Quick lighting question

[haut92]

Ok, so my question is in general which is more important to lightly planted tanks, Wpg or the kelvin rating?


I'm trying to decide which DIY bulbs to buy down the line and don't know if I should go for bulbs with less watts but higher kelvin rating (around 6-7k) or the other way around.


Thanks, your forum has helped me a lot so far:)

[MonkeyPox]

It shouldn't really be a choice, as the temp of the bulb has nothing to do with wattage, nor cost, etc...

I don't see how it could be a one or the other situation.

[MCHRKiller]

Both have equality IMO when regarding a planted tank. Generally speaking you will want a K rating of around 6-8,000K for best plant growth, you can go up to 10,000K but I would definatly not go over it. Honestly you will see little difference in plant growth with a bulb in the 6-8,000K range...visually you may notice slight differences but even still the bulbs are all pretty similar looking as well. Wattage depends on the type of plants that you want to grow. If your ambition is to grow nothing more than joss, ferns and some anubias heck 1WPG will suffice just fine. For general plant keepers I do however suggest 2WPG as with that you can grow most plants available in the hobby. Generally 1.5-2WPG is a good range for beginners as its not to restricting and its not intense enough to need to get into CO2 or heavy fertalization.

[haut92]

Ok thanks, I am thinking of putting in 2- 24" 2 light t-12 20watt max fixtures and/or a 4' two light 40 watt t-12 fixture into my 125g tank with some sort of another fixture to bridge the gap to atleast 1 wpg.


My question now is do they make aquarium lights in t-12, or will it be easier and cheaper in the long run to stick with the t-8s. Most t-12 lights I can find have higher watts (better used space) but a lower kelvin temp and most the t-8 fixtures I find aren't rated for the wattage of aquarium lights..


Sorry if I am missing something, I am certainly no electrician nor plant growth specialist.

[haut92]

Nevermind I think. I have found everything I need through lowe's and aquarium guys .com


I will go with 4 2ft 18 watt t-8s and 2 4 ft 40 wattt-12 in my 125g


All fixtures will be purchased at lowe's and all lights will be aquarium lights through somewhere (wherever is cheapest).

Will I need a ballast? I know nothing about them but figure they come in the fixtures so I won't need one?

Anything else I should know would be great!

[haut92]

So it seems the GE lights designed for planted tanks only have a Kelvin temp of 3050 (as far as I can tell. The packages don't say, I found it on the internet). So wouldn't a same size bulb with the same wattage and a better Kelvin temp provide a better environment for the plants and fish? Not to mention being about half as expensive...


It seems ridiculous that that would be true so if anyone knows it to be a different K then please let me know. But there has to be some advantage to the light designed for aquariums, otherwise, forget spending the extra money.

[rookie]

haunt if you havent goten everything yet i just got 2 4ft fixtures that hold t12 bulbs and a 10 pack of bulbs 40watts each and 6500k it all cost only $40
if you need more info pm me ill try to get pix for you

[haut92]

Nailed it on the head.


I went to lowe's this morning and decided just that. The issue now is whether the GE 48" aquarium bulbs are worth the extra price. Especially because the highest K I could find for a 48" t-12 was 5100.

80 watts is rather little for my large tank so I want the lights to be the best they can be. I may even just go with a 6500K plant light like this: [Only Registered Users Can See Links.]. If it ensures my plants survive it is well worth the extra 10 bucks or so.

Thanks for the help everyone.

[rookie]

You can get a 10 pack at homedepot of basically the same bulbs for only $5 more than 1 bulb

[haut92]

Alright, very cool. I figured a difference in the lights but if it isn't noticeable to tank inhabitants then I'll definitely go that route.

Thanks