incandescent plant options

[tyler]

i just put a sand bed in my five gallon tank, and i thought a real plant would be rather interesting in there. problem is the only light for the system is a 15 watt incandescent. it was labelled as a "grow bulb"; i bought it because i like the colors it puts out more so than a standard clear bulb. anyhow, i was wondering if this would be anywhere near sufficient, or perhaps i could buy one of those flouros that is made to screw into the incandescent socket; they sell them at the lfs.

thank you.

 

[EMS503]

Lighting

Hi., You want at least 2 watts per/ gal. for plant tanks.
If my math is correct you should have 3 watts/gal. with this setup.
Add some fertilizer with Iron (Root Tabs) and you should be okay with most plants. Some require even more lighting. I only use Triton bulbs, But they are of the same wattage. Give it a try. Java Fern makes a good low light plant just anchor it to a rock or driftwood. Good luck any more questions feel free to ask.

EMS503

 

[Anemoneman]

Go for that compact flourescent that screws into a regular light bulb socket. It will give you tons more light to grow those plants with.

Mark

 

[tyler]

went for the mini pc. i really do like it much better than incandescent, and i pulled the sand out after i found out what it would do to my water chem. first plant went in today.

 

[Bob Ashcraft]

i pulled the sand out after i found out what it would do to my water chem.

What kind of sand did you have, and what would it do to your water chemistry?

What did you replace the sand with?

 

[tyler]

the sand contained limestone. i replaced it with shultz aquatic plant soil.

 

[Bob Ashcraft]

i replaced it with shultz aquatic plant soil.

This is what I've been using for years now. I wouldn't use anything else.

 

[tyler_old]

i've also heard of people using schultz clay soil conditioner. any input on that?

 

[Bob Ashcraft]

I've been using this for about 6 years and have had great success with it. The granules are about 2mm diameter which makes it very easy to bury the roots. Fertilizer can also be added to the substrate without it leaching into the water column.

And the best part is, it only costs a fraction of what Fourite costs.

 

[Guest]

Well, DAG!!!!

I sure wish I had known about this before I paid fo flourite!

Just went to the schultz website, all the info about this product was for pond plants. Beside what was mentioned, any other advantages to this stuff?

I would have to say though, I'm not unhappy w/flourite. My plants have rooted like crazy, and are doing quite well.

I will try the schultz in the spring when repotting water lillies.