RachelG
Aquarium Advice Activist
I have a 20 long with one strip light with an 18 watt fluorescent bulb. It provides okay light, but nothing spectacular, and apparently not enough light to keep java moss from going brown. Though, somehow my java ferns and anubias are content, because they are sprouting new leaves regularly. I thought java moss needed less light than those...
(I know that the java moss isn't just dying because of my water. I do have a small cherry shrimp tank on my desk with java moss that is absolutely thriving, but it has a 13 watt twisted fluorescent bulb lamp over it, which is plenty for a three gallon tank. The moss in this tank has grown out from a golf ball sized clump and filled nearly half the tank in four months! So I think it's clear that it just needs light.)
I'd like some better light so I could try a different type of plant. I'm not all that knowledgeable about aquarium lights, and I'm not exactly rich. Is there a way I can upgrade without spending a bunch of money? What kind of lights can I get that aren't too complicated and not expensive?
Any recommendations on easy plants for a 20 gallon long would be appreciated. I have just a standard gravel substrate, so I can't get any rooted plants that need dirt. I was thinking that I could get some crypts, since I've read that they can root in gravel well. But I'm not going to get any with my current light, since it can't even support java moss.
(I know that the java moss isn't just dying because of my water. I do have a small cherry shrimp tank on my desk with java moss that is absolutely thriving, but it has a 13 watt twisted fluorescent bulb lamp over it, which is plenty for a three gallon tank. The moss in this tank has grown out from a golf ball sized clump and filled nearly half the tank in four months! So I think it's clear that it just needs light.)
I'd like some better light so I could try a different type of plant. I'm not all that knowledgeable about aquarium lights, and I'm not exactly rich. Is there a way I can upgrade without spending a bunch of money? What kind of lights can I get that aren't too complicated and not expensive?
Any recommendations on easy plants for a 20 gallon long would be appreciated. I have just a standard gravel substrate, so I can't get any rooted plants that need dirt. I was thinking that I could get some crypts, since I've read that they can root in gravel well. But I'm not going to get any with my current light, since it can't even support java moss.