Corallife 48" Aqualight and glass lid

Mine raised the temp a few degrees when I sat it on the glass. I have since gotten rid of the glass and installed the adjustable legs. It works out great and looks good too.

I would use the legs and possibly ditch the tops.

the light strip will heat the glass from above, and the water from the tank that condenses under the glass will cool it, and eventually you'll have a crack on the glass :angryfire

this is why I hate my coralife 30" 2x18W T5NO light strip. POS.

Thanks for quick responses. I like the open top look, but my wife doesn't. However, this reason may be good enough to sway her opinion.

Sorry if this is stupid question, but for those you who have had tanks for a long time; has there been any problem with the open tanks and humidity affecting the wall the tank is sitting up against. Such as warping the drywall or discoloring it. I currently live in a rental house, and I don't want to damage anything. (We have tile floors, so floor damage is not a concern.)

Thanks again for your all help.

Just don't put the tank right up against the wall. Learn from my mistake, I did just that a long time ago, and the wall was damaged. My power filter was probably half an inch from the wall.

My current set up is 8 or so inches from the wall, with no issues.

Another advantage of the open top is that the glass gets dirty and you'll have to clean it all the time, and said dirt may block some precious light.

I've got my 48" 260 Watt strip sitting directly on top of the glass.
It works alright no cracked glass and keeps my fish from jumping out.

I generally just dont leave it on while I'm outta the house.

iv never had a fish jump out of an open tank

I setup mine up on little stick on feet so it's about 1/4 off the glass. Seems to help.

if your tank is 48" and your light is 48" it shouldnt sit directly on the glass, it will be up about 3/4" . this was the case for my 30" aqualight on my 29g anyway. i used it that way for quite a while with no issues.