New Light Good or Bad?

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russianaquarium

Aquarium Advice Freak
Joined
Oct 14, 2016
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302
Location
Maine USA
Hello everyone, hows it going... good.... so I needed a new light for my aquarium to get better plant growth, I used to have an aqueon full spectrum 17 whatt 8000K t8 light and now went out and bought an aqua glo 20 watt 18000K t8 light and am wondering if its good? I will attach pictures and just want some feed back of how great this bulb really is... and if anyone has had experience with them... thanks

UPDATE: The aqueon made the tank look much brighter... the new light I bought makes the tank look dimmer..yet more red/pinkish...
 

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18k is pretty bright...Like marine bright.
I can't say for sure but I really need to limit my time and keep good distance with my 10k leds....
You can always get another bulb if it doesn't work?
Most plant people say they like 6500 I think....
 
Hello, Its rated for a freshwater aquarium and it says its good for freshwater plants, it also seems dimmer than the light i had (aqueon) and much more red/pinkish...
 
Hello, Its rated for a freshwater aquarium and it says its good for freshwater plants, it also seems dimmer than the light i had (aqueon) and much more red/pinkish...


U can grow plants under t8's but for the best results u want a t5 6500k
 
All lights will grow plants whether it's mainly red, blue, yellow, 6500k, 18000k.

The amount of photons the bulbs emits per second per meter squared and the distance from the bulb to the plants plays the biggest role in terms of growth. Less photons and further away the slower the plant will grow or more chance of the plant not growing at all. The more photons emitted and the closer to the bulb the faster plants will grow and the more nutrition they will need.

If you don't know the number of photons the bulb emits every second over a meter squared (PAR rating) then you can only just try it and see. The type of plants you use may determine your success too.
 
All lights will grow plants whether it's mainly red, blue, yellow, 6500k, 18000k.

The amount of photons the bulbs emits per second per meter squared and the distance from the bulb to the plants plays the biggest role in terms of growth. Less photons and further away the slower the plant will grow or more chance of the plant not growing at all. The more photons emitted and the closer to the bulb the faster plants will grow and the more nutrition they will need.

If you don't know the number of photons the bulb emits every second over a meter squared (PAR rating) then you can only just try it and see. The type of plants you use may determine your success too.


Isn't the 6500k the temp of the colour that's best for plants to absorb though? God light can be so confusing. Isn't that why t5 is better than t8 for plants? Because the plants absorb the light better?
 
Isn't the 6500k the temp of the colour that's best for plants to absorb though? God light can be so confusing. Isn't that why t5 is better than t8 for plants? Because the plants absorb the light better?


Light can be confusing. That's want the manufacturers and developers want. That's why they like to add labels and tag lines to their boxes that can trigger people in to buying their bulb over someone else's.

Sometimes you get a fancy graph or a CRI value as well as Kelvins, watts, sometimes PAR now it's clear we are moving more in that direction. Even with a PAR value at hand what can we really do with that? With 100s of different species of plants available to us we are never going to get a perfect PAR value. All tanks are different.

Kelvin is colour temperature which Essentially means the colour of black body that has been heated to varying temperature values. You might notice that a flame goes orange, red then blue then white the hotter it gets. This is why blue colour lights are often in the higher kelvin ratings.

The fact is that the bulbs we use have all the colours the plants need to grow healthily. Whether you use a 10,000k or 6500k. You can manufacture varying 6500k bulbs with a different colour mixes.

6500k also happens to be the colour temperature of the sun which makes people feel better I think.

ADA used bulbs high in the green spectrum for aesthetics but grew plants fine.

6500k tends to have a nice warm colour that looks more pleasing to the human eye when it comes to aquascaping.

As long as we are using bulbs that give out wavelengths in the 400-700nm range then the plants will use that light.

Perhaps certain plant allocation and morphology relies on certain colours but whether we use an osram fluorescent from the local hardware store or a bulb marketed towards growing plants they will both do that job well. The bulb marketed towards growing plants may reflect more colour that we find more appealing whereas the shop light may appear more yellow.

This is why I don't get too hung up on light. Keep it simple. Keep it generic. Better to test for ourselves. I've used all kinds of tubes and have had good success at growing both algae and plants. Just my two cents [emoji846]
 
Hello, thanks for all your replies... I will attach a pic of the chart that was on the box. As you can see it has a spike in the blue, and 2 spikes in the red.. what does that mean, will it grow my plants... and im thinking of keeping it for now... because it says its suppose to grow plants, what do you guys think? And please help me out... for plants i have an Amazon sword another sword (not sure exactly what kind) a bunch of Bacopa Caroliniana, Some dwarf hair grass I got not to long ago and its not carpeting yet but slowly growing... some hornwort, java moss.
 

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Hello, thanks for all your replies... I will attach a pic of the chart that was on the box. As you can see it has a spike in the blue, and 2 spikes in the red.. what does that mean, will it grow my plants... and im thinking of keeping it for now... because it says its suppose to grow plants, what do you guys think? And please help me out... for plants i have an Amazon sword another sword (not sure exactly what kind) a bunch of Bacopa Caroliniana, Some dwarf hair grass I got not to long ago and its not carpeting yet but slowly growing... some hornwort, java moss.


I'd take cal's advice over mine as his knowledge is far larger than mine. Basically by the sounds of it, it's just personal preference (what the light looks the best). I'd give it a go and see how it works.

Just remember if it's brighter than your old bulb then u may come into grief with algae.

More light = more co2(more excel), more ferts(or flourish) so make sure u keep an eye on the tank for the first week or 2 and adjust your ferts to suit.
 
When I had a single tube fluorescent hood, I was using an 8000k bulb and it displayed a pleasant color throughout the tank. I then switched to a plant style bulb (can't recall the K value) and it produced a pinkish hue. The blue Danios looked flesh/salmon toned. Yuck. I returned the bulb.
 
Hello, thanks for all your replies... I will attach a pic of the chart that was on the box. As you can see it has a spike in the blue, and 2 spikes in the red.. what does that mean, will it grow my plants... and im thinking of keeping it for now... because it says its suppose to grow plants, what do you guys think? And please help me out... for plants i have an Amazon sword another sword (not sure exactly what kind) a bunch of Bacopa Caroliniana, Some dwarf hair grass I got not to long ago and its not carpeting yet but slowly growing... some hornwort, java moss.


It's the area under the curves that are important. The peaks don't really mean anything relevant. The bulb is fine. Plants enjoy red and blue light.

Whether or not this light reaches them in sufficient quantities another question which means this is the most relevant graph to look at.

IMG_2389.JPG

Different plants have different light compensation points and the LPC can be lowered further with the addition of carbon. If you reach and go beyond the LPC you will induce a process known as photorespiration.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Photorespiration

This is a wasteful process that will ultimately see the demise of your plants. This is rare though. Usually you just get slower growth. If you are trying to achieve a carpet using dwarf hair grass then using higher PAR bulbs or fixtures makes more sense but the extra energy normally requires the use of supplementary carbon sources.
 
The new light actually seems less bright than the one I used to use... Bert2oo1 and thanks for all the information Caliban07 I think I will give the light a go... it does make my fish glow a little, ill just see what it does to my plants, if i dont like it i will stick it onto my 10 gallon and put the one i used to have back on the 30... thanks guys.
 
The new light actually seems less bright than the one I used to use... Bert2oo1 and thanks for all the information Caliban07 I think I will give the light a go... it does make my fish glow a little, ill just see what it does to my plants, if i dont like it i will stick it onto my 10 gallon and put the one i used to have back on the 30... thanks guys.


Good plan, let us know how u get on, I'm interested to know how different the growth rate etc is. I've never had much to do with fluro's as I use LED's
 
I read somewhere that if the light seems dim to humans because they can't see that color, and plants can... based on that graph thing i posted does it look like the plants should grow from this light? Thanks
 
I read somewhere that if the light seems dim to humans because they can't see that color, and plants can... based on that graph thing i posted does it look like the plants should grow from this light? Thanks


The plants will grow bud. Just try it. There is no rule when it comes to planted tanks.
 
Alright thanks for the replies, but if the spike is bigger in the blue than in the red what will that do? What does that say... is it better to have bigger spike in the blue for plants or more in the red? Thanks
 
Alright thanks for the replies, but if the spike is bigger in the blue than in the red what will that do? What does that say... is it better to have bigger spike in the blue for plants or more in the red? Thanks


As long as there is some in both it doesn't matter the effects will be negligible and the plants will adapt. I don't even know what spectral details my LED puts out. I don't know the Kelvins or the PAR. Plants growing fine.

I think you are reading too much and overthinking things. Light is important but there are other parameters that need considering for a healthy planted tank.
 
I think it is only a flourescent tube and you will live and learn. and grow algae
TPT people are rolling over in their graves.
5500-8,000 k freshwater and 10,000-22,000k marine.
Say you want links since no one finds them...
This from DFS who we usually laugh at for being under informed.....

The Right K Rating for Your Aquarium
The following guidelines can help you select lighting with a K rating that best duplicates your inhabitants' natural conditions:

  • Fish Only Aquarium - Choose a bulb with a spectrum based on your personal preference. A lamp with a low K rating emits redder light and exhibits more vivid colors than a lamp with a higher K rating (emitting bluer light). Normal-output fluorescent bulbs are quite popular.
  • Freshwater Planted Aquarium - Fluorescent and compact fluorescent bulbs are frequently used to provide the full spectrum range of light (5500°K to 7500°K), most plants require. As a general rule, provide between 2 and 5 watts per gallon.
  • Saltwater Reef Aquarium - Many corals and invertebrates have naturally adapted to bluer light. Therefore, most reef lighting systems include bulbs with a high Kelvin rating. 10000°K to 20000°K are frequently used.



  • As I mentioned almost worth laughing at as they still do watts per gallon.
  • But IMO you are going to grow algae,BBA and maybe even every ones fav, cyanno*..!
  • I use [still unfortunately] many marine lights on FW tanks so I am not guessing on this....
I can pull real links on lighting,but they are already here in one of my post?

http://www.americanaquariumproducts.com/Aquarium_Lighting.html

* I know cyanno is a bacteria...A PS bacteria that loves light.....
 
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