Lighting...

[SouthernGal0682]

...Seems like tons of questions have been asked, and tons of answers have been given on the topic of lighting an aquarium, but I never feel like I get a good feeling about the answers cause they are all different. So, I have stopped searching the internet for lighting answers and want to know the opinions of aquarium owners (not manufacturers or retailers :help: ).

Sooo... I am going this evening to buy new bulbs for my 36", T-8 fluorescent strip-light. It is triple tube. What do you think is the best bulb combo for my planted, freshwater 38 gal tank? I really want to grow South American plants (some of the harder to find ones) so I know I need a lot of wattage. Also, what is more important, wattage or K?

[cocoa_pleco]

aqua-glo by hagen makes good plant tubes

[Chrona]

Wattage is far more important than the spectrum, but ideally, you want 6700K full spectrum bulbs.

[sergo]

they are both equally important in order to get good growth. but my personal oppinion is spectrum over wattage but not by much.

[xoolooxunny]

let's remember light is not the only thing vital to the plants' well-being. Substrate and C02 are equally important. If you have regular gravel, you will need fertilizer to supply them with iron and potassium, otherwise they'll be covered with algae in no time. Most of the larger sword plants need deeper substrate than most other plants, about 3-4 inches. I use power-glo bulbs, 2-48 inch 40watt bulbs, 80 watts total in a 75 gallon tank, and even my high-light loving swords are doing great.

[Chrona]

Plants will absorb a wide spectrum of light, but my point was that if there isn't enough lumens to start with, the closest matched spectrum isn't going to do anything. On the other hand, having more wattage than needed can often, if not always account for a somewhat poorly matched spectrum

EDIT: If you google planted tanks with 50/50 lighting, you can find many amazing looking ones. I'm getting a 28w 50/50 Coralife fixture for my 10g. I'll post how it turns out.

[Lady Hobbs]

I've been pricing the lighting today as I want to plant a tank. I had hoped I could replace the hood lights with higher watts since I only have 2-15's. Afraid if I went higher it would melt the plastic even if I could find them.

Sure hate to spend another $150 + for a light now.

[Chrona]

I've been pricing the lighting today as I want to plant a tank. I had hoped I could replace the hood lights with higher watts since I only have 2-15's. Afraid if I went higher it would melt the plastic even if I could find them.

Sure hate to spend another $150 + for a light now.

What sized tank is this for hobbs? And what type of lighting currently? Most of the better lighting fixtures have a mount that you can install to prevent overheating from by elevating it, or better yet, have a built in fan.

[Lady Hobbs]

This is for a 55 gallon. It was one of those tank kits you get at WalMart with hood, lights, etc. Nothing to brag about. Tank has a center brace so I have two sections with 18 inch each lights.

[Lady Hobbs]

Planting a tank is getting ridiculous! Substrate nearly $80, plants, co2, and now I want a glass top and different lights. I'll be lucky to afford fish!

[Chrona]

Planting a tank is getting ridiculous! Substrate nearly $80, plants, co2, and now I want a glass top and different lights. I'll be lucky to afford fish!

CO2 is probably the cheapest part actually. Soda bottle reactors will cost you like 5 bucks and a bit of yeast and sugar every 2 weeks :)

Good substrate is expensive,but in the long run, will save you a lot of hassle. I used cheap gravel in my 10g (switching to flourite this week) and it's been a royal PITA. Glass tops shouldn't be much. I think the most expensive parts are the lights and the substrate, but they are a solid investment imo. If you have the time and a little bit of know-how (or a friend who can help), it's pretty easy to make a DIY multiple tube setup using the cheap regular tubes you get at Home Depot.

[Chrona]

http://cgi.ebay.com/CL-48-Aquarium-Power-Compact-Light-130W-Free-Shipping_W0QQitemZ320082204598QQihZ011QQcategoryZ4 6314QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

Free shipping! lol. Don't know about the quality of this light though
http://cgi.ebay.com/CL-48-Aquarium-Power-Compact-Light-130W-Free-Shipping_W0QQitemZ320072169541QQihZ011QQcategoryZ4 6314QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

[Chrona]

Coralife is a good brand

http://www.drsfostersmith.com/Product/Prod_Display.cfm?pcatid=9871&N=2004+113345

About 110 shipped for 130 watts (full spectrum)

[minabird]

This is the light I bought last Fri.,24" Satellite 1x65W SunPaq w/Lunar Light (Current) for $60. Comes with a 50/50 daylight and actinic bulb. The lunar light is in the middle of the light fixture and the tank's center brace will block it. So, I will probably by 2 add-on blue moonlights to add to this fixture and also a bulb to replace the 50/50 with a dual daylight bulb.

Hobbs - Here's the link to Aquarium Guys. They have quite a selection and about half are on sale. http://www.aquariumguys.com/fixtures.html They should have something to fit your tank and suit your wet green thumb.

[xoolooxunny]

Flourite gets an A++++ in my book, well worth it. i use sand on the bottom and flourite on the top, and i also use a substrate heater. As the theory goes, aquatic plants are used to having warmer roots than leaves in nature, so since normally heat rises, a water heater cant heat the substrate, so its the complete opposite. I also heard that the convection current from the rising heat keeps water circulating through the substrate, keeping it cleaner.. just a thought.

[SouthernGal0682]

I've been pricing the lighting today as I want to plant a tank. I had hoped I could replace the hood lights with higher watts since I only have 2-15's. Afraid if I went higher it would melt the plastic even if I could find them.



That is something else that I have been really concerned about...Melting the brace in the center. My light strip has 3 bulbs and is 36 inches, so I guess technically I could go to the 2, 18 strips. Anybody melted their tank with their lighting??

[Chrona]

That is something else that I have been really concerned about...Melting the brace in the center. My light strip has 3 bulbs and is 36 inches, so I guess technically I could go to the 2, 18 strips. Anybody melted their tank with their lighting??

Are these regular fluorescent bulbs? I can almost guarentee you that they will not melt plastic, unless they are actually touching the plastic. Even then, I've never heard of N.O. bulbs getting that hot. If you don't believe me, turn a fluorescent bulb on in your house for 10 hours and feel it afterwards. At most, it will feel fairly warm. I leave my 15 watt bulbs on for 12 hours at a time, and it basically touches the plexiglass I have over my tank (IE no air circulation) with no ill effects.

[Lady Hobbs]

Thanks for link. I have it in my saved folder. (My wish list.)

[SouthernGal0682]

They are regular fluorescet bulbs...But I just made a discovery! The hood is too long for my tank! Says it is 36in and fits a 38 gal tank, but it doesn't. So its going back anyway. Actually for the light hood to fit onto the little "ledge" it will have to be a little less that 36 in"...this could get interesting.

[Chrona]

They are regular fluorescet bulbs...But I just made a discovery! The hood is too long for my tank! Says it is 36in and fits a 38 gal tank, but it doesn't. So its going back anyway. Actually for the light hood to fit onto the little "ledge" it will have to be a little less that 36 in"...this could get interesting.

If you will be upgrading to more wattage later on, Coralife Aqualights can be mounted with varying widths, because the mounting legs can slide inwards or outwards a little bit.

[sergo]

yea flourescent bulbs don't get that hot but the ballasts can get a little hot but it's nothing to be concered with. HID bulbs on the other hand are another story.

[Chrona]

Oh, one thing to note though. A warmer bulb, like one not getting much circulation, will have a shorter useful lifespan.

[SouthernGal0682]

Ok...Just got back from the store. Come to find out, my light hood fits exactly like its supposed to, I just hadn't bought the glass canopy for it yet and thats why it didn't look right. So I got the glass canopy and kept the triple bulb fluorescent light. Whew... Now I just have to make up my mind on th bulbs. It came with 3, 25 watt bulbs with a total of like 9600K I think, but I want more than that.

[Chrona]

Ok...Just got back from the store. Come to find out, my light hood fits exactly like its supposed to, I just hadn't bought the glass canopy for it yet and thats why it didn't look right. So I got the glass canopy and kept the triple bulb fluorescent light. Whew... Now I just have to make up my mind on th bulbs. It came with 3, 25 watt bulbs with a total of like 9600K I think, but I want more than that.

The wattage on a particular size regular fluorescent bulb is usually fixed. The only thing that really changes is the spectrum. You want to go with 6700k bulbs. For a 38g tank, 75 watts should be just fine for low light plants like anubias, crypts, java fern, java moss though. I'm not sure how tall the tank is, but you can try some of the more light demanding ones too.

[SouthernGal0682]

Yeah I want to grow some of the more exotic plants though...I'm kinda a dive in head first and start with a challenge type gal. My tank is only 20in tall so I'm thinking that I don't need to go TOO much brighter in the lighting department, but I do want to bump it up a little.