Ahhhh, HELP! So confused!

[abstrohl]

Hey All,
So I currently have a 46g bowfront tank with some african mbuna and began planting some low-light plants (java, val, and anubias). They aren't looking so good because the only 25W (terrible, I know)!
I want to upgrade, but am so confused as to what to get! I have been looking at the Coralife 36in 96W lighting...but don't know about the 50/50 versus the 6700. I hear the 50/50 looks nicer and is gentler on the eyes. What else is good?
Then I have the problem about it fitting on the hood canopy that came with oceanic tank.
Please, please let me know some ideas, solutions, thoughts, etc! Your insight is greatly appreciated! Don't be shy!

Thank you!!!

 

[RISK2123]

welcome to planted tanks!! id say 10x more confusing once you start learning whats going on. DEFINATELY get the 6700k (i think coralife makes 6700 not 6500 but i could be wrong) i have the same lights, i left the 50/50 (10,000k/actinic) bulb in and had one heck of a time dealing with hair algea. im actually still having the problem but i just switched bulbs just recently. i do agree the 50/50 does look nicer, but once you get that hair algea no light will help your tank look good. the actinic spectrum is not used by plants, but simple forms of "algea" do use them and will thrive in your tank. 10,000k alone will give your tank a yellowish tint but the 6700k should work perfect. good luck!!!!!! !!

 

[phanmc]

A 50/50 bulb is made up of a blue actinic bulb and a full spectrum bulb (6,500k or 6,700k). The light from the 50/50 bulb will be much bluer than a full spectrum because of the actinic. Since it uses half of it's energy on the blue actinic, which is not nearly as beneficial to plants as a full spectrum bulb, it is not ideal for the planted tank. It can be used but you're not going to get the full 96w benefit, but since you're going for a low light setup it could be enough.

Full spectrum bulbs comes in the range of 5,000k-6,700k. The lower the K the more yellow the light. There are also 10,000k lights which is very sterile white, almost no yellow.

As for the size, I don't know if the Coralife will fit. An alternative would be a retrofit to your existing hood. www.ahsupply.com offers one of the best retrofit kits available and their customer service can assist you with the right kit for your hood.