Plant lighting for 55g?

[marie74]

I'd like to do a planted south american tank with angels, and tetras.
I currently have a 37g community- but have no live plants, so no experience there....

What lighting do I need for plants? I'd like to go with the most economical option for a 55gal.
(the 55g I just bought from CL has two 24" hoods which have 18" flourescent lights)

 

[gravereaper0]

What are you planting, low or high light? Ferts, co2? And how much can you spend? If you're looking for cheap you can even use florescent shop lights and buy the cool white bulbs but your PAR is gonna be low.
You can do metal halide if you can control the water temp, they put out a lot of heat. I think a lot of people choose the ho t5s which is another option, or go with LEDs, expensive to buy but you get your money back in the long run because of their longevity and low power consumption, that's the way I'm going with my 90 gallon planted that's in the works right now.

 

[BBradbury]

Lighting a 55 G Tank

I'd like to do a planted south american tank with angels, and tetras.
I currently have a 37g community- but have no live plants, so no experience there....

What lighting do I need for plants? I'd like to go with the most economical option for a 55gal.
(the 55g I just bought from CL has two 24" hoods which have 18" flourescent lights)

Hello Marie...

The two separate hood set up isn't the best means of lighting your tank. The reason is, you have a gap in the middle that gets little or no light.

I would suggest looking at a 48 inch fixture that will hold two bulbs. If you have a little money, then look into Solarmax lighting. It's a bit pricey, but well made. A company by the name of alphaprobreeders is a distributor and has good pricing.

Just a thought.

B