plant ideas

[zach_1_6]

i was just wondering what low lieing plants or shorter plants would be good for the front area of my tank. my lighting is decently strong and i have good filtration. any idea would be great, thanks.

 

[HN1]

What type of lighting over what sized tank exactly? It can really make a world of difference, especially for deeper foreground plants.

 

[zach_1_6]

im planning on getting strong lights, any ideas? and a 65 gallon tank.

 

[HN1]

What type? (T5, PC, T5HO, MH, etc)
How many bulbs?
Type of bulbs?

"Strong" is very relative and not necessarily good. i.e. If I took the light from our reef tank and put it over a planted tank, ALGAE would be crazy!

Do you plan on dosing ferts, injecting CO2?

Sorry to ask so many questions, but I want to be able to provide a quality answer.

 

[SeverumGuy]

Everything HN1 asked is what we need. I see your icon is a striped raphael catfish. Does that mean you have one in your tank?

 

[zach_1_6]

yes i do have a raph about 4.5 inches now, and sorry i am very new to all this lighting stuff, i heard t5 lighting is very good. i have 2 bulbs 1 30 inches and one a litle bit smaller, the 30 inch is a low light bulb 25 watts is what is says which is not strong enough. and the smaller one doesnt say how many watts. i want to upgrade to better lighting, what would you suggest?

 

[Andrewz00]

another factor besides wattage would be the color temperature...

for example i am running 2 Hagen T5HO 48" 54W 6700K life-Glo bulbs on a 90G medium planted tank.... i have to run the lights for only 6hrs on and 18hrs off to avoid algae issues....

Hagen also makes flora-glo bulbs which at 48" run 40W and 2800K temperature... and Aqua-glo bulbs @ 48" 40W and 18,000K

as HN1 said... it really depends on your specific setup and types of plants you desire. a standard 65G tank is 24" deep same as mine... you need lights strong enough to penetrate that depth of water and still be affective for the plants.

 

[zach_1_6]

i found some t 5 glo Hagen bulbs that will fit my 24 inch light, but there is none to fit my 30 inch, my dad said 30 inch bulbs arent really ideal becuase they are harder to find, i will look into finding another 24 inch light if i cant find a bulb.

 

[Andrewz00]

a 65 gallon tank is ... 36 inches long i believe? so if you use 24 inch bulbs you are essentially leaving a foot of your tank without proper lighting...

my lighting setup was around $180 with the fixture and bulbs... the same brands as i have in a 36" would be right around $150 ish? depending on where you purchase them...
A Link to my light fixture

 

[zach_1_6]

thanks for the link, i would like to have new lights but will have to convince my dad to let me buy them online because i cant find any 36" t5 lighing fixtures around here.

 

[BigJim]

You can find 30" T5 bulbs, but you'll probably have to order them. I bought a fixture that 30" T5 bulbs on clearance for $15 and I've regretted it.

 

[zach_1_6]

i am looking online for a 36 inch dual t5 fixture any good sites in canada do you know of?

 

[SeverumGuy]

Sorry it took me so long to get back. I also have a striped raphael in my tank. Mines not as big as yours yet. It's best to make sure your plants are secure in in pots because the cat gets to 8" and can uproot plants either on purpose or my accident.

 

[Faile]

Try BigAlsOnline.com and take a look at their Current USA fixtures.

 

[BigJim]

Raphael cats can be ok in a tank with plants, but the plants have to be rooted well. I've got an 8" striped raphael in my 29g. He'll dig up plants if I put them too close to his preferred hiding spot, but he doesn't mess up any plants elsewhere in the tank.

 

[zach_1_6]

i havebnt had a problem with my raph uprooting plants maybe the odd one a week but nothing to make me mad