# best type of lighting? where to get????



## sean369 (Dec 29, 2006)

what would the best type of lighting be for a 125 gal (6ftx1.5)
im thinking around 3watts per gallon
i do want to eventually add co2 (maby couple months after adding lighting)
i want to grow various plants (to get amazon look with lots of ground cover)

so whats the best brand or type of light to get (thats not expensive (350$canadian or under))
and where is a good place to get it?
would like a hardware store have lighting that would work well for plants (if so what type)
and after i get lighting could plants survive with mayby 3wpg and no co2 for a while till i get co2 or should i hold off on the plants till i have both??


----------



## flandjm (Dec 28, 2006)

I'm not an expert, but I will have a go at it. Please someone, correct me where I am wrong. 
Lighting is tricky because every size tank has different measurements, and it is near impossible to come up with a general formula. The WPG rule tends to break down in smaller and larger tanks especially. It seems that smaller tanks need rather high light and larger ones need less. So, your 3 WPG, I think is rather high light. This sticky is good info:
http://www.aquaticplantcentral.com/.../34149-the-rules-of-lighting-for-planted.html

I am pretty certian that you are going to need some sort of CO2 right away or algae is going to be an issue.

It also seems that a cheap source for lighting is non-existant. If you go too cheaply, you may live to regret it later. I have read great things about Compact Fluorescent Lighting Kits ... they sell PC DIY kits.


----------



## cyber_ecco (Dec 4, 2006)

I would say if price is an issue then go with PC lighting. If price is not an issue everyone swears by TEK T5 HO. For me personally I use PC lighting because I just can't justify spending the extra money on a TEK T5 system. The user on ebay named aquariumlights has some great deals on fixtures. I've bought 2 PC units of him and they are great. They fit all the Coralife accessories. Many people say Tek T5 pays off in the end because bulb replacement is cheaper and it uses less power, plus its brighter light due to individual reflectors. I have no doubt TEK T5 is a better light, its just if you want to spend the extra start up money. PC lighting does fine for me though, I find my plant tanks looks as good as any TEK T5 HO plant tank pictures I've seen. I have no problem growing anything, and I don't find it much noticable on my power bill. Hope this helps a bit. I'm also setting up a new 75 gallon plant tank, and have been doing a lot of research on this topic as well. I've pretty much decided to go PC again. Its like hey say...if it ain't broke, don't fix it. Good luck.

Gord.


----------



## John N. (Dec 11, 2005)

Sunlight Supply TEK T5HO 4x54watt fixture should do the trick. Reefgeek.com and a person by seedetc on ebay will be your cheapest sources though I do not know if they ship to Canada.

Ahsupply.com retrofits are the CF option which are the best in that department. 

-John N.


----------



## hoppycalif (Apr 7, 2005)

Has anyone actually done the testing needed to say what the best lighting is? By that I mean, has anyone compared results with otherwise equal lighting, but using MH pendants, AH Supply PCs, T5 tubes, etc.? That would be a difficult thing to test, but it should be doable by someone with lots of resources to use.


----------



## sean369 (Dec 29, 2006)

i dont want to spend tons on lighting but i ant good lights though
how are perfecto lighting ?

and i dont know much bout lighting so what does TEK, T5HO, CF and all those initials mean??

i want to do dwarfgrass and mayby ricca and clovers etc ...so i want good lighting


----------



## hoppycalif (Apr 7, 2005)

I think TEK is a brand name? T5HO means a 5/8 inch diameter fluorescent tube, driven to a high output. CF is compact fluorescent. Lighting, like almost everything about this hobby, is something that it seems the more you learn the more questions you have. Based on something Tom Barr posted this morning on his website, I am wondering if MH pendants, with their good reflectors, are a way of attacking many of our algae woes. And, I feel sort of confident that they are for green dust algae, by not shining so much light on the glass. Some day, I hope, someone will test that.


----------



## sean369 (Dec 29, 2006)

whats t5 (or it might be t8)?
ya i dont knowl ighting much cuz im currently have piranhas so there no specific need for lighting and ive never done fullt planted needing any special types of lighting.

so i want to get full planted so im loooking to get good substrate lighting and co2 then i can start planting


----------



## sean369 (Dec 29, 2006)

also do any of APC sponcers have pecock of X-mass moss and ship to canada or does anybody know a site that has it and will ship to canada???


----------



## cyber_ecco (Dec 4, 2006)

These guys ship to Canada:

AquariumPlants.com Largest online sales / service site for the live aquarium plants community.

I live in Canada as well, and I know how hard it is to get stuff here.


----------



## sean369 (Dec 29, 2006)

do know how good at aqua scaping they are cz i dont know much about types of plants so i wold just want a viraiaty 
they had a sheet too fill in so they get plants that will do good but are they good at picking combos of plants?


----------



## snowhillbilly (Mar 29, 2006)

sean369 said:


> do know how good at aqua scaping they are cz i dont know much about types of plants so i wold just want a viraiaty
> they had a sheet too fill in so they get plants that will do good but are they good at picking combos of plants?


I really dont understand what you are saying. Do your research here by using the plant finder to find plants you like. If you are looking for an amazon theme then pick plants from South America, this you can also find in the plant finder. If you are asking about aqua scaping use the Photo album to search through and get ideas. I hope this helps  .


----------



## sean369 (Dec 29, 2006)

they have an aquascaping option ( its free with purcace of plants) and you fill out a sheet (i looked at it)
for tank dementions,price range,lighting,substrate, driftwood size (if any)and just a bunch of queations like that 
they have alot of plants i like so im not sure what i want and im not grat with plant names so i wouldent know which ones i want 
so i want to know if there good at picing the plants cuz i dont really care what plants i get as long as there good quality

i just want plants for my tank so im not to specific but after i plant it then ill pick what plants i want to buy for specific locations


----------



## sean369 (Dec 29, 2006)

one more thing what type of plant is in the APC logo?


----------



## gibmaker (Jan 3, 2007)

sean369 said:


> what would the best type of lighting be for a 125 gal (6ftx1.5)
> im thinking around 3watts per gallon
> i do want to eventually add co2 (maby couple months after adding lighting)
> i want to grow various plants (to get amazon look with lots of ground cover)
> ...


----------



## sean369 (Dec 29, 2006)

imnew to i think you put pics byadditional options then attach files and pick tha pic you need but im not sure
what kinds of lights are they? (brand)
cost?
so is there 4x 3ft single strip(double??)
where do you get the lights?
what co2 are u using??


----------



## gibmaker (Jan 3, 2007)

sean369 said:


> imnew to i think you put pics byadditional options then attach files and pick tha pic you need but im not sure
> what kinds of lights are they? (brand)
> cost?
> so is there 4x 3ft single strip(double??)
> ...


They are four 36" compact flourescents with 10,000k super day light bulbs. Each 36" compact has 2 bulbs each 55 watts a piece, the brand is all glass, they were about 150 u.s. dollars a piece and there are 4. the co2 I use is diy 2 litre bottles I currently use 2 of them with home made diffusers made from gravel cleaning tubes and powerheads, they work wonderfull. I purchased the lights at my local LFS, my local LFS is so awesome he fronted 2 fo them to me for a couple of months because he knew I wanted to grow a lot of plants and I didnt have the money.


----------



## sean369 (Dec 29, 2006)

how do you make DIY co2 system?
how much does it cost to make?
how do u regulate the co2 output?


----------



## gibmaker (Jan 3, 2007)

sean369 said:


> how do you make DIY co2 system?
> how much does it cost to make?
> how do u regulate the co2 output?


the way I make a diy co2 system is as follows. You take a 2 liter bottle drill a 3/8" hole in the middle of the cap, place silicone tubing in the hole you just drilled and seal it with silicone, that's pretty much all you need for a co2 reactor. The way I make the mixture to put in the bottle you just modified is made by first mixing 2 cups of water with 2 cups of sugar, stir well until completely dissolved, pour into bottle. Then mix 2 cups of water with about 1 teaspoon of baking soda, stir well and add to the bottle and shake. Next add about a tablespoon to 2 tablespoons of yeast and let it sit on top of the mixture do not shake, screw the top on tightly and the pressure will slowly rise creating co2 to exit through the tube. The way I make the reactor is taking a gravel cleaning tube and removing the tube from the top of it and drilling a 3/8" hole next to the main tube on the top of the gravel cleaning tube, then I place the tube from the bottle in the hole you just drilled and seal it with silicone. Next I take the the original tube from the top of gravel cleaner and cut a small section out of it and attach it to a power head, and then attach the other end to the top of gravel cleaner, after that I take canister filters and shove them in the bottom of the gravel tube to stop the co2 bubble from escaping. The power head churns the bubbles around in the tube and makes them diffuse into the water without any waste of co2. As for regulating the co2 output you really can not, I only run 2 two liter bottles on my tank and have never even come close to overdosing with co2, although I have allot of plants and it is a 125 gal tank, go to introductions and greetings and you can see my tank, its titled hello from Wi, sorry for the bad pictures, first time I uploaded.


----------



## jmanrow (Sep 10, 2006)

I have worked for a few local fish stores over the years, and have had the opportunity to try many varieties of fluorescent tubes for store use.
Surprisingly, some of the best plant growth was with the relatively inexpensive T8 tubes that came with the All-glass brand fixtures. They are 8000k and really bring out the colors of the fish & plants!


----------



## ruki (Jul 4, 2006)

As Hoppy said, T5 refers to a tube diameter, 5/8ths of an inch. This size also comes from Europe, and is used to describe linear (straight) tubes and circline tubes. There is a High Output version (HO). Both T5 and T5 HO are very efficient in producing light from electricity. However, since they are from Europe, they can be a bit pricey. It's really good for 4 foot long tanks since that's what the most common fixtures and tubes are. 

You've seen linear T8 tubes, but might not have called them that. These are an efficiency improvement over the old thicker T12 tubes. These are cheaper than European imports. These also works best for 4 foot long tanks since that's where the widest selection of bulbs and fixtures are.

6 foot long is a bit of an odd size. There are CF fixtures which have multiple shorter tubes for this length. It's the easiest option for you since you can order it and plug it in.

But, if you are into building things, you could make your own fixture using T8 tubes where 4 foot long tubes are placed at different positions along the fixture (the middle of the fixture would likely be brighter). Long term, this will save electricity and give you access to cheaper replacement tubes. You can also overdrive the tubes by connecting multiple drive wires from a good electronic ballast. (It can be lots of fun to play with this :lol

Sorry there's all this lighting terminology which can take a few months to absorb.


----------



## oblongshrimp (Aug 8, 2006)

well I can tell you I have MH's and the only place i get GDA is where the light hits the glass....I can see a triangle shape of algae that matches the arc of the light when i have this type of algae.


----------

