New to Plants, Confused About Lighting

[Lardeelion]

Hey all,

I've had my tank for a decade but the one time I tried live plants, I had no guidance and gave up when they all died. Fast forward to now (3 or 4 years later) and I've tried it again.

I went to a LFS - one that is very knowledgeable and has never steered me wrong to my knowledge - and told them I was a plant idiot. I said I wasn't going to do CO2 but to please set me up with something a plant beginner could handle.

I have a 55-gallon freshwater community tank. They gave me a Coralife HO T5 with a 10,000k bulb and an actinic. Assured me that plants would grow. I have a fluorite substrate. I dose with a liquid fert (Flora Pride) monthly, Flourish Excel daily, and root tabs. I've got several wisteria, swords, anubias, java ferns...nothing difficult.

When I got home and did some research I realized that most of you would advise against an actinic bulb and probably recommend a 6,700k instead as well. I called the LFS (which is an hour away so I can't just pop in with my small children) and they assured me they gave me their best lighting recommendation. So far, no algae. The wisteria is growing well but the swords are starting to get that pale, pathetic look.

I'm pretty sure I've been leaving the light on too long each day, so I'll adjust that. The light fixture is what confuses me. I don't really want to spend any more money on new bulbs if it's not necessary, but I'm happy to switch them out if that's what needs to be done. I'm confused by their recommendation. Should I stick it out with my lighting for a while and see what happens?

Thanks.

 

[nereksnad]

greetings.

i have no idea what an actinic bulb is, but dosing liquid fertilizers only once a month is what confuses me. right now i have a bottle mixed 50/50 with 1ml per 10L guidance and 1ml per 50L guidance fertilizers, to use the rest i had up. with this i am dosing 25ml twice a week in my 55g(200L). if the swords leaves are only losing color and not melting/burning up then it is much more a fertilizer problem than a lighting problem.

 

[tiger terror]

Hey all,

I've had my tank for a decade but the one time I tried live plants, I had no guidance and gave up when they all died. Fast forward to now (3 or 4 years later) and I've tried it again.

I went to a LFS - one that is very knowledgeable and has never steered me wrong to my knowledge - and told them I was a plant idiot. I said I wasn't going to do CO2 but to please set me up with something a plant beginner could handle.

I have a 55-gallon freshwater community tank. They gave me a Coralife HO T5 with a 10,000k bulb and an actinic. Assured me that plants would grow. I have a fluorite substrate. I dose with a liquid fert (Flora Pride) monthly, Flourish Excel daily, and root tabs. I've got several wisteria, swords, anubias, java ferns...nothing difficult.

When I got home and did some research I realized that most of you would advise against an actinic bulb and probably recommend a 6,700k instead as well. I called the LFS (which is an hour away so I can't just pop in with my small children) and they assured me they gave me their best lighting recommendation. So far, no algae. The wisteria is growing well but the swords are starting to get that pale, pathetic look.

I'm pretty sure I've been leaving the light on too long each day, so I'll adjust that. The light fixture is what confuses me. I don't really want to spend any more money on new bulbs if it's not necessary, but I'm happy to switch them out if that's what needs to be done. I'm confused by their recommendation. Should I stick it out with my lighting for a while and see what happens?

Thanks.

Yeah definitely replace the actinic bulb with a 67k bulb,as the actinic bulb offers no benefit to live plants(keep the 10000k w/6700k bulb,nice combo)..

 

[aqua_chem]

Actinic bulbs aren't useless, but they have significantly reduced benefits over a full spectrum bulb. New bulbs can be gotten online for relatively cheap ($15 or so inc s/h), which should relieve the burden if having to run to the store somewhat. I also think they're a bit ugly, and distort the natural beauty of a planted tank.

Without knowing what's wrong with your plants, it's hard to give very exact advice. I agree that you're probably experiencing an issue with fertilizers, likely micronutrients. Swords like getting the lion's share of their nutrients from their roots, so root tabs are usually the best option for them. I also recommend getting a liquid fert to supplement them, but mostly for the wisteria, which is a stem type plant that like fertilizer in the water.

 

[Lardeelion]

Thanks.

I'll switch out the actinic first. As for the sword, I just put in root tabs 48 hours ago. It may be some days before things start to work. Before I get all nuts, I'll try being patient and eliminating variables one at a time.

 

[Lardeelion]

I called my local Petco where I have a bunch of coupons waiting to be used that would make this really cheap...they have a 6,700K day bulb and a 5,000k Flora Sun bulb. Would one work better than the other?

 

[nereksnad]

i'm still confused, why use liquid fertilizers once a month? the reason to use liquid fertilizing is that nutrients will be in the water and be absorbed into the substrate if it is clay based, but surely with a months interval of waterchanges and plants using said nutrients they will be all but depleted long before that? or is it some very strong fertilizer?

also

whichever fit into this spectrum graph the best

where BLACKLINE == effectiveness_for_plants

 

[Lardeelion]

I actually should have been more specific. The liquid fertilizer, Flora Pride says 1x a month and after water changes. And I do add it after water changes. When I've used up this bottle I'm sure I'll find something better.

 

[Aspencer]

I have a 55 with one 6700 and one actinic bulb because if I had two 6700's, there would be too much light and would cause an algae problem. I leave my lights on for 12 hours and want to encourage a little algae since I have Malaysian Trumpet Snails to keep the sand turning over. You can see my tank in the Cichlid section under H. sf Crossbar Yala Swamp. I used to fertilize using the PPS system but for the last 4 months have been fert free. The tank is just over a year old now.

 

[aqua_chem]

i'm still confused, why use liquid fertilizers once a month? the reason to use liquid fertilizing is that nutrients will be in the water and be absorbed into the substrate if it is clay based, but surely with a months interval of waterchanges and plants using said nutrients they will be all but depleted long before that? or is it some very strong fertilizer?

also

whichever fit into this spectrum graph the best

where BLACKLINE == effectiveness_for_plants

What exactly is that a spectrum of? It's not the chlorophyll absorbance spectrum.

 

[nereksnad]

What exactly is that a spectrum of? It's not the chlorophyll absorbance spectrum.

it's the visible light spectrum where the most effective wave lengths from plants is depicted, what exactly that is i couldn't find info of where it was posted. to find out i'd have to go by asking the author of the picture in question. aparently it is a re-vised graph from 2005

 

[aqua_chem]

This is the absorbance spectrum of chlorophyll (and other pigments) that plants use to harvest energy from sunlight. Plants can barely (if at all) use green light, but that graph has strong absorbance in that region.

I call shenanigans.

 

[nereksnad]

This is an artical the author of the graph in question has wrote(or rather, translated) about wether or not plants can actually utilize green light spectrums.

i've sent a message to the author about his graph.

 

[nereksnad]

i got a reply form the author.

the graph is composed from study results by the dutch institute für gardenbau of the university of wagenigen from 2005.
furthermore studies using LED lights in the higher red light spectrum on plants showed that the plants can use this light aswell.

he has also confirmed the chart his own experience.

he also warned that people souldn't strictly follow the chlorophyll chart, as this will lead to the plant receiving insufficient light and in the wrong intensitivities.

unfortunately the exact refferences were lost.

 

[blert]

I called my local Petco where I have a bunch of coupons waiting to be used that would make this really cheap...they have a 6,700K day bulb and a 5,000k Flora Sun bulb. Would one work better than the other?

Go with the 6700k. The 5000k may end up looking too yellow.
Without getting too technical concerning optimum growth rates and stuff, the Kelvin scale (K) basically tells you what color YOU will see. The lower end will look more yellow, the higher end more white and up into blue when you pass 10000K. 6700k is about noon time color.

Be aware that putting a new bulb in there may put you up into higher light. You may experience algae issue if you are not injecting CO2 and supplying adequate fertilizer. You might want to look into a ColorMax type bulb, they still produce usable spectrum for plants but are not as intense as a straight up 6700k bulb.

 

[Lardeelion]

Go with the 6700k. The 5000k may end up looking too yellow.
Without getting too technical concerning optimum growth rates and stuff, the Kelvin scale (K) basically tells you what color YOU will see. The lower end will look more yellow, the higher end more white and up into blue when you pass 10000K. 6700k is about noon time color.

Be aware that putting a new bulb in there may put you up into higher light. You may experience algae issue if you are not injecting CO2 and supplying adequate fertilizer. You might want to look into a ColorMax type bulb, they still produce usable spectrum for plants but are not as intense as a straight up 6700k bulb.

Thanks, Blert. I'm afraid I got a bit lost in this thread. I originally brought home the 5,000k saw that it was indeed too yellow. Switched it up and things are a nice balance now. Not too blue; not too yellow. I'm keeping an eye on the algae (nothing so far) and on the sword leaves. I'm sure cutting back the tank light is a good first step. I was enjoying the tank so much that I couldn't bring myself to shut it off. Time to invest in a timer.

 

[blert]

Thanks, Blert. I'm afraid I got a bit lost in this thread. I originally brought home the 5,000k saw that it was indeed too yellow. Switched it up and things are a nice balance now. Not too blue; not too yellow. I'm keeping an eye on the algae (nothing so far) and on the sword leaves. I'm sure cutting back the tank light is a good first step. I was enjoying the tank so much that I couldn't bring myself to shut it off. Time to invest in a timer.

Glad you found a nice color balance you enjoy. As for a timer... Hit Walmart and pick up a five dollar Brinks timer, they are in the place where you find electrical outlets and wall switches. They work perfectly and are inexpensive.

 

[FishWorks AK]

I would not cut back on the intensity of the light. Rather the amount of time the light is on. I am not sure if you can find an 8000k t5, or if the color will change, but I use 8000k metal halides from ADA (Amono). They grow plants with unbelievable color and speed. On the other hand I also use glacial silt under the substrate