20 gal lighting question

[biogirl361]

so i have a 20 gallon tall that i would like to turn into a serious planted tank when i finish school in a few months. right now i have my fish in a 10 gallon and am just experimenting with a few plants and going through all the newbie trial and error (mostly error ) anyways my question is, does anybody know of a relatively cheap way i can get 3 wpg over a 20 gallon tall? the hood i have now has the standard fixture for the long tube type flourescent bulbs. i am willing to do a little DIY work on it if neccesary if it isn't too expensive, but i would really like to keep it all within the space provided in the hood (I don't want to build a new hood or have an open tank). any ideas?
also, and i posted this in the cichlid forum but this might be a more appropriate place, does anybody know if anubias, vallesneria, java fern, and java moss would get eaten by plecostomus? thanks in advance.

 

[djlen]

The last first. It depends on the variety of Pleco that you're talking about.
You really don't want to put many of them in a 20 gal. anyway, but if you do Bristle Nose generally won't eat most plants unless very hungry. Many varieties get too large for your tank. Some get to 12" or more.
I drop algae wafers in about an hour before lights out, about every other day to insure against nightly raids.
You may be able to fit a 55watt CF fixture into your existing hood. This would approximate your desired wattage without breaking the bank.
Go here: www.ahsupply.com/ Check on what they have available and my advice is to call the listed number and ask for Kim. He will assist you on a choice that would fit your needs and tank. He's very helpful and fair and will give you an honest opinion that will not hurt your wallet. He will need the INSIDE dimensions of your hood.
BTW, those kits are very easy to install and come complete, with everything included for installation. I have purchase 4 kits from them with no problems at all.

Len

 

[biogirl361]

i was asking about the pleco for a 90 gallon cichlid tank i would like to set up with just 2 or 3 varieties of plants that the herbivorous ones won't eat. i have the old 90 laying around and figured why not. so size of pleco wouldn't be nearly as much of an issue there.
thanks for the tip about lighting for the 20 gallon, which i would like to be the real planted tank (i'll get some ottos for that one bc they stay small and dont eat plants). i will check out that site
one thing is sure: despite all the trouble and expense, now that i've seen my tank with live plants, i can never go back to plastic! d'oh!

 

[biogirl361]

another question: i read somewhere that you have to change your lights after like 6 months because they lose their brightness and intensity and aren't good for the plants anymore (even though they might look fine to you) is this true? i mean i might be able to convince myself to buy $100 in lighting once... but not every 6 months!!!

 

[djlen]

IMO, CF lighting lasts much longer than NO(standard fluorescent) lighting I go by the plant's response. I look for less pearling and depth of redness in the red varieties.
I change 1/2 of the tubes about every eighteen months or so.
Some will tell you that it's better to change more often. I personally don't believe so.

Len