How much light is too much for excel?

sixstringphil

sixstringphil

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May 26, 2008
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My 12 gallon (10 gallon tall) hood will take 2 bulbs up to 25w each. I bought a pair of both 15w and 20w daylight CFL bulbs to try. I currently have some low-light plants, but would like to try some new things. I dose Flourish 2x week and Excel every 2 days. With 40 watts of light, will the algae take over? Or is that overkill and would I be better just to go with two 15w bulbs? I'm also open to trying DIY CO2 if necessary. Thanks for your suggestions!
 
well, I'd say no to algae taking over as excel's nitrogen molecule is claimed to be "unusable" for algae... DIY CO2 is fun, you can always use it :D
 
It isn't a question of how much light is too much as it is the quality of the available light.

Light quality in terms of the color spectrum will decide what happens in the way of growth or lack thereof. If the available light is too far in one end of the spectrum or the other, growth of unwanted algae is possible.

Things to consider when choosing lighting is:

wattage
PAR value
CRI
temperature (emission of heat, not color temp).

Flourish Excel is a carbon substitute in lieu of CO2. I am no plant whiz and have heard of using CO2 and Excel together. Flourish is a source of trace elements. I have very good luck with Flourish, stock lighting, and regular water changes.
 
Thanks for the replies. I know that the WPG rule isn't accurate with smaller tanks, so with my tank size and 2x20W, would you classify this as low-medium-high light?
 
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