Tank lighting

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buck

Aquarium Advice Apprentice
Joined
Mar 18, 2012
Messages
12
Location
Highlahd, Indiana
I have a 75 gallon tank with co2 injection. I have lots of plants, and it is heavily stocked with small fish and shrimp. With the lighting I have, I'm getting 1.44 watts per gallon. Is this ok, or do I need more? Also with so much livestock do I really need to add ferts? Will it hurt? Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks,Buck.
 
It's ok but at least u have co2. Just stay away from stem plants or red color plants that need 3 to 4 wpg! Those Hagen glo t5 fluorescent light fixtures are nice and cheap but very strong.
 
1.44 watts per gallon would be considered between low and moderate lighting. I have 1.5 watts per gallon (6500K light) and I'm having a lot of success with low light plants as well as stem plants such as hygrophila and anacharis.

As for ferts, I use API root tabs for my root plants (and I put some near my stem plants as well just to see what happens) and I dose the water column with Nutra-fin Plant Gro liquid fertilizer. It shouldn't negatively affect anything as long as you follow the correct dosing instructions.
 
1.4 watts per gallon goes out the window if you use HO fixtures FYI.

What kind of lights do you have ?
T8s ( stock on many large tanks)
T5s newer and much more output
??
 
Thanks aqua chem,I've got ferts coming from Orlando over at Greenleaf. I ordered what they call the complete package. Today I also ordered a digital gram scale,but I need help on how much to mix and add. I've really been researching this stuff on these forums but I just can't seem to get a handle on it yet. Do I need to dose for less than 75 gallons because of all the gravel, rocks,driftwood etc. And then I still haven't figured out what I should do, Ei or PPS-Pro.This has really been tough for me, but I will figure it out one way or another. Again, thanks for your advice and comments.
 
I like this one: Yet Another Nutrient Calculator

The gram scale will help you in the long run for sure. As far as dosing, I use EI, so I can't really speak for PPS. EI is nice because it's flexible by its nature, and uses tsp measurements rather than masses, which makes it all around easier to use.
 
Hey, I think I finally figured it out. I just stuck with it, researching the internet and these forums and it just kinda clicked. Sometimes I think I just get lazy and or impatient, but I'm really appreciative of all the input. I decided to go PPS-Pro and I can't wait to get started,. It doesn't seem that hard after all. I do still wonder tho' with my heavy bio-load if I should maybe go a little lean on the dosing. Thanks a load!
 
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