lighting suggestions for a planted tank.

[torstar]

Hey folks, i certainly hope ths is the right spot for this...

I have a Floresent light that came with my tank, the light is a 8000k full spectrum daylight 17W 120V T8 24" ts pretty bright, shows off the brilliant colours of all the fish.

I was hoping to buy something that was pretty close to brightness, but better for my plants so i picked up a floramax 17W 120V T8 24" i figured that since its the same wattage, it would be as bright or nearly so..pfft, how wrong was i?

The new bulb is so dim it makes my tank look filthy. I have tetras in my tank and now you really cant see the brilliant colours anymore unless you very close to the tank.

I read in a pet smart phamplet that the optimal lighting conditions for plants is 1.5W per gallon. if thats true, then my 36G tank would need a 24" bulb that is 54 watts. that can't be right

Any suggestions?

 

[jetajockey]

Moved to - Freshwater & Brackish - Planted Tanks

WPG is a pretty outdated rule with the newer lighting technology. Often times, specific 'plant growth' type bulbs have a yellowish or pinkish hue to them, I dislike them personally.

The 8000k isn't bad, I usually shoot for 6500k daylight bulbs.

The thing is, for you to upgrade your lighting at this point, you'll probably be best served by upgrading fixtures.

What size tank is this? 20L? 29?

I'd likely go with a single or dual t5ho personally, but a dual t5no would work pretty good as well.

This chart will give you a good idea of what you are working with.

From
PAR vs Distance, T5, T12, PC - New Chart

 

[aqua_chem]

Well, "Plants" is all relative. Without knowing what you want to do, it's hard to give much advice. Simple low light plants? Medium, semi demanding plants? Options abound.


If you can, you could try to pick up the one bulb Hagen Glo T5HO. Great amount of light, easily raised, and come with clamps such that you can get it up higher without hanging.