# where to find 7w and 9w CFs for planted tank?



## Danielle (Jan 26, 2008)

I have two tanks.. One has a cheap 7w clip light that came in a kit with a 1g acrylic tank and a little HOB filter. It's made by Meiko corp or something like that. The bulb just says PLS 7w 6500k 120v on it and nothing else. On this tank plants grow extremely well with no algae at all.

The other tank has a Tom aquatics 9w clip light. The light that came with it was super bright and very very blue. Most of their other lights are 10k/actinic so I figured that's what came with it. I could not find any 9w lights for the life of me... other than a coralife 6700k 'freshwater' bulb. It's very green and doesn't grown plants very well... but it does grow algae!

I managed to find a 2nd Meiko corp 7w light on Ebay but it makes fizzing noises from the plug in wall wart ballast thing when you turn the light on and the bulb looks to be close to end of life. So not much I can do with it.

Is there any where I can find lamps for these? If I knew who made the 6500k lamp inthe meiko I'd by a 7w and 9w version and be happy... but I have no idea.

Any help?

Or any ideas of what I should do lighting wise?

Each is on an ADA Do! Aqua 2gallon cube (8x8x8")


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## Danielle (Jan 26, 2008)

I found 9w lamps at catalina aquarium and commodity axis 'helios'

I don't know which if any are any good for freshwater plants though as neither provide much info

catalina has 7 and 9w 7200k full spectrum lamps


> Ultra bright Triphosphor fluorescent light combines 7200k triphosphor with actinic 03/blue to create a full spectrum lamp that enhances color and clarity while providing aquarium inhabitants with the proper light required for essential biochemical functions. The actinic 03/blue light in combination with the triphosphor bathes the aquarium in a white light, enhancing the vibrant colors of exotic fish and providing essential light for photosynthesis.


The helios lamps have more to choose from
Rapid Grow (12,000k Marine Blue/7,100k Daylight)
Ultra Grow (12,000k Marine Blue/8,000k True Grow)
8,000k True Grow
Grow Plus (8,000k True Grow/7,100k Daylight)

http://www.commodityaxis.com/ProductData.aspx?id=75


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## davemonkey (Mar 29, 2008)

Drs Foster Smith has a couple 9 watt PC bulbs. You can also find some at bulbs.com for cheap, and the spectrum is good. I'm not sure about how much "green" would be in them though...depends on the manufacturer.


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## Danielle (Jan 26, 2008)

The drs foster and smith are coralife bulbs which is what I'm using now. Their 6700k bulb has a strong green spike and not enough red and blue spectrum. Which is why it's great at growing algae but not so much for plants.


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## Big_Fish (Mar 10, 2010)

Hi, Danielle.... 
JUST in case these may work for you...
http://www.walmart.com/ip/Lights-of-America-10-Watt-Mini-Fluorescent-Aquarium-Bulb-1-ct/10448675

it's a 6500 K, (I've got two of em in a cheap-o Standard plastic hood over a 10 gal) and they do pretty well under em.

just a thought.


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