(i suggest the 50 pound ones or bigger,) hang the shelf brackets from the wall, and then attach your lights to thoes.. kinda what they were saying up above...
 
I would definantly find a stud in the walls. I wouldnt trust drywall to hold the fixtures up. Hang the shelfs and then adjust the height of the fixture using your hanging wires:Cheers:
 
The f'ing screw thiings do not fit in the light, despite the fact that marineland said it would. So, my lights will continue to sit on the floor
 

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