# what better???



## fishy (Apr 23, 2005)

hey everyone..im kinda ne at planted tanks and well i wanted to get your guy's input..right now im working on a 20 gallon tall planted tank...what do you think would be the best lighting for the tank..floursents,mh, or PCs???or is there somethin thats even better then this???i dont kno much about lighting right now so any comments, tips would be helpful..thanks


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## chiahead (Dec 18, 2004)

lighting really depends on your plants and how quickly you want them to grow. Its really up to you. If you plan on having a low maintenance tank then stick with standard flourescents or low wattage power compacts-anything between 1.5-2.5 wpg should do. If you plant on growing alot of stems/red plants then anything over 3.0 wpg should do. the higher the light usually the faster the growth. Also, the faster things can go bad due to the increased metabolism of the tank. If you plan on running over 2 wpg you should get urself some Co2-pressurized recommended there. In most peoples opinion metal halides have the highest output, but every system has its drawbacks. The metal halides are expensive, and create alot of heat. You will prob have to hang it above the water due to the heat. Power compacts are good, I use them. Good light output and not a whole lot of heat, and not as expensive as MH. Mayeb you should list what kind of plants you want to grow and how your Co2 will be set up and this can help us out in pointing you in the right direction. Hope this was helpful.


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## trenac (Jul 16, 2004)

Everyone has their preference when it comes to lighting. Mine is Coralife PC fixtures I use them on all my tanks. On my 20G high I use the single 65 watt fixture.


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## fishy (Apr 23, 2005)

right now i mainly have amazon swords, java fern, and soem unknown ones(not sure of their names)...i was thinkin about picking up a compact flourescent...i have a 70 watt metal halide but i havent used it on a planted tank..wouldnt a mh kill plants from its strong lighting???


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## chiahead (Dec 18, 2004)

fishy no the metal halide would not kill the plants due its intensity. No matter how much light u can put over a tank it will never amount to the intensity of the sun. If you have the metal halide you might as well use it. Make sure the bulb has the correct kelvin rating 5000k-10000k, as most out of this range are unsuitable for planted tanks. a 70w light over a 20 gal gives u 3.5 wpg, which would be great for those swords, and because its a metal halide u should be able to grow just about anything. Watch the heat transfer though. Good luck!


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## fishy (Apr 23, 2005)

yeah...its very bright and lets off alot of heat...if i do use it then theres no need for a heater of course...would i need anythin additional if i use the mh..suchas uv glass ???well if i get a canopy for it then yeah ill probably go with the mh...thanks for the help guys..


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## chiahead (Dec 18, 2004)

I am not experienced with using MH, I think they need uv glass but I am not too sure. You may want to research this further before killing everything.


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## Phil Edwards (Jan 22, 2004)

It all depends on your taste. Personally, I prefer AHSupply PC kits if I'm going to be using PC. I've got a couple of the ESU/Corallife fixtures and they just don't do the same job as the AHSupply kits. Sure, they look a lot nicer, but function is more important. 

Metal Halide are great of you can use them and are best used as a suppliment to PC lighting on tanks shallower than 24". They are very bright and have the highest PAR (Photosynthetically Active Radiation) rating of all the commonly used lights. As fishy said though, they're hot and you'll need to either keep the bulb far enough from the water to reduce/negate that or have a fan in the hood to keep it cool. I've got a 20 high right now with 2x 36w PC and a 250w MH and it's growing plants like I've never seen in my life! The PC are on for 9 hrs/day and the MH is on for 2.5hrs/day and let me tell you, that Rotala is straight as an arrow! 

As far as UV goes, single ended MH bulbs (the big fat ones) have UV protectant glass as the outer portion of the bulb. You can screw those guys in and turn them right on with no other shielding. Double ended (commonly, HQI) don't have the protective shield and do need a separate UV absorbing/filtering glass plate. Those generally come with the fixtures if you get commercially built ones. If not, UV glass can be had easily at glass or hobby shops for little money.

To answer your question now fishy.  If you're new to planted aquariums I would stick to PC lighting. It's powerful enough to grow anything you want, but it's not so overpowering that you'll have a high potential for trouble. I've used a single 55w PC fixture over a 20 high with a great deal of success. Alternately, 2x 36w PC lamps will work well too. The 55w will give you 2.75 w/g and the 3x 36 will give 3.6 w/g. 

If you're planning on growing a lot of stemplants then the 2 lamp fixture may be better simply because of the increase in coverage. More light will get to the lower areas of the stems helping keep the leaves from dropping and giving a bushier and healthier appearance. The downside to this is you'll need to stay on top of your nutrients and the plants will be growing REALLY fast, so frequent trimming will be necessary. 

Should you choose the 55w route you'll still be able to grow just about anything in there but the lower areas of the stems won't be as healthy. On the flip side, you're still able to grow whatever you want and you won't have to trim as often or stay as on top of the nutrients. It's cheaper too. 

I hope my dissertation has helped some. I guess I got a little long-winded.

Regards,
Phil


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## fishy (Apr 23, 2005)

Phil Edwards said:


> It all depends on your taste. Personally, I prefer AHSupply PC kits if I'm going to be using PC. I've got a couple of the ESU/Corallife fixtures and they just don't do the same job as the AHSupply kits. Sure, they look a lot nicer, but function is more important.
> 
> Metal Halide are great of you can use them and are best used as a suppliment to PC lighting on tanks shallower than 24". They are very bright and have the highest PAR (Photosynthetically Active Radiation) rating of all the commonly used lights. As fishy said though, they're hot and you'll need to either keep the bulb far enough from the water to reduce/negate that or have a fan in the hood to keep it cool. I've got a 20 high right now with 2x 36w PC and a 250w MH and it's growing plants like I've never seen in my life! The PC are on for 9 hrs/day and the MH is on for 2.5hrs/day and let me tell you, that Rotala is straight as an arrow!
> 
> ...


well my friend has my halide right now..its a double end 70 watt...i want to use that but hes using it till sometime in june..right now im just running flourescents and i dont really like it much...it works..my plants are growing and all but i want better...its gonna be some time befoer i i can get the halide back so i was thinkin abotu going with a pc..preferable coralife...i was going to get just one but after seeing your ideas and tips i think i migth look into getting 2 so the light is well spread out in the tank...imma check out some lfs next monday and see what they have...if i decide to use the halide i would have to get soem uv protection and a canopy...so yeah ill check out some PCs for the moment until i can get the halide..thanks for the tips and suggestions..


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## chiahead (Dec 18, 2004)

if u are going coralife pc then check out www.marineandreef.com for pricing.


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## fishy (Apr 23, 2005)

if you guys dont mind i got another question...its a really noobish question but yeah..it would help clear some things up so here it is..im thinking/planning on gettin coralife PC lights..i would get the freshwater 
one right???or would the saltwater one be better???


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## omega (Apr 1, 2004)

You may want to take a look at http://hellolights.com/comfluorsys.html for price comparisons. And yes, the freshwater one is the one you'd like. You may also want to buy the mounting legs.


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