Lighting for 20 Gallon Tall Help!

[pleechford]

Hey guys, like I said in previous posts, I just recently received a 20g tall tank for christmas. I want to do a transfer of what is in my 10g heavily planted tank to my new 20g. Although I have no idea what kind of lighting I need for my ground cover plants such as dwarf hair grass. I heard t5 HO is the way to go but I don't want to burn my plants up. Would a t5 NO be sufficient for my ground cover plants? Thoughts??

 

[aa108]

for dwarf sag, t5no would suffice. It is a relatively low light plant even though it is a carpet plant.

 

[jetajockey]

I'd go with a single bulb t5ho, I think the t5no will leave you wanting for more

 

[pleechford]

So I found a t5 HO and it says 24 inch and my tank is 24 inches long but the product dimension is 31 inches long. Will it actually fit my tank? Kinda confusing.

Here is the link to the product:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B002P9MFW0/ref=redir_mdp_mobile

 

[mfdrookie516]

That sounds like it's a 30" fixture (29, 20 long, etc). They have 24" bulbs as well. A good 2x T5HO can be found at fishneedit.com... that's where I get all my HO fixtures. That said, 2x will probably be a bit much. If you don't get a single bulb, you might need to put some window screen or raise the light to help reduce some in the tank.

 

[adadkins1]

You might could look at Lowes or Home Depot for some kind of fixture. I got 4' T8 fixture for my 55g for less than $20 from Lowes. It pays to look at hardware stores first...often cheaper. Don't know if they carry many T5HO fixtures though. Maybe a 2x T8 fixture would = 1 T5HO?

 

[jetajockey]

Nah, 2x t8 doesn't = 1t5ho. That said, a dual t8 light would be pretty good but I honestly still think it'd be lacking in intensity. Comparing these to t5no and then t5no to t5ho is a world of difference.

It'd be nice to find a numbers chart with side by side stats on the different setups.

 

[pleechford]

So should I get a 24" t5ho fixture since my tank is 24 inches wide? When I look for a 24" t5ho is the fixture itself 24" or the bulbs 24"? I've gotten pretty confused now haha.

 

[adadkins1]

The fixture will be listed as a 24" and the bulbs will be as well. It can get pretty confusing at times.

 

[mfdrookie516]

Yeah, they don't make 30" bulbs (well, they do, but it isn't a readily available size) so that's why the 30" fixtures have 24" bulbs. The 24" fixtures have 24" bulbs as well. Sorry if I confused you.

 

[aqua_chem]

The fixture itself is 31", but the mounts are set for a 24" tank. I dont think it will be an issue.