Is my lighting level low, medium, or high?

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doublenerds

Aquarium Advice Regular
Joined
Apr 25, 2011
Messages
79
I have been reading about lighting and getting a bit kerfuffled about wpg, lumens, tank height, etc.

I want to shop for the right plants for my setup - I have a 28 gallon bowfront, 18 inches high. I just ordered the Zoo Med Aquasun T5-HO, which has 2 24W bulbs (also has independent power switch for each bulb).

Should I be looking at plants that like medium light with this setup? I'm thinking I'm either medium or med-high, but not entirely sure.

Thanks!
 
You'll be medium to medium-high. Are you going to be injecting co2? I think you're going to be right at the point where co2 is needed, but can be avoided with some extra work.
 
What extra work are you referring to? I also have a 18" high 28g bow front that I plan on getting a 2x24w T5HO fixture for.
 
royta, I am still learning but I think mdf might mean that you might need to pay special attention to your substrate and it might be necessary to add carbon to the system via a product like Flourish Excel in order to provide adequate nutrients to support the more rapid growth that occurs in high light.

I am planning a tank using the Diana Walstad method, and I will be adding in Tom Barr's suggestions about pre-mineralizing the soil and I plan to add Excel to my tank in lower doses than recommended by the manufacturer.

I have read Walstad cover to cover, it's a fantastic book if you are interested in understanding plant growth and trying to grow without investing in a ton of gear. One thing she is very clear on is that carbon is the "bottleneck" component of the tanks she runs. All other plant nutrients are provided in abundance. She avoids rapid plant growth, though - and high light encourages rapid plant growth.
 
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