# 40 Gallon Breeder Lighting



## glennd (Jun 30, 2013)

Hello Everyone.
I'm new to the forum.I'm in the planning stage for a 40 gallon breeder El Natural tank.
I have come across this light fixture and was wandering if it would be acceptable light for my planted tank?
Here is a link to the fixture,http://www.hydroponics.net/i/134680

Thanks for a Great Website


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## Michael (Jul 20, 2010)

Welcome to APC!

That looks like a great fixture. The two foot length may create dark spots at the ends of your three foot tank unless you raise the the fixture above the tank.

From the literature, this looks like a T5 normal output (NO) fixture. This is good, because 4 T5 high output (HO) tubes would be way too much for a Walstad tank. Find out from the manufacturer if the unit has separate switches for each pair of tubes, and if it will operate with fewer than all four tubes installed. Either will give you more ability to control the amount of light.

*Oops!* I just reread the web page, and this is an *HO* fixture! Sorry, it is will be way too much light for a Walstad tank.


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## glennd (Jun 30, 2013)

Thanks Michael.In that case I will keep looking.I would love to here some suggestions though.

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## glennd (Jun 30, 2013)

I believe I found my lights.2 fixtures will give me 84 watts of normal output fluorescent light.
http://www.marineandreef.com/Aqualight_T5_Aquarium_Lighting_Coralife_FRESHWATER_p/res58122.htm

When using the Plant Finder page,what would these lights be considered as?I'm thinking Medium Low.


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## Michael (Jul 20, 2010)

Now I am going to get myself in REAL trouble.

I own three of those Coralife fixtures, and I think they are among the worst lighting fixtures made. And measurements with a PAR meter show that the ColorMax tubes produce almost no usable light for plants.

In case you are wondering, I got the fixtures as extra baggage when I bought used tanks. I am incredibly glad that I did not pay retail for them!

You can get much better light at a hardware store. A 2-tube T8 shop light with a decent reflector would be better. Simple metal clamp lights with aluminum reflectors and spiral compact fluorescent tubes are much better. For a 40 breeder, I would get 3 clamp lights and hang them 4"-6" above the tank. Buy 3 23W "daylight" SCF. Yes, that is only 69W, but it will be much brighter than the Coralife fixture. It also will be much cheaper, and the tubes will be cheap and easy to find when it is time to replace them in a year.

No, it won't be as sleek and sexy as the Coralife fixture. But if you put it together neatly it will have an industrial look that goes well with modern decor. If you want to upgrade the look, buy some inexpensive pendant fixtures from Ikea like this one: http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/10194960/

Sorry for the rant, but I had to warn you about those Coralife fixtures!


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## glennd (Jun 30, 2013)

Great Rant,thats the info I was looking for!

OT,a picture of my homemade stand and the 1st stage of my mineralized soil process.


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## Michael (Jul 20, 2010)

Nice stand--if you can do that, putting together some lighting from the hardware store will be a snap.


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## reybie (Jul 18, 2007)

I agree, not bad for a home made stand! You can definitely slap together a t5 fixture from the big box stores or from one if the retrofits sold online.


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## glennd (Jun 30, 2013)

Thanks guys.I appreciate your help.I went with the clamp lights for now.Later when I have more time I may try to convert 2 of the Home Depot cheap 48 inch shop lights to a 30 inch version for the 40 breeder.Looks doable.


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## Flear (Sep 29, 2012)

how do you get too much light for a walstad tank ?
yes, i've gotta start reading the book, gotta get the book to read (prefer paper)

i was thinking 4x36" T5HO lights for a 40 gallon breeder
that's more light then the one Glennd is looking at.
(enough physical room for 2x that)
and many long hours.

what issues are there with "too much light" ?


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## Michael (Jul 20, 2010)

Glennd, another advantage of the clamp lights is that you can always add one, take one off, and/or change the wattage of the SCF tubes to fine-tune the amount of light.

Flear--Too much light = too much algae! As with all planted tanks, this is a matter of balance.


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## Flear (Sep 29, 2012)

but some of that algae could be better known as 'food' if you have the right critters in your tank


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## kingjombeejoe (Apr 13, 2005)

Great job on that stand. I agree with the use of clip lights I use them on my 40B and they are easy and cheap to change bulbs if you want more or less light. I found using 3 - 23w CFLs were too much light for a non co2 tank at about 3" from the surface. 3 - 13w CFLs were perfect. I ended up going with the 23w since I am using co2 and even added 2 - 13w for light in the front.


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## glennd (Jun 30, 2013)

kingjambejoe,
thanks for the tip on the 3-13 watt cfls.I'll use that as a starting point when I get my tank setup.


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## glennd (Jun 30, 2013)

Given a choice between a 6500k and a 5000k ,which one is better?

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## Michael (Jul 20, 2010)

I assume you are asking about spiral CFL.

For the plants, there may not be much difference. I have not done a direct measurement with the PAR meter to compare the two, but I suspect the difference is minimal. Has anyone done a direct comparison?

For appearance, it is a matter of personal taste. 6500K will give light closer in color to sunlight at midday (more blue). 5000K will be warmer (more yellow). I prefer the 6500K because I like the way the colors of plants and fish look under it.


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## Flear (Sep 29, 2012)

glennd said:


> Given a choice between a 6500k and a 5000k ,which one is better?
> 
> Sent from my SGH-S959G using Tapatalk 2


better for what ?
no such thing as a universal better, or else it would be the only thing on the market.


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## glennd (Jun 30, 2013)

Thanks,I was referring to cfl.I'll go with the 6500k then.

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## glennd (Jun 30, 2013)

Flear,I was asking which color temperature the plants like best.





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## Flear (Sep 29, 2012)

6500 if thats all your using

just theory on my part, 5000 mixed with little actinic 460 if your thinking of mixing to get peaks of both sets of light frequencies for growth


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## Flear (Sep 29, 2012)

personaly i'd stay away from the compact florescents, ... half the bulb is away from the water, half of what's left is pointing away from the water, hard to get a reflector that will direct more light back towards the water that won't be blocked by the bulb itself.

unless i've missed something, i have not seen T2 straight bulbs, only T5, and up, where half the bulb is pointed away from the bulb and you can put a reflector in place to redirect that light back towards the tank.

Edit:
even the straight compact florescents, the ones that take a sharp 180 degree turn, the lengths are so close together that they're blocking sideways light from being used for anything, better to get 2 separate straight bulbs


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## Flear (Sep 29, 2012)

for 6500 vs 5000.

i haven't looked into the 5000 in much detail these typically are not used for growing, but i suspect they may be better for flowering stages to closer match the autumn reds the plants want

the 6500 typically matches the blues rather well that are desired for growth
the reds in the 6500 are close, but shifted a little closer to yellow and orange instead of the reds that the photosynthesis really desires

if your after stuff specifically for growing, ... it does not have a kelvin rating, you'll have to look into that they've got more of a purple hue to them and may appear dimmer to us, but will be brighter to the plants.


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## Michael (Jul 20, 2010)

Spiral compact fluorescents have proven to be an effective and inexpensive light source for planted tanks, especially shallow tanks like a 40 breeder. When mounted vertically, the problems with restrike are minimized, and a simple reflector (as on a clamp light or desk lamp) will direct plenty of light into the tank.

Who said anything about a T2? I do not believe they exist. A T2 would be only 1/4" in diameter.


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## Flear (Sep 29, 2012)

Micheal, they exist, spiral bulbs only


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## Michael (Jul 20, 2010)

So they do, and straight versions also! They must be very fragile.


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## Flear (Sep 29, 2012)

i've never seen strait ones


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