Reply With Quotehi bcline..
I am using FL 24W x 2 .. switching on the lighting wif co2 between 4.30pm to 1.15am... plants looks to be growing
forget to add.. my tank is 2ft by 1ft..
tank set up:
(2.5 ftx 1ft.) 20 gal long
Aqua clear power filter
i am currently cycling my new aquarium which will give me time to purchase a light and possibly a Co2 filter (pending on the type of lighting set up i choose to go with). i understand that i will go with the FL bulbs, but i am not sure if i need a light with multiple bulbs because i read you need 2 watts per gallon of water; which would mean that i need 2 x(at least 20 watt bulbs). I would like to get some input on your thoughts of choosing the right lighting system for a 20 gal tank.
*only things in the tank during cycling are 15 guppies and substrate
Last edited by bcline; 16th Dec 2007 at 13:53.
hi bcline..
I am using FL 24W x 2 .. switching on the lighting wif co2 between 4.30pm to 1.15am... plants looks to be growing
forget to add.. my tank is 2ft by 1ft..
thats the set up that i was going to go with, but my question is that if i go "low tech" is it worse to get a more intense light because it will grow more algae?
In my opinion, it is more crucial to control the lighting hours rather than the intensity. If your light is say 36W but you on for 15 hours, there is a tendency to get algae. But if your light intensity is say 50W but you on for 8 hours, it doesnt necessary means there will be algae.
For me, irregardless of plants, I normally go for about 1W/ litres.
i have been running the lighting around 9hrs on 24w x 2.. so far not much algae.. maybe the sucker fish is doing a splendid job .. but the plants are definitely shooting up for the "sun light"..
Well for low tech tank, 2 watts per gallon should be ok. Intense light does not necessary to have more algae. It is about maintaining the balance between light, CO2 and fertelizer, no staight answer for this.
But please note that not all plant can grow in low light and some of them grow differently under different light condition.
I have been narrowing my search for lights down, i prefer the lights that do not require a hood (i just enjoy the cleaner look). Although a gentlemen at my LFS told me that leaving the top open could allow for C02 to escape and could potentially let foreign bacteria in. Is this really an issue that i need to be considering?
Unless you are staying in AREA 51, I guess you should be pretty safe from any fatal bacteria.... I mean, you'll need to change water, feed the fish..... etc....Originally Posted by bcline
I'm not biologist, but I would say not true. Many of us do not have hood on top of their tank.
CO2 which is not disolve into the water will escape anyway, unless your hood is air tight.
Yeah i was definitely suspicious at that comment he made, i believe that's a red flag to change local shops.
another quick question...
...Bump....
i purchased a coralife light (30") and it comes with a 65w 50/50 bulb (50% true blue and 50% 10,000 k daylight). Is this bulb going to be too much for a 2ft 20 gal tank?
I do not know about the product but plant does not utilize blue spectrum. If I'm notmistaken plant utilize red spectrum for photosynthesis. So you might end up waste 50% of the bulb energy.
I remember some one mentioned before that blue and red was absorbed, and green reflected which is why we see it as green. For red plants, probably only user more of blue and green.
so the overall wattage is not too intense for my tank (65W)?
what is the ideal number of lighting hours for a moss tank? I was keeping around 12-14h/day, is it too much? my moss grow quite slow.
p/s: mine is a low tech 2ft tank with 36w light
what would be the best wattage bulb to use with non co2 injection on a 2.5 ft tank to avoid algae problems?
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