The Puffer Forum

Hey all.
30g tank with 2 GSP's. Tank was bought second hand, I suspect origin is Walmart. Set up in my home for over a year. Light is freshwater standard flourescent fixture with regular ol' Sun glo bulb. A bit of salt creep on outside of light fixture. Now everytime I touch my lid I get shocked. And it's only getting worse. I tried wiping down unplugged fixture with damp cloth including plug. Plug is plugged into a timer which is on a regular ol' power bar.
How do I clean my light fixture so I don't keep getting zapped??
Thanks!
Littlesmit

unplug it first?

you could always get a cheap multi-meter and find out where the electrical leak is coming from. I have one I never used but it only cost $10.00

Somewhere in that thing its conducting thru salt creep or just bad wires. Id inspect it thoroughly. Thats why its highly recommended IMO that you use glass covers over any system SW/BW. Even in FW to keep condensation outta the fixture. Id definitely get some glass lids after you solve this problem...

Also those GSP should be in a 60g tank. 30g is the minimum for 1 GSP. They needs this so they wont be swimming in there own toxins and for growth. In too small a tank the are stressed and wont grow and usually die not long after. You are using Marine salt and some sort of measuring device (hydrometer/refractometer) to kno the tanks salinity right?? Aquarium Salt is not the same as marine salt....If you already kno this forgive me...its just common misunderstanding between buyers and sellers of GSP

If I have a salty or shocking bit of hardware, I just break it down and wash it off. I take it completely apart (not as hard as it sounds, even done it to power strips) and rinse everything in tap water. Then use a hair dryer, particularly on things like bulb sockets or any part that might retain moisture. Has always worked so far. Remember to take apart wire nuts; getting salty and corroded is quite bad for the connections. If they're already corroded, nip the ends off and strip some fresh copper for the connection, won't cost you more than an inch of wire anyway.

To safely clean them, turn off the power at the electrical box, take out the light fixture, and carefully sand the electrical contacts. Blow out the dust, and reinstall the light fixture. Turn the power back on, and your lights should no longer flicker because of dirt, dust, and grime.

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Hinkley Home Lighting

littlesmit wrote:Hey all.
30g tank with 2 GSP's. Tank was bought second hand, I suspect origin is Walmart. Set up in my home for over a year. Light is freshwater standard flourescent fixture with regular ol' Sun glo bulb. A bit of salt creep on outside of light fixture. Now everytime I touch my lid I get shocked. And it's only getting worse. I tried wiping down unplugged fixture with damp cloth including plug. Plug is plugged into a timer which is on a regular ol' power bar.
How do I clean my light fixture so I don't keep getting zapped??
Thanks!
Littlesmit

I'd just toss it and get a new good one.

GSP, Whenever you see a post dragged up from the past (July, 2010), & the poster who dragged it up has a sig linking to a website, the fellow is probably a spammer. Thanks for trying to advise though. I'd do the same or give it to Hubby to fix!