View Full Version : specs for planted tank
I have a 29 gallon tank that I've had for about 3 years. I'm planning an overhaul to go to a planted tank...to go along with that I've bought some new substrate and driftwood. Here's the specs of what I have (or will have):
29 gallon tank (2.5' x 1 ft')
45 lbs flourite
some nice driftwood (soaked for about 2 wks)
Penguin 170 biowheel (when I plant the tank, I'll remove the charcoal)
18 W, 10000K bulb
aeration, I'm planning on removing the strip when I plant
plants, currently unpurchased, but would like some simple care plants, such as anubis, javafern and the like.
Fishies are an australian rainbow fish, two blackskirt tetras, and two lemon tetras. After I overhaul and the tank has had a little while to settle out, I plan on adding some fish to the tank.
How does this look? Most specifically, I think I need more lighting, but am hoping someone will say something different. I don't necessarily want to get a new hood for the tank.
thanks!
Blinky
11-14-2004, 2:16 PM
If you want to upgrade your lighting, you can get kits to retrofit your fixture so that you can use compact fluorescent - I don't have experience with it but check out the Product & DIY forum, there was a post about this today listing the website where you can purchase the kits online.
deocder
11-14-2004, 2:19 PM
Welcome!
Unfortunately 18 watts just wont cut it if you want to see growth. For a low tech tank, which will be suitable for the plants you mention, 1-2 wpg seems to be the norm. 18 watts over a 29 gallon tank will yeild ~0.6 wpg. You can easily upgrade your current fixture with compact flourescent internals from AH Supply (http://www.ahsupply.com). Great place! Also, most people, including myself, use bulbs with a color rating of ~6500K. IMO you should shoot for 36 to 55 watts.
Then again, with your current lighting, the plants will live but wont thrive. I personally like a lot of light. I like the brightness of everything.
what about buying a 55 W light from the AH supply site and putting that in my existing hood? Would that work? It might not be the most preferable, but it would be a step in the right direction.
aquabillpers
11-14-2004, 7:24 PM
On my 29 I have a cover glass with 3 20 watt tubes of NO lights in reflectors sitting on top of it. It works fine.
Bill
happychem
11-15-2004, 8:54 AM
The 55w kit would be perfect. You should be getting more light out of that than bill is getting from his 3x20 NO (assuming you mean T12). PC lights are more efficient, i.e. more light per watt.
The only thing to consider is availability of replacement bulbs. This was what dissuaded me, there's nowhere around me that sells suitable pc bulbs and I'd need to have them shipped whenever I needed a new one. Shipping to NS sucks, mostly because as soon as you cross the border, the price doubles, so it might not be an issue for you, but it's something to think about on a more practical but less technical note.
Happy - I've gotten them shipped to me in a couple of days with no problem from AH.
Only had to do it a couple of times......they last a couple years.
I agree that the 55 watts/CF would be ideal for kara's tank.
Len
happychem
11-15-2004, 12:45 PM
Ah! Didn't know that they were good for a couple years! I was thinking I'd have to replace them every 6 months and get them shipped.
It was more the cost of shipping than the time delay that I was worried about.
I would be surprised it Tom Barr doesn't jump in here and tell you to send all your 6 month old CFs to him.
I'll make you even better offer.....I'll pay the shipping!!:)
Len
Blinky
11-15-2004, 9:39 PM
Len, out of curiosity is there any way to tell when CF bulbs are wearing out? I'm pleasantly surprised; my LFS told me they'd last six months to a year at the most - from what I read online I figured a year would be the best time to replace them, and now finding that they may last two years is wonderful - they're a bit pricey!
kara2
11-15-2004, 10:13 PM
Here's the update...I ended up getting a new hood w/ 1 65 W bulb at my local fish store for ~$85--not near as bad as I was expecting for a manufactured item. I'd originally bought a new bulb there yesterday with the idea of DOY'ing it into my existing hood (and keeping the existing bulb, for a total of around 50W), but ended up seeing this and going for that. Not as much light as might be needed for some plants, but sounds like it will work for me for the most part.
Btw, the guy at the store said that a 29 g tank usually holds more like 24 gallons? True or urban legend? Seems consistent with what I've felt, given the water changes and what not.
I also re-did the tank yesterday. Pull the old substrate and put the flourite down. The fishies are doing well, although pale. That flourite really was a mess though! I could barely see into the tank to do anything until this evening! I plan on planting the plants tonight...I think the fish can take it, though if they get too stressed, I can stop and wait for another day.
happychem
11-16-2004, 8:01 AM
The tank volume is calculated for its dimentions, so yeah, you've got a little less than 29g of water after putting down a couple inches of substrate.
Yikes! Adding fluorite to a running tank! That would be messy! Give it a couple days to settle before planting, you'll have to be rinsing your filter media tons for the next week or so!
It's not so much the fish I'm worried about so much as how little light would actually be getting to the plants through the haze. Plus the particles will settle on the leaves which is just a pain to clean off and only prolongs the settling period.