FishCr8zy
Aquarium Advice Addict
What type of LEDs do you have? High light plants are a lot harder to take care of and most need co2 and ferts. Most high light plants have red leaves btw.
Real plants questions
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What type of LEDs do you have? High light plants are a lot harder to take care of and most need co2 and ferts. Most high light plants have red leaves btw.
Ok I'll keep that in mind. Well I think I found my LEDs and there specs on this link. Would that work with live plants?
http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_display.cfm?pcatid=23554
LED's that come in those kits are very low light and you will be limited to low light tolerant plants such as Anubia's, Java Ferns, Bolbitus, and Crypts. With these plants you won't need liquid carbon or CO2, but the crypt will need root tabs as they are heavy root feeders.
I really hate to disagree with you here (you know I highly respect your opinion) but, that "fixture" won't even sustain those plants and for sure not at the depth of the OP's tank. I have one of those (well, had one anyway, salt creep killed it) and it wouldn't even grow nuisance algae at six inches (14 hour photoperiod) in a refugium.
FishCr8zy
Aquarium Advice Addict
+1 for not very high light. I can tell because it attached into the hood and the hood looks quite "small". The higher output LEDs cost a lot more ( usually more than $100 ).
For LEDs you would need a fixture with 39 LEDs of at least one watt each, three watts each would be better. And the fixture would need to be dimmable as all LED fixtures should.
If you want very low light go with a single bulb T8 or T5NO.
If you want low light go with a dual bulb T8 or T5NO.
If you want medium light go with a cheap dual bulb T5HO or a LED fixture made of one watt diodes.
If you want high light go with a good dual bulb T5HO or a LED fixture made of three watt diodes.
If you want very low light go with a single bulb T8 or T5NO.
If you want low light go with a dual bulb T8 or T5NO.
If you want medium light go with a cheap dual bulb T5HO or a LED fixture made of one watt diodes.
If you want high light go with a good dual bulb T5HO or a LED fixture made of three watt diodes.
FishCr8zy
Aquarium Advice Addict
I have a 55 gal and I'm planning to get it heavily planted. Do you know of any good high/med lights? ( LEDs preferred but others can do too )
Are the finnex ray 2 any good?
Never used one but some people say they are decent. It would depend on the power of the diodes, coverage and if they are dimmable (if an LED fixture isn't dimmable it's a waste of money, IMO).
There are many options available out there. Figure out your budget and then buy the best you can so you are not left wanting a couple months down the road).
FishCr8zy
Aquarium Advice Addict
Any recommended lights from you? ( I just don't want it over $175 ). Since its a 55 gal, I would need a 48" long light? I can't use two 24" fixtures?
No recommendation, nope. There are just too many options available. You can save some cash by checking out AquaTraders.com, you get what you pay for but many people have much success with their fluorescent fixtures.
A real LED fixture that has proper coverage is going to max out, or more likely break, your budget. Even the cheap Chinese LED fixtures are relatively pricey. They do have the advantage of not having to replace bulbs every 6-12 months (depending on bulb quality) though, so over a few years they could pay for themselves.
I actually had a Marineland 55g kit with LED stock hood and for a long time I actually did manage to grow those plants BUT I also believe the liquid carbon I used helped a lot. Reason I say this is because right now we have a Fluval Edge 12g which is really tall and only has a tiny LED fixture on it. We use liquid carbon daily and have 2 Crypt Wendtii, Water Sprite, Anubia, Bolbitus, and a Sword that I can't think of the name of. And all the plants are doing really well. We do run lights 9ish hours but it does work.
Never had much luck with mine. Maybe one day I will fix it and use it as moon lighting on my 75.
Diode power, optic angle, coverage and tank depth are key when dealing with LEDs. The carbon supplement is likely what kept your plants kicking.
Hi rivercats I was looking at your pics on your profile and your tank and fish are awesome! We have a lot of similar fish including the DG, Cory's and the Bolivian ram. Do you have any pics of your 55 gal tank? I'd love to see it
Haha yeah I suppose but I would still think your 55 has to be pretty cool still. Thanks anyways
Dallascowboys16
Aquarium Advice Addict
Ok, from my experience I have found that it is worth it to buy a nice fixture instead of using stock hoods, I got a 55 gallon with canopy and stand and some stock lights, so i tried to grow plants in it with stock lights but they just kind of melted away. So I decided to buy a 108 watt t-8 fixture with 6500 k bulbs and my plants exploded and now I grow several hard to grow plants in there And they grow great. You may also want to eventually get tougher to grow plants so to keep your options open I would say to get a nice fixture. Just my 2 cents. Good luck! Live plants are totally worth the work.
Ok, from my experience I have found that it is worth it to buy a nice fixture instead of using stock hoods, I got a 55 gallon with canopy and stand and some stock lights, so i tried to grow plants in it with stock lights but they just kind of melted away. So I decided to buy a 108 watt t-8 fixture with 6500 k bulbs and my plants exploded and now I grow several hard to grow plants in there And they grow great. You may also want to eventually get tougher to grow plants so to keep your options open I would say to get a nice fixture. Just my 2 cents. Good luck! Live plants are totally worth the work.
Ok thanks! I need some other things before I buy other lights or fixtures. I still have many questions but now that I know I need to upgrade my lights ill hold off my questions till I purchase the lights. Thanks again
FishCr8zy
Aquarium Advice Addict
Ok, from my experience I have found that it is worth it to buy a nice fixture instead of using stock hoods, I got a 55 gallon with canopy and stand and some stock lights, so i tried to grow plants in it with stock lights but they just kind of melted away. So I decided to buy a 108 watt t-8 fixture with 6500 k bulbs and my plants exploded and now I grow several hard to grow plants in there And they grow great. You may also want to eventually get tougher to grow plants so to keep your options open I would say to get a nice fixture. Just my 2 cents. Good luck! Live plants are totally worth the work.
Do you think t5, t8, or led is better? What is the difference between a t5 and a t8?
T5HO's are great with proper bulbs for growing plants. Geisemann bulbs are the best you can get for planted tanks. If you go LED you need to talk to Brian_Nano12g as he is good with LED lighting that has the proper color spectrum for plants. I just got a fixture from Build My LED and am very pleased with the color spectrum. Do a lot of research before you buy anything.
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