new tank, light, plants...

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zenkatydid

Aquarium Advice FINatic
Joined
Jul 30, 2005
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Location
Sydney
I am an utter newb when it comes to plants, lighting, etc. I am currently in planning stages for a 48g freshwater tank, and almost have the fish I want sorted. I figured it was time to learn about plants! :D

I have purchased equipment already, and when I bought the 4ft light, I had the option of the normal fluorescent or some new fancy plant-growing option. I went with the new fancy one, knowing nothing about it, so hopefully it works. From what I can glean on the package, it's 40w, 240v, fluorescent. I don't know what colour it is, or what the whole watts per gallon thing should be.

What kinds of plants would I be able to keep with this set up? And could someone point me in the direction of a really basic guide?

Katy
 
It's hard without knowing exactly what the light is, but let's assume you have 40 watts of light over 48gallons. this is <1 wpg, and the plants you could keep are limited to java fern/moss, anubias, some crypts, anacharis, and a handfull of others. Check out
http://www.aquariumplants.com/ and click "low-light plants" on the left side.

Try reading the stickies at the top of this forum, too! GL, and keep asking questions
 
best bet is just to read the bulb and google it, or call up the supplier where you bought it. Also, what fish have you picked out?
 
I have a feeling that the bulb is more than likely a standard NO 40w flourescent if it is indeed a stock bulb.

Your issue now is, NO flourescents stop at the 40w range and go no higher. You would need a twin bulb light strip to get enough wattage for plants.

What brand of tank do you have? AG manufactures twin light strips of varying wattages.
 
i don't have a brand of tank... it's just a glass tank. the light was bought separately, as was the heater, filter, etc, from a big specialist aquarium place. i was told this would grow plenty of plants, was given the impression that it would provide high light. they showed me a tank of theirs that had this light installed in it, and it was filled with heaps of thriving plants.

on the bulb it says "power glo" - not sure if that helps
 
you say light is 40 watt, 240 volt....be aware that with a 240 volt light you wont be able to plug it into a normal general use outlet. 240 volt is 2 hot wires no neutral as opposed to 120v which is one hot one neutral. The type of outlet required is similiar to your electric clothes dryer or window air conditioning unit. and plug prongs will have a different configuration which wont allow it to plug into a normal, 120v outlet.
 
Sparky-227, I think Australia uses 240V as the standard.

It sounds like you have the same 40W NO fluorescent bulb as in your link. This will give you just under 1wpg. This will allow you to grow only "low-light" plants
 
you're sure, hashbaz? by the numbers, i understand, but all the info i can find on this 'power glo' thing says it's high intensity...?
 
The powerglo may have a slightly higher "intensity" than other bulbs of the same wattage, but it's unlikely that this difference is enough bump you into the next light level. Usually the name like "daylight" and 'powerglo" are more descriptive of the K rating than they are the lux (light output).
 
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