DiY Light options

[robo-snickers]

so i have a 29G tank that has the single T8 hood that doesnt seem to be enough to get my plants growing. so i have a plan and i wanna know what you think i should do.

so im gonna take apart the light fixture and put in new lights

the problme comes in at i dont know which i should to do. here are my two ideas

1. i have a spare T8 ballast lying around that can light up 2 T8 instead of just one which i have now. so all i would have to do is buy anonter T8, some light parts, and maybe some screws and braket things. so i would spend about maybe 20-25 dollars.

or!

2. should i go ahead and just buy a T5HO ballast which will cost me 30 bucks, only one i can find can hold 2 lights, so i would have to buy two lights, about 40 bucks, screws, brakets, light parts, so about 60 bucks.

what would be best for me to do? i wanna make sure my lights will keep myplats alive, and i dont want to use CO2, but i do have dirt as a substrate if that matters. only real light demanding plant i think i have is a amazon sword that as a few red leafs... not sure of the name. what do you guys think will be best? also if i should get the T5HO, i plan on using the power cord and the on/off button from the hood i have now, will there be a problem if i connect those wires to turn on the T5HO Ballast? thank you

 

[jetajockey]

I have a 29g that had a single t8 bulb in the fixture. I gutted it and added a basic 2 bulb screw-in type and some aluminum foil to serve as a reflector. I use 2 CFL bulbs (I think 15w). It works fine for low light planted.

 

[CorallineAlgae]

Two T8s would let you get away without co2 and still help your plants. A third option would be to get a cheap incandescent light strip and use CFL daylights. You could either add it to your single light strip using a glass lid or replace the T8 strip.

 

[maxwellag]

Two T8s would let you get away without co2 and still help your plants.

I'm not sure what you mean by this. Are you saying that you have to have co2 with T5HOs to help plant growth and prevent algae? Depending on the output, if you have enough plants in your tank to use the light, you can get away with no co2 and T5HOs. I have done this on my 20 gallon with two 24w bulbs. The plants do very well and I don't have algae.

 

[robo-snickers]

What would you count as heavily planted?

 

[tiger terror]

Here's my 10g in its early stages&could be considered heavily planted..no co2

 

[CorallineAlgae]

I'm not sure what you mean by this. Are you saying that you have to have co2 with T5HOs to help plant growth and prevent algae? Depending on the output, if you have enough plants in your tank to use the light, you can get away with no co2 and T5HOs. I have done this on my 20 gallon with two 24w bulbs. The plants do very well and I don't have algae.

No, you don't always have to have co2 with T5HOs. Like you pointed out, with enough plants and proper ferts they can be used. But, if the tank won't be heavily planted or gets rescaped it can be harder to control algae with very bright lights. Also, having many tall plants can help to shade the tank. Lots if things come into play. In general, having very bright lights over a tank, co2 or not, can make algae outbreaks more prone to happen should things change. In my 20 I had 3 T5HO lights with loads of tall plants and never any algae. Once the tall plants were removed algae started to hit. Nothing else was changed. So you're right, enough plants to use and block excess light and it's doable, as long as that's the kind of plants you're going for. Still, before I used the T5s I was growing the same plants with 2 CFLs and everything grew great. Algae only came into play with the brighter lights and shorter plants.

 

[jetajockey]

T5ho on a 20/29 is overkill for someone attempting to do a low-medium no co2 setup. As mentioned, there's exceptions, but it's like taking a school bus instead of a minivan to go get groceries.

 

[CorallineAlgae]

T5ho on a 20/29 is overkill for someone attempting to do a low-medium no co2 setup. As mentioned, there's exceptions, but it's like taking a school bus instead of a minivan to go get groceries.

I wish I could've said it as clearly as you just did.

OP, more of any one single thing that plants need to grow won't grow plants better. Having more light is helpful only as long as the plants also have enough co2 and ferts. If lights are powerful but co2 and ferts are limited plant growth will be limited but algae growth won't be.