Lighting

[Lovin Fish]

Which aquarium lights offer good lighting for a low-tech planted tank while maintaining a low(er) power bill?

 

[jetajockey]

If the power bill is the biggest concern, then I'd definitely look into LED's. I don't have a lot of experience with them as far as planted tanks go, but their power consumption is hard to compete with.

If LED's aren't a viable option, the next route I'd go with on a smaller (<29g) tank is screw in CFLs.

 

[Lovin Fish]

If the power bill is the biggest concern, then I'd definitely look into LED's. I don't have a lot of experience with them as far as planted tanks go, but their power consumption is hard to compete with.

If LED's aren't a viable option, the next route I'd go with on a smaller (<29g) tank is screw in CFLs.

Okay Thanks! I will look into the LED's. When I told my husband we needed at least 5000K he said "I don't think so! Our power bill is high enough!" We live in Alaska and our monthly power bill is on average $400. IOt's ridiculous! When we paid our latest bill, the company said qoute: We are at our peak rates :end qoute.

 

[jetajockey]

Just to clarify, 5000k is a kelvin rating. Kelvin is basically a rating of light color, not light intensity. That means that a 2500k bulb and a 10000k bulb are using the same amount of energy, they just have different colors.

This is a long read, but it breaks it all down.

Aquarium Lighting; Reef, Planted Light Information. PAR, Bulb, Watt, Kelvin, Nanometers, MH, LED.

I like using the bulbs around 6700k (daylight) range, full spectrum for my planted tanks.

 

[Fishandmusic81]

Similiar issue

I have one of those 10 gallon starter tanks the hood has the option to put two screw on bulbs I have normal aquarium bulbs from the lfs and try have a yellow ish tint to it having live plants I want the lights to give off a pure white glow with no yellow ish tint does anybody know how to fix this without having to buy a new hood?

 

[Fishandmusic81]

Actually the picture on my profile is the tank like 3 weeks ago and that's the yellowish tint I'm trying to get rid of and get a pure white light

 

[Lovin Fish]

Just to clarify, 5000k is a kelvin rating. Kelvin is basically a rating of light color, not light intensity. That means that a 2500k bulb and a 10000k bulb are using the same amount of energy, they just have different colors.

This is a long read, but it breaks it all down.

Aquarium Lighting; Reef, Planted Light Information. PAR, Bulb, Watt, Kelvin, Nanometers, MH, LED.

I like using the bulbs around 6700k (daylight) range, full spectrum for my planted tanks.

Oh really? Gosh...see I read that read you linked me too and took notes even. But when I told my husband what I had learned he said "don't believe everything you read" and I never mentioned it again. I figured he knew what he was talking about since he has always handled the lighting in our house and is always reading up on stuff. Sounds like he might need to read a little more about lighting He's so stubborn though. I might not be able to get him to even hear me about the meaning of kelvin rating.

 

[jetajockey]

Actually the picture on my profile is the tank like 3 weeks ago and that's the yellowish tint I'm trying to get rid of and get a pure white light

The yellowish tint is a lower kelvin rating on the bulb. Shoot for a daylight bulb (~6500k) for a brighter white, or 10000k for an operating room type white. Any higher than that and it'll start looking more and more blue.

Oh really? Gosh...see I read that read you linked me too and took notes even. But when I told my husband what I had learned he said "don't believe everything you read" and I never mentioned it again. I figured he knew what he was talking about since he has always handled the lighting in our house and is always reading up on stuff. Sounds like he might need to read a little more about lighting He's so stubborn though. I might not be able to get him to even hear me about the meaning of kelvin rating.

Hope you figure out how to get it across to him, maybe he just has to 'stumble' on it himself. I know I can be stubborn sometimes myself, so a well timed and well placed article could work wonders.


I know what you mean about the power bill, ours is pretty high here also, for the opposite reason.

 

[Fishandmusic81]

Thanks the Kelvin thing really makes everything easier to understand hopefully they will sell the proper bulb at my lfs but say they don't have anything at that k could I buy a bulb from a place such as walmart with the a higher k?

 

[jetajockey]

I get mine from home depot, but walmart does sell them as well. My local walmart fish section actually has replacement bulbs in the fish section if your hood bulb area is too narrow to fit in a spiral CFL.

This is the one I was thinking of.
Walmart.com: Lights Of America 10 Watt Mini Fluorescent Aquarium Bulb, 1ct: Fish

 

[Lovin Fish]

The yellowish tint is a lower kelvin rating on the bulb. Shoot for a daylight bulb (~6500k) for a brighter white, or 10000k for an operating room type white. Any higher than that and it'll start looking more and more blue.




Hope you figure out how to get it across to him, maybe he just has to 'stumble' on it himself. I know I can be stubborn sometimes myself, so a well timed and well placed article could work wonders.


I know what you mean about the power bill, ours is pretty high here also, for the opposite reason.

HaHa! exactly what I did! I pulled up the link on his lap-top, scrolled to the best part and shut his computer. He will wonder who was on his computer and read it to see LOL!

 

[Fishandmusic81]

Oh! Ive actually seen that one at both walmart and petsmart well now I know too look for the k is that enough to give a white glow?

 

[jetajockey]

Yes, the one I linked I have bought a few of and they don't have a kelvin rating listed but I would guess that they are 6500k+, possibly higher.

And the best part with walmart is if you don't like it, it's simple enough to return or exchange it.

 

[Fishandmusic81]

That's very true I'll see if those finally take care of that problem thanks a lot for the info

 

[Lovin Fish]

Yes, the one I linked I have bought a few of and they don't have a kelvin rating listed but I would guess that they are 6500k+, possibly higher.

And the best part with walmart is if you don't like it, it's simple enough to return or exchange it.

Ooooh! I hope our Walmart carries these. They don't have a fish department (other than nano tank kits, betta bowls and a couple meds) I will check in the home lighting area (if they have one LOL)

 

[Sniperhank]

I've never done anything for planted tanks personally, but I was at my LFS this week and they had just installed Marineland LEDs on some of their tanks, most being freshwater but one on their coral tank. These units start off quite cheap, ~100 bucks. I personally wouldn't keep coral under them, but for 100 bucks I'd use them to grow plants.

 

[Lovin Fish]

Thank you for your input! I am reading up on LED's trying to see if they will work for my hood. My husband installed the the lighting with something he got from Home Depo. I am now noticing that it holds odd sized bulbs. Geeze...I'm thinking about simply buying a new hood all together.

 

[Lovin Fish]

I get mine from home depot, but walmart does sell them as well. My local walmart fish section actually has replacement bulbs in the fish section if your hood bulb area is too narrow to fit in a spiral CFL.

This is the one I was thinking of.
Walmart.com: Lights Of America 10 Watt Mini Fluorescent Aquarium Bulb, 1ct: Fish

Oh okay...I looked through Home Depot and Wallmart...nothing. Tons of T-8's! The T5's they had were incredibly long. The set up in our hood only holds 16" bulbs...two of them. They overlap by 1.5 "(one in front of the other) I found one at Home Depot...it was 3000K though. I'm wanting at least 5000K.

The tank is 36" long and 17.75" tall. The plants I have choosen all need at or under 2.5 watts per gallon. Under this guideline my tank needs roughly 75 watts total. I think that might be too much wattage for the light fixtures; 37.5 watts in each. There are two of them glued into the top of the tank; both are office desk fixtures from Home Depot. I tried to read the wattage limit, but couldn't find a thing on it anywhere! My luck it's on the side that's glued down

So, my question is this...do I get a new hood all together? Or is there a light bulb that matches this description (I looked online and couldn't find anything)
16" T-5, between 5000k-6500K...wattage right now is another story as I am completely lost when it comes to understanding watts...more research

 

[jetajockey]

Watts per gallon is an outdated rule, it's really not good for much. For the most part, there's no 'too much light' when it comes to the plants themselves, so there's no real aim for a certain target WPG. I have low light plants like java moss and ferns that live fine in low light, but grow even faster in higher light situations.

So you are working with those undercabinet type t5 fixtures? I don't think I've ever tried those. It's hard to guesstimate, other than assume low, how much light you have since those are not really meant to put out a ton of light (i.e. good reflectors/bulbs). And as you have found out already, the bulbs aren't in the right spectrum for plant growth. With the cost of individual fixtures/bulbs etc it's usually cheaper just to buy a proper aquarium type fixture, something like this

36" 78W T5 HO AQUARIUM LIGHT HOOD FISH FRESHWATER PLANT | eBay

Just an example, these fixtures are ultra cheap quality but have had decent reviews and are hard to beat for the cost. There are some better ones out there for a little more, but this is just to give you an idea.



You can get a better understanding of light intensity vs distance on this link. PAR vs Distance, T5, T12, PC - New Chart

 

[Lovin Fish]

Watts per gallon is an outdated rule, it's really not good for much. For the most part, there's no 'too much light' when it comes to the plants themselves, so there's no real aim for a certain target WPG. I have low light plants like java moss and ferns that live fine in low light, but grow even faster in higher light situations.

So you are working with those undercabinet type t5 fixtures? I don't think I've ever tried those. It's hard to guesstimate, other than assume low, how much light you have since those are not really meant to put out a ton of light (i.e. good reflectors/bulbs). And as you have found out already, the bulbs aren't in the right spectrum for plant growth. With the cost of individual fixtures/bulbs etc it's usually cheaper just to buy a proper aquarium type fixture, something like this

36" 78W T5 HO AQUARIUM LIGHT HOOD FISH FRESHWATER PLANT | eBay

Just an example, these fixtures are ultra cheap quality but have had decent reviews and are hard to beat for the cost. There are some better ones out there for a little more, but this is just to give you an idea.



You can get a better understanding of light intensity vs distance on this link. PAR vs Distance, T5, T12, PC - New Chart

Great! Thank you so much for your help! Off I go to find what I need. Oh...and I found the wattage for the light fixtures; 10!

Thanks again...and I will run it by you...what I pick before I buy to get your opnion