Light Filters

[tomm10]

I have a 10gal planted tank with two compact flourescents at 10 watts apiece.

The light seems to be okay for the plants I have but I'm not crazy about what it does to the color of my fish.

My Zebra Danios have a lot of beautiful color to them, which when I have the tank lights off and the room lights on really show through. The flourescents seem to trow off a greenish hue which really washes out the color of the fish.

My question is, has anyone experimented with using flourescent light filters (usually just colored gels) on their tanks to get the colors more neutralized? My main concern would be restricted any of the UV that my plants need.

[OrionGirl]

I think the filters would alter the spectrum--what impact that would have on the plants would depend on how the spectrum changed. What is the output of the lights? I've found that 8600K light is good for the plants, and hasn't washed out my fish colors. Other things to look at--background and substrate. Darker substrates and background can greatly improve the colors of fish.

[tomm10]

The hood is an incandescent hood so the bulbs are just regular screw in compact flourescents you can get in Walmart. I think they were rated somewhere around 5600-6700K but I don't remember.

I don't think I have a lot of choices with these bulbs which is why I was thinking of a filter.