my planted tank and some Q's

[nabz]

hi everyone

have just joined the site and wanted to show my aquarium
plus i have some Q's about lighting as im about to try some hc to carpet the tank
the tank is a 160ltr
1m x 40 x 40
this is my first fish tank and just happened to think real plants would be better
what kinda lights do i need for my hc to carpet nicely
it has two 30w t8 bulbs
1x sun glo bulb
1x aqua glo bulb
here are some pictures
any suggestions greatly appreciated

thanks nick

 

[aa108]

you need at least T5HO lighting for HC

 

[nabz]

Is that a simple swap of bulbs or do I need to do something else I'm a newb
Is my lighting well below what's needed or?
cheers nick

 

[bruinsbro1997]

Depends. What kind of fixture is it? I believe that usually you need to get the right fixture for the bulb.

 

[BigJim]

My math tells me you've got 60W of light over a 42g tank. This really isn't enough light to grow a good, thick carpet of baby tears. On top of that, you need to inject CO2 and dose ferts to get the carpet look.

You probably want around 3 Wpg of fluorescent light for baby tears. Upgrading a fluorescent fixture isn't as simple as just plugging in bigger bulbs. You've have to change the ballasts and sockets to upgrade from T8 to T5HO. Your best bet would be to either retrofit the fixture with a 4-bulb T5HO kit or go with LEDs. LEDs are a little more expensive to get started, but you don't have to worry about bulb replacement and they burn less energy.

 

[nabz]

Is there not a light unit using t5 bulbs I can just screw to my hood?

 

[fort384]

Moved to Freshwater & Brackish - Planted Tanks - Aquarium Advice - Aquarium Forum Community

 

[new to the scene]

I'm nit sure but your looking a some money to throw. You will need a 4 fixture HO T5 the beat your budget will afford. You will need co2 injection for that to go with the high light. Some good substrate and ferts to dose with out the lights and co2 you won't ave a carpet.

 

[aqua_chem]

So, I take it that your tank is about the size of, if not infact is, a 40 breeder?

These are shallow tanks, which translates to more light intensity. 2x39 T5HO would be high light, and would definitely be what I would recommend for HC. You should also have CO2, and HC is a plant that really needs some sort of a carbon source. Almost any carpet is going to need decent light and injected CO2.

4x Bulbs on a 40B is overkill. That's decent light for reef tanks, but too much for planted tanks.

 

[nabz]

Just DIY some t5 bulbs ballast now running
2 x t8 30w one sunglo and one aquaglo
2 x t5 39w both plant plus or something like that

 

[nabz]

Just finished redoing my tank for today