Lighting

[smittyjr18]

I am looking at upgrading my lighting. I have 2x40 watts now. I have a 55 gal and am going to be adding a canopy soon. I want to all a lot of live plants. I was thinking something like ~ 3 wpg. Would something like this work or does someone else have any suggestions?

http://www.bigalsonline.com/BigAlsU...07/cl0/coralifeaqualightretrofitkit484x65watt

I was also thinking about a UV Sterilizer. Either a 9 watt or a 18 watt. Does anyone have any suggestions about this?

 

[Angry the Clown]

If you go the route in the link provided, be sure that the bulbs you get are not actinic, as the light is unusable by plants. 50/50 lights are only 50% usable. Bulbs in the spectrum of 6000K-10,000K are best for the plants. You can also check out AHSupply . com for other options in retrofit kits, also hellolights . com.

I thought about a UV sterilizer at one point, but decided not to go that route. I will let others comment on them, but I never found that I needed one.

 

[Rupret]

I have a 125 gallon tank with a canopy. I bought a CoraLife Lunar Light with 4 96 watts bulbs (65 watt bulbs sound right for a 55 gallon). This gives me 3 watts per gallon and the plants are doing outstanding. I added approx 1/2" riser between the light and tank to give soem cooling under the light while still fitting under the canopy. I made mine out of oak wood custom cut to fit. I also replaced the pair of antinic bulbs, which came with light with either 10000K or 6700K bulbs.

I also utiize a 9 watt UV light sterilizer. I had recurring major green water problems. Kept working on the water chemistry, but the green water would only return. I eventually bought a small water pump and the UV sterilizer. No green water problems since. If you do not have green water problems, I would probably not recommend one.

Also, if you are going to run 3 watts per gallon light and success with plants, you are going to need some sort of CO2 supplementation. I use a pressurized CO2 tank system with a Milwaukee regulator with attatched bubble counter and a glass diffuser. A glass difuser is not recommended for a 125 gallon tank, but it does keep my CO2 at 20-24 ppm and my plants are extremely successful. The regulator and tank cost about $200 and $16 to refill (still on the original filling after 8 months).

Good luck! Ask the AA people here for any advice or questions -- they are the best source of advice I have found.

 

[7Enigma]

I don't think a UV sterilizer is needed. I haven't seen any convincing evidence but some people have concerns that they can affect nutrients the plants need (break them down or make them unusable). A properly fertilized tank should not have issues with GW.

I infrequently see GW in my tank and its normally caused by a fish death or a hidden plant rotting somewhere out of sight (sudden ammonia spike).

If you are adding more lighting please make sure your CO2 is also being taken care of.