Lighting help

[KeeshyRee]

I have a 55 gallon with standard double hoods single 18" florescents in each. I'm wanting to dirt this tank and do a low light set up with jungle val dwarf Sagittarius rotalla amazon sword anubis and java fern. Are there any bulbs I can use in my current hood that will create adequate light for these type of plants? Also no co2.

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[Old Scales]

The light you have currently is extremely lowlight. All your 18 inch fluorescent bulbs are going to be the same watts, so whether it's a full daylight or a flora grow, it won't make much difference. Of the plants you listed the Anubias and Java ferns are about the only ones that may live. The others would not do well in that low of light. Most stock fixtures and hoods are just adequate enough to watch the fish and are almost useless for plants.
There are some good low to low medium light level fixtures that you can upgrade to that aren't too expensive. Zoo Med and Odyssey make some reasonable T5HO florescent fixtures. Hope this helps, good luck. OS.

 

[mrvincent]

T5HO, that's what I use and it grow huge with CO2 !

 

[BBradbury]

Lighting for your 55 G

I have a 55 gallon with standard double hoods single 18" florescents in each. I'm wanting to dirt this tank and do a low light set up with jungle val dwarf Sagittarius rotalla amazon sword anubis and java fern. Are there any bulbs I can use in my current hood that will create adequate light for these type of plants? Also no co2.

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Hello Kee...

I have the same type light strip. I use a couple of GE florescent lamps in them, about $6.00 a piece and the lights last well over a year. You can use a 32 T8 or 40 watt T12. My strip is set up for two. This will be plenty of light for plants that need no more than subdued lighting. I keep Common water weed, Duckweed, Anubias nana, Anubias nangi, Cryptocoryne wendtii, Pennywort and Hornwort. All grow very well with nothing more than large, frequent water changes and a bit of Seachem comprehensive dosed every couple of weeks.

B

 

[BBradbury]

55 G Lighting

I have a 55 gallon with standard double hoods single 18" florescents in each. I'm wanting to dirt this tank and do a low light set up with jungle val dwarf Sagittarius rotalla amazon sword anubis and java fern. Are there any bulbs I can use in my current hood that will create adequate light for these type of plants? Also no co2.

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Hello again Kee...

An alternative to the two 18 inch strips is to go with a single strip that will hold a 48 inch lamp. Not too pricey at around $70.00 and would improve your lighting.

B

 

[KeeshyRee]

Hi again guys! I appreciate the input. Ok so im pretty blond when it comes to lighting lol. So we've established that my lightning is to low got it! So next question. Can any of the lights you guys suggested be used with my current hoods? My lights on these are removable and I have a goldfish tank with a screen top I could use them on as it needs them! But I don't want a screen top on this 55 because it sits closer to the floor and I have 2 small boys that think the fish need to eat everything they do lol. I need a good hood on this tank and like I said I'm doing this on a budget! Here's some pictures of what I have.

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[Old Scales]

Are you currently growing any plants under the light you have? If not I would certainly give the light you have a try first. Going with a dirty tank will help some. You could add a liquid carbon such as Excel or, for that size tank, get a gallon of metricide 14 off of Amazon. Mix it 50-50 with distilled water and it would last a very long time dosing at 1 mL per 5 gallons. The boost of a dirted substrate along with the liquid carbon may give you good enough growth for lowlight plants with your current fixture. I have seen some very gorgeous lowlight tanks made up. If you'd like some inspiration go to Tropica.com and click on layouts. They have some really nice lowlight setups pictured. Good luck, hope this helps. OS.

 

[KeeshyRee]

I currently have gravel and some extra jungle val in it but its in the process of melting. I ordered it on ebay and got enough for 3 tanks lol. I think I'll dirt the tank and try this lighting then and see how it goes. How often should I dose it if I use the metricide?

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[Old Scales]

Liquid carbon dissipates from the water in 24 hrs. You want to dose every morning before or when the lights come on. There are several different Anubias with different leaf shapes, El Nino Fern, Java fern, Jave moss you can use. Also try a Cryotocorne wendti instead of Vals in your light. OS.

 

[KeeshyRee]

Ok thank you!

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[Old Scales]

You are very welcome. I'll be glad to help however I can. Keep us posted on how it goes. OS.

 

[KeeshyRee]

Will do!

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[KeeshyRee]

Ok guys I'm thinking about upgrading my lighting. I ordered the metricide 14 and will start dosing when it arrives. I don't won't to have a high light or even medium light tank that I'd need to do co2 on and I need to keep it cheap!!! So like I said I'm blond to all things lighting so could you help me out here? I've read some threads on led flood lights on here. A few people have mentioned T5ho lights what's going to be cheap and easy and goods for the set up I have? Also this is probably a stupid question but I have 2 single bulb 18" t8 strips one one each side of the tank currently can I use T5ho bulbs in these fixtures or do they require a different type? HELP! Lol

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[KeeshyRee]

Old scales
I did think about trying the lights I have but they aren't bright enough to really even light my fish :-( I did take them out and read them and one says it's a 5500k would another type of bulb or a higher k give me more light?

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[Old Scales]

HI Keeshy,
The difference between your 5500k bulb and say, a 6700 0r 8000k would be so slight as to not really make a difference since it's only one bulb on each side.
Regular flourescents have a much lower power ballast( the part that the bulb plugs into that powers the bulb) than T5HO's. So no you can't just put a T5 into a regular fixture.
Go on Amazon and look for a reasonable priced dual bulb T5HO fixture. I know Zoo Med makes a decent light and are sold at Petco. But you may be able to find one cheaper on amazon or Ebay. Remember you want bulbs in the 5000k to 8000k with around 6500k being to most popular for plants. I don't know of an LED that would be in a cheaper price range that would be powerful enough for your tank. Good luck, OS.

 

[KeeshyRee]

Hi Old Scales
Quick question I got my gal of metricide 14 in last night. It came with a little bottle that says activator do I add this to the gallon before I mix it with water and dose?

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[Brookster123]

I just picked up a 24" dual t5 no (normal output) 28watts of 6700k. Price was reasonable. You could double up these for about 120-140 depending on bulb selection.

 

[Old Scales]

Hi Keeshy,
You throw away the activator bottle. It is only put in the metricide when it's used by dentists offices to cold sterilize instruments. We only use the carbon part. You want to start off dosing gradually. Start at 1 mL per 5 gallons for the first week. You can gradually up the dosage but dosing higher than 1 mL per 2 gallons is really not needed unless you are trying to kill algae. Be sure to store it in a light proof container. I bought a small medicine eyedropper at Walgreens so I could precisely measured the doses. Also it is safer to mix it 50-50 with distilled water with thus giving you 2 gallons. The dosage rates I am giving you are based on this 50-50 ratio.
Glad you got the glut I think you'll see an improvement in your plants and less problems with algae. Good luck, any other questions just holler at me. Brian(OS)

 

[KeeshyRee]

Thank you Brian! I'm excited I'm already seeing new leaves on the dwarf sag!

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[rhsoto94]

Not trying to interrupt thread but would a zoo med 24" t5ho 6500k on a 20 gal be low light?