# is 216W enough for 55g?



## papichancho (Sep 22, 2009)

ive got a 55 gallon that im slowly upgrading. ive got a 108w t5-HO fixture on it right now and im thinking of getting another one. should i get another 2 bulb, 108w one or a 4 bulb, 216w one?


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## p0w_yangz (Sep 21, 2010)

that is overkill for lights. your going to war with algae forever


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## Seattle_Aquarist (Mar 7, 2008)

Hi papichancho,

+1 for p0w yangz

I think my first question might be, why do you want so much light? I usually I decide on the plant species I want to grow and then adjust my lighting to what those plants require.

Here is 2 watts per gallon with CO2 can do.


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## Vietguy357 (Sep 20, 2010)

hey Seattle, what that plant on the bottom right?


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## Seattle_Aquarist (Mar 7, 2008)

Hi Vietguy357,

Marsilea minuta.


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## nilocg (Sep 14, 2010)

I have 216 watts of t5ho over my 135 gallon tank and fought with algae problems constantly until I went with pressurized co2, over a 55 gallon tank without co2 the only thing growing would be algae. Even with co2 you will likely still have problems.


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## barbarossa4122 (Dec 31, 2009)

Seattle_Aquarist said:


> Hi papichancho,
> 
> +1 for p0w yangz
> 
> ...


Hello Seattle_Aquarist,

Beautiful aquarium. What subbstrate do you have in it?


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## Seattle_Aquarist (Mar 7, 2008)

Hi barbarossa4122,

The substrate is Turface Pro League Grey. It has been discontinued (as has Soilmaster Select Charcoal which was almost identical) by the manufacturer, but they still make it in "red" and "natural" and a new "Heritage Red" that might look really good when wet under water.

I have been told that the Aquariumplants.com's substrate in the Black Diamond color is the closest to the Turface Pro League Grey that is still available. I like Treated Montmorillonite Clay products because they have a high CEC. I get great root growth. Turface typically sells for about $20 - $24 per 50# bag and that will cover about 6 sq. feet about 3" deep.


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## Roll_Tide#1 (Sep 7, 2010)

Dont increase your lighting. What everybody is saying is correct from my experience. I have done exactly what you are wanting to do. Do you know where my second GLO double T5HO is now? In my closet. Algae over ran nearly everything in about two weeks even with a staggared photo period. I run my CO2 pretty high, to the point of my drop checker going almost yellow and do EI dosing. I pulled half of my plants last weekend and tossed them because they were covered and went and bought some fast growing nitrate hogs. Algae has slowed. Please, for Gods sake, dont do it! Oh want to buy my double Hagen T5 fixture, lol.


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## Emily6 (Feb 14, 2006)

I'm having a similar thought, actually, about increasing my light- and I think there are a lot more facets to this questions. For example, I'm running 4 x 39w T5 HO over 65 gallons. I know the watts/gallon rule has repeatedly been debased as flimsy but this gives me 2.4 w/g- seems sufficient as per this discussion, right?

My tank is 24" deep. From the bottom to the tank to about 7" up, all my stem plants are somewhat scrappy and lack-luster. My pinks and reds are barely more than gray, my Rotala 'green' somewhat sparse.

Somewhere around 8 or 9" however, something happens where they are now getting enough light to transform into their more true nature. My rotala wallichii is bushy and pink, my Macranda 'Japan Red' is amazingly vibrant and the same rotala 'green' has a fro of new growth, branching out sideways.

What I'm left doing is trimming off this vibrant growth and replanting it in the tank so it doesn't choke out the growth beneath it (esp. in the case of the rotala 'green'). The same thing happens all over again, though, even with the new cuttings. 

Short story long, there appears to be a threshold where more light would clearly help, assuming these are the plants I would like to have. In fact, one could take a ruler to my tank and determine that exact threshold.

I've read that the depth factor is over-rated and in general doesn't apply but I think water clarity and plant growth reinstate this concern. Is another strip of lights my answer? It's on my Christmas list at the moment... we'll see.


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## Seattle_Aquarist (Mar 7, 2008)

Hi Emily6,

I too have a 24" deep aquarium and I believe the design offers special challenges. I am not sure the wattage is the only issue on an aquarium this tall. A reflector that directs most of the light downward, as opposed to toward the sides, might be a major advantage in this situation.

Since I have the same "opportunity" on my 45 gallon, and will have on a 75 gallon project tank I am working on, I have been doing some research on reflectors. Here is a very good thread on SLR verses Tek reflectors. The chart near the bottom of the page is very informative. It reinforces how different reflector designs effect light dispersion. Based on what I found, for my deeper aquarium aquarium applications I will be using the SLR reflector because it directs up to 20% more light downward on aquariums up to 18" wide.


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## Emily6 (Feb 14, 2006)

Wow, that's a dense thread but very useful- I believe my fixture has junky reflectors encompassing the group of bulbs together. It's a brandless fixture from Ebay with 4 bulbs. I'm skeptical that I could fit reflectors between each of the bulbs since they're very close together but I should look into it. Thanks for the info!


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## Emily6 (Feb 14, 2006)

Maybe you can help me figure out what I have. This is a link to a similar reflector except mine houses two bulbs on each side: http://www.aquabuys.com/p/ss_tek2_reflector_36.html

Does this make mine similar to the Tek2? It's the exact same shape, just configured for more bulbs.


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## Seattle_Aquarist (Mar 7, 2008)

Hi Emily6,

I'm sorry, but I don't think I can identify a specific brand of reflector from a picture. 

Some brands of the less expensive fixture manufacturers save on costs by putting more than one bulb in a single reflector. This probably saves them about $20 for each reflector they don't have to buy and allows them to make smaller cases which also saves them money and offer a "skinnier" fixture that may fit more applications. The trade-off is lost efficiency due to re-strike and bulb placement within the reflectors that provides less than optimum light dispersion.

Here is are a couple of thoughts, why not do a DIY single strip light with an SLR retrofit kit and use it for a "noon-burst" photoperiod? Or, maybe use one less bulb in the existing fixture and run the DIY for the current photoperiod?


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## Emily6 (Feb 14, 2006)

Thanks for the thoughts- I'll consider them. Unfortunately, lighting is something I'm not very handy at but I suppose I should probably learn to get my DIY on. ;-)


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