Will the anubias and java fern survive?

[cichlidlover]

Firstly go easy on me, im a planted tank virgin.

Ok so i have an 80g cichlid tank and I decided after keeping cichlids for several years that i wanted to try my hands at plants. The tank only has a 36watt fluroscent tube for however, very minimal lighting i know. The problem is i live in a remote mining town where everything is expensive and i have to purchase most stuff through the internet. Leaving high school this year i need my money for university and so i dont want to spend it. Will i be able to grow my anubias and java fern with 0.45 WPG. Omg just saying it sounds pathetic. SOMEONE HELP ME !!!. Could i leave me light on for 14hrs a day? would this help?

[rich311k]

I would say probably not. I do not think it is going to work.

[EddyC]

First off, congrats on going to university!

Secondly, you probably can grow the plants with that amount of light, but they probably won't do too well, if they actually make it. Those are pretty hardy plants and I've hard stories of them surviving horrid conditions. The tank is probably too deep as well for the light to reach the bottom. I was kinda in your shoes (I'm now going to be a junior @ Mass College of Art) and had to find a cheap alternative to buying a new hood. So I stopped by Home Depot and bought two daylight CFL bulbs (the corkscrew kind) and two sockets on the end of a cord. All I had to do was attach the bulbs to the wires and hang them in such a way that the bulb is alongside the side of the tank (without actually touching it). Then I made a cone out of aluminum foil to help direct the light into the tank. Works like a charm, and now my tank has 4.5 w/g, all for no more than $25. Might be an option to consider.

[Lady Hobbs]

I also don't think they have good chances of surviving. It's the spectrum of light that makes plants grow, not insufficient light for long hours.

[cichlidlover]

Ok, so i thought about your comments.... I checked an order for the liveplants that totalled $80.00. I decided that there wasn't anyway I could justify spending that much money on plants and then letting them die. How would i go using a lamp with an added 60watts of white fluroscent light.That would bring my WPG to 1.2? Alternatively i might look into adding another light tube to the tank...despite the expensiveness of this task. Aswell my tank is near a window although i generally leave the curtains shut, would the added light (big window) add to my WPG...

Please reply soon... the plants arrive tonight.

And thanks for the help so far

[rich311k]

The cheapest way is to get yourself a shoplight. You can get a 4 tube fixture for a decent price. Change the bulbs to 6400k bulbs and you should be good to go.