Lighting for live plants

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firteen888

Aquarium Advice Activist
Joined
Apr 26, 2011
Messages
143
Hi all,

I would like to replace the stock bulb that came with my lighting fixture (seen here) to allow me to keep live plants.

Aqueon Deluxe Full Fluorescent Black Aquarium Hoods - Aquarium Hood and Fish Tank Light from PETCO.com

I put some anacharis in my tank a few weeks ago and they have all since died (all have turned brown/transparent and there are dead leaves all over my tank and attached to my filter intake)

My tank is a 29 gallon, and the bulb is a 24 inch tube. What would be the best option for me?

If the best option wuold be to buy a new fixture, what would be the best choice without spending too much money?

Thanks!
 
Hello firt...

You just need to decide what plants you want and select the light accordingly. My plants require low light, so I have less than a watt of light per gallon of tank size.

Lighting really isn't brain surgery. If you're not sure what you want in your tank, get a book on aquatic plants at the library or buy one and do your homework. Researching before you buy will save you a lot of time and money.

B
 
That light isn't going to do much for plants. It'll sustain the lowest light demanding plants like anubias, java fern, and java moss, but they will only survive, not thrive. A simple 1x24w T5HO would be a good start for lower light stuff. If you wanted to up your game a bit and go for a medium light setup, a 2x24w T5HO would be a good option. It would require a little extra maintenance, some fert dosing, but nothing big like co2 injection or anything of that sort. Either way you go, your best bet is probably a fixture from FNI (www.fishneedit.com). They are good quality fixtures with remote ballasts, individual reflectors, and a cheap price to go along with it. You could do 1 daylight and one actinic for a low light setup, or two daylight bulbs to go with medium light.
 
Thanks rookie,

Do they make anything that would allow me to keep my hood? I'm willing to buy a new light fixture but I don't like the design of the fixtures from FNI that don't have a hood covering the top of the tank.

I would really just like to keep some anacharis and anubias in the tank. What would be my best option for these two plants?
 
For that, I dont see why your current lighting won't support that. Any idea what kind of bulb you have? How old is it? Anacharis doesn't take a lot of light, nor does anubias.
 
The website says it's a 24" 17 Watt Full Spectrum Lamp. I purchased the tank setup about 3 months ago and put in the plants about 3 weeks ago. I've been fishless cycling since. Everyone told me the anacharis would be great in my tank but they died very rapidly. the only thing I've put in my tank is Prime (during the PWC's) and Ammonia for the cycle. I've even left the light on for a good portion of the day.
 
Sometimes anacharis is tricky. I've had good luck with it and bad luck with it. Some I couldn't kill. Some I couldn't keep alive. I would just try some more. You can certainly do anubias and java fern... probably pennywort, and I would think anacharis would be fine too.
 
OK thanks, I'll give them another shot, maybe from a different LFS
 
I have the same hood in a 20 long tank. It's good to know that I should be able to grow some plants.
 
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