Compact Florescent lighting for FW tank?

[ReefRaff]

I am redoing my 36 (I think) gallon tank. 36L X 12D X 20H. And I wanted to get some nice lights for it. I was looking at the Orbits and they seem Like nice lights, but pricey. I am also considering the corlife ones, and wondered if a 1X96W light would be good, Or should I get the 2 X96W? I don't know If in a Fw tank you would want to offset the lights like in a SW tank. i.e 03's first then Day lights hr later. If thats the way to do it then fine i'll get the dual, but 87 bucks sounds better than 176. with all that being said, I wasn't planning on a planted tank, but you know how that kind of thing goes.

 

[Jchillin]

Hey Tim...good to see you are interested. Fact is, with the wattage you are thinking of getting, it would put you at 2.6 wpg. This in FW is algae growing numbers.

So, if you have a couple of options:

1. If you want to do planted, the wattage is great but you would need to inject CO2. You could reduce the wattage to under 2wpg and do low-light low-maint.
2. Don't want plants? You can reduce the light even further, even under 1 wpg.
3. The 03 bulbs are a personal choice. Depends on your tastes and the coloration of your livestock. ie: Most African and SA cichlids look marvelous under 03. Some other species may not.

HTH

 

[ReefRaff]

So just 1X96 W would be enough for a planted tank. Ok so If i did decide to do a planted tank, besides the co2 (which Im sure is a pretty penny) what else will i need. how do you plant a tank? do you use something other than gravel for the bottom? let's say a chicled tank. w/lots of rocks and slate. can I like morter rock piles to gether with something for the plants to grow out of? if that makes any sence 8O

sorry for the stupid Q's. but a planted tank sounds intruiging.

 

[Hara]

I was actually looking at the t-5 freshwater unit that aquatraders has. It will be narrow enough to use two units, which will still be cheaper than the PC lighting

http://www.aquatraders.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=17

each unit being 42 watts...34.90 on sale right now.

 

[Apocalypse_Gold]

Plants will grow in normal gravel, but heavy root-feeders will require substrate fertilization. CaribSea Eco-complete is a popular substrate that will support root-feeders. They also make an African cichlid Eco-complete that buffers up the pH, but it doesn't claim to be for plants. Sand is popular too-Tahitian Moon, onyx & pool filter sand being a few of the most popular. The next issue is fertilization. There are plenty of threads about that with seachem Flourish and gregwatson.com's CSM+B the leaders. Certain plants will require higher levels of some nutrients.

 

[ReefRaff]

Do you think the t5's will be ok?

 

[Blazeherd2306]

If you just have one T5 like Hara showed, that would give you 1.13 wpg (42 watts divided by 37 gallons), which is good for low light plants and would not give you many problems with algae.

 

[Jchillin]

Great to hear your interested in planted tanks. Take a look here for some factoids on planted tanks.

For some idea of what a low-light planted tank can look like, take a look at my clicky's.

 

[ReefRaff]

http://www.championlighting.com/product.php?productid=17309&cat=349&page=1

What about that for CO2 injection? I can get a bottle of CO2 at the welding house right?

 

[Jchillin]

Yes, but you will need a little more than those two items. Take a look CO2 system

 

[ReefRaff]

ok they were out of stock on the one hara mentioned so i ordered the 36" t5 HO 76 w.

I won't set anything up until I have my Milwakee all in one regulator, also a diffuser and ph/co2 controler w/all the other stuff. I will also use the canister filter w the intake and output positioned under the water line to reduce surface agitation.

I imagine I won't be needing the UGF.

 

[greenmaji]

T5 HO has higher light output then the normal WPG rules take account for.. your in for a roller coster ride.. hehe..

If you check out the CO2 sticky in the planted tank area you'll see a post I made in there about the parts to use any old regulator for a planted tank.. (I have links to the parts needed and you might be able to find them localy.. )

If the UGF is new (came with a tank) see if you cant take it back to the LFS for credit..

good luck ReefRaff!

 

[ReefRaff]

Thanks green! I know im at the limit. but I am going to go all the way and get the needed co2 equipment also. next items to get are:

CO2 tank (aluminum)
Milwakee all in one regulator w/seliniod.
CO2 Reactor/difuser
CO2 Meter/controler

I have some time to get this stuff as I have to finish off the stand, paint and stain it and all. Should be fun!

 

[jrp1588]

If you are going for a planted tank, be careful on the type of cichlid you are looking at. Judging from your description of a slate filled rocky tank sounds like mbuna to me. They tend to eat plants a lot. I'd look at some angels if I were you. They look great in my planted tank.

 

[Lonewolfblue]

Also remember some cichlids are diggers too, and will uproot just about everything. Just other things to look at. But if you went with a bunch of dwarfs like the Bolivian Ram and German Blue Ram, could try your hand at breeding them. And they like planted tanks.

 

[Blazeherd2306]

Travis has a planted tank with mbunas, so you may want to find out which type of fish and plants he has.

 

[ReefRaff]

I was hoping to have the best of both. rocks and plants.

 

[greenmaji]

I dont think ReefRaff actually stated wich fish he was intrested in keeping.. just the aquascape he was intrested in, that being a rocky terain and plants.. there are a few plants that perfer substrate fertilazation and those could be avoided and the rocky terian would not effect your plans ReefRaff..
swords and crypts seem to fit the bill for plants to avoid.. a great majority of plants absorb nutrients from the water coloem and youll be just fine not having to use root tabs.. but using a product like eco-complete for your substrate would be benifical with the amount of light your looking at getting..

I can see were the confusion might start in with what fish you wanted to keep but that could be another topic all together from what I see..

and the Miliwakee equipment one of our sponsors is selling should fit the bill for the CO2 setup and the prices are very reasonable (compared to the pinpoint brand pricing)

again.. good luck ReefRaff!

 

[ReefRaff]

Lights are here, and I ordered the 5lb tank and Milwakee regulator today from a sponsor the aqatic store. still got to get the controller and reactor.

I was thinking of a sort of terrice look to the tank, with slate stacked horizontaly accending towards the top. I was also am invisioning plants high and low in the tank, and grass i want grass. hard to explain. it's 2:00 am and the suns on the other side of the planet. I'm sleepy.

 

[kaz]

ok guys since where in this topic I'm wondering what to get in lighting terms for my 60g tank. I was thinking a day light and a moonlight for nights. but what lights are the best and what watts are the best? and if so please give me for both types of tanks with some real plants and not real plants. my tank is in my dining room which has a big window about 15' away so light comes in thru the day. what substract to get too sand or dark color?