lighting & misc. questions from a newbie

[toledosun]

Hi all,

I'm new here (and to planted aquariums as well) so I'll appreciate any advice I can get. I've a 150l tank (measuring 100 x 30 x 50cm). I intend to plant riccia flutians and some Micranthem. micranthemoides. Together with some stones, these will cover about 2/3 of the length of the tank. I plan to put in some cardinal tetras, rummy-nose tetras, as well as some alage eaters like the yamato shrimps.

I'm not looking for the plants to grow like crazy or anything. In fact, I'll be happy if they grow slowly since that means less pruning. All I want is to maintain a healthy environment so that my plants and fish will not die and I can see those nice oxygen bubbles on the riccia.

I understand that CO2 is a must. But for lighting, my tank will sit in a custom made false wall so can I:

a) ask my electrician to install two ordinary PL tube holders or must it be s "special" type?

b) buy those energy saving Phillips/osram PL tubes instead of the more expensive "full spectrum" tubes?

c) I understand my tank is about 40 gallons (US) so am I right to assume that 2 11 watt energy saving tubes (producing about 120W light in total) should be enough?

d) I noticed in many fish shops that they use chillers for their aquariums. Based on what I'm planning to put in the tank, can I do without a chiller because that's way too expensive.

Thanks in advance.

[juggler]

I am not sure how your tank/wall is designed. Like whether if there will be a hood for the tank or if there are any false walls just above the tank?

Anyway, for 3ft tank, I think PL lights are better since 3ft FL are not as popular as 2ft or 4ft FL. Since you will be planting Riccia, you can try 4x36W PL 6500K. A reflector above the lights helps to increase the light reaching the tank bottom.

Your assumption of 2 x 11W producing 120W brightness is not right. It's only 22W.

Using PL lights will be hot. Try to use electronic ballast and also ensure there is ventilation (using fan perhaps) between the lights and the water.

Lastly, Riccia and MM are fast growing plants. So they really need maintenance.

[geoffrey]

Hi Juggler,

I presume FL is fluorscent but what is a PL light?

Geoffrey

[vinz]

If you don't like pruning... then focus on non-stemmed plants. E.g. echinodorus (sword plants), cryptocoryne, blyxa japonica, aponogeton, java fern, anubias, sagittaria, etc.

Slow growers and non-stemmed plants take less nutrients out of the water. So to keep your tank healthy and algae in control, here are some possible measures:
* keep bio-load moderate.
* less liquid fert.
* consistent and frequent water change.
- some floating plants.
- plant one or two fast growing stemmed plants.
Those *, imo, are necessary. The - are optional.

a) Most of us use the 36W PL tube. so get your electrician to install PL holders for those.
b) Yes, no need to buy fansy pansy plant lights. Just get normal cool-white 6,500K rated PL tubes.
c) I don't see how 2 x 11 W pls make 120 W. Typo? The 3W/G rule applies to the actual wattage of FL and PL tubes... not to their equivalent incandescent bulbs. For a 40G, I suppose 3 or 4 x 36W PLs should do the job. Note, make sure they pair the lights to one switch each... so you can turn on all 4 or just 2 at any time.
d) Yes, you can do without chillers. Many of us don't use chillers. As your tank will be enclosed, heat may be a problem. To keep the temp in your tank down:
- Consider FLs instead if you have the space. they are cooler but use more space for each W.
- Don't have the lights too close to the water surface. About 4 inches.
- Ventilation holes.
- Fans. Search the forum for fans. There a number of posts regarding that. One of them has a link to a DIY plans for fans.

[toledosun]

Hi Juggler,

1) What's a "4x36W PL 6500K"? Is this one of those expensive full spectrum lights and how much does each cost?

2) Your assumption of 2 x 11W producing 120W brightness is not right. It's only 22W- I was thinking of those energy saving lightbulbs where 11W= 60W of tungsten light sort of thing.

3) Using PL lights will be hot- that's why I thought using those energy savings bulbs will be good, since they're not that hot.

4) Try to use electronic ballast and also ensure there is ventilation (using fan perhaps) between the lights and the water- what's an "electronic ballast" for?

My apologies for these basic questions. I've tried reading up on all these but really catch no ball!

[vinz]

Geoffrey,

PL is the U-shape type of FL. Also know in foreign forums as PC (power compacts) or CF (compact fluorescent).

[juggler]

PL refers to Compact Flourescent. They can be seen at this website: http://www.ahsupply.com/
The popular ones here are 36W PL. They help to increase the lighting in a tank since they are smaller and we can pack more of them under the hood.

[toledosun]

Hi Vinz,

Many thanks for your detailed answers. Now I know where I went

1) Just get normal cool-white 6,500K rated PL tubes- how do I know if a tube is 6,500k rated? How much does it cause?

2) The 3W/G rule applies to the actual wattage of FL and PL tubes... not to their equivalent incandescent bulbs- now I know where I went wrong! I thought the rule was referring to the incandescent bulbs! Sorry for the confusion.

Just one additional question- what happens if lighting is insufficient? let's say I use 2 x 36W. Will:

1) the plants die?
2) the riccia not have oxygen bubbles?
3) they simply grow slower
4) all of the above?

[juggler]

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On 8/28/2002 11:28:48 AM


Hi Juggler,

1) What's a "4x36W PL 6500K"? Is this one of those expensive full spectrum lights and how much does each cost?

<cut>
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I was recommending you to use 4 units of 36W lights. To make 144W so that your Riccia can have chance to grow. There's this AEC brand which is not expensive. It costs $9 from Nature Aquarium (Thomson Road).

You can read up more at http://www.ahsupply.com/ or search the forum discussions. It was discussed plenty times in the past.

Cheers!

[vinz]

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On 8/28/2002 11:38:48 AM

Just one additional question- what happens if lighting is insufficient? let's say I use 2 x 36W. Will:

1) the plants die?
2) the riccia not have oxygen bubbles?
3) they simply grow slower
4) all of the above?

----------------

Diff plants react differently to reduced lighting. Some just grow slower, smaller and darker in colour (or more green for some red plants). Others will just give up and die. See www.tropica.com and www.dennerle.de plant catalogs for details. Look in www.thekirb.com planted tank section, for good info and also look up the section dedicated to the plants themselves.

Bubbling by any plant happens when the water is saturated with oxygen and the oxygen cannot dissolved into the water anymore... so less light, less photosynthesis, less oxygen, no saturation.

[toledosun]

OIC!

Many thanks Juggler. I thought you were talking about those fancy lights that I saw at some aquarium shops where each tube cost like $25.00.

Put all these questions down to sheer ignorance

[vinz]

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On 8/28/2002 11:24:50 AM

...
b) Yes, no need to buy fansy pansy plant lights. Just get normal cool-white 6,500K rated PL tubes.
...

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6,500K is Daylight, not Cool-White.