I wanted to share my experience lighting my planted Tetra Water Wonders 1.5 Gallon Aquarium. Anyone who has seen this tank's built in LED light will know that plants will not survive with it.
I am using a T4-6 Watt 6400K Fluorescent Light found here. It current costs $20.50 and shipped free for me. There are also other sizes available.
Here is a picture of the light packaging (only clear picture of just the light I have):
Here is the fixture's mounting clips:
Notice in the pictures that it is not a freestanding light with stand and it needs to be mounted to something. In my case, I screwed the clips to the shelf above the aquarium. I also taped some strips of aluminum foil to keep the glare out of my eyes and into the tank. For reference, each pocket in this shelf is a 13" cube.
Performance of the light? Here is a before and after comparison of my plants after four weeks:
Yes, I need to do a trimming. And don't worry about the Betta, she got her own 2.5G tank after I realized she would try to eat my RCS...
Overall, I think this was the perfect light for my situation. First off, I couldn't find another light that would fit in this space, so I was happy to find a solution. It also seems to give off the perfect intensity to grow plants, not too little, not too much. I only noticed green algae after a week of leaving the light on for 14+ hours a day. Cutting back to an 8 hour day seems to have greatly reduced/eliminated the algae growth. Finally, the price isn't so bad either. Sure it could be cheaper, but for the performance and size, I would definitely consider buying another one.
Side notes:
It might be better to purchase the T5 6 Watt fixture, which costs $21.97 ($1.47 more), assuming performance is the same. In the long run, it will be cheaper since each replacement T4 bulb costs a dollar more than the T5 bulb (and you have to buy at least two replacement bulbs per order).
Comments on the company: I never dealt or heard of this company before (they turned up in a quick google search) but I had no major issues with them. The only issue I had was being unable to track my package. I used Google checkout, received my receipt and everything, but didn't get a tracking number. I do not remember the details perfectly, but I think it may have been due to a poor integration between Google checkout and the website, so there may be a tracking number feature if you pay through their website. But in any case, I submitted my order before noon on a Tuesday, shipped Wednesday, and got it before Noon that Saturday via FedEx 'Home Delivery', a cross-country trip.
I am using a T4-6 Watt 6400K Fluorescent Light found here. It current costs $20.50 and shipped free for me. There are also other sizes available.
Here is a picture of the light packaging (only clear picture of just the light I have):
Here is the fixture's mounting clips:
Notice in the pictures that it is not a freestanding light with stand and it needs to be mounted to something. In my case, I screwed the clips to the shelf above the aquarium. I also taped some strips of aluminum foil to keep the glare out of my eyes and into the tank. For reference, each pocket in this shelf is a 13" cube.
Performance of the light? Here is a before and after comparison of my plants after four weeks:
Yes, I need to do a trimming. And don't worry about the Betta, she got her own 2.5G tank after I realized she would try to eat my RCS...
Overall, I think this was the perfect light for my situation. First off, I couldn't find another light that would fit in this space, so I was happy to find a solution. It also seems to give off the perfect intensity to grow plants, not too little, not too much. I only noticed green algae after a week of leaving the light on for 14+ hours a day. Cutting back to an 8 hour day seems to have greatly reduced/eliminated the algae growth. Finally, the price isn't so bad either. Sure it could be cheaper, but for the performance and size, I would definitely consider buying another one.
Side notes:
It might be better to purchase the T5 6 Watt fixture, which costs $21.97 ($1.47 more), assuming performance is the same. In the long run, it will be cheaper since each replacement T4 bulb costs a dollar more than the T5 bulb (and you have to buy at least two replacement bulbs per order).
Comments on the company: I never dealt or heard of this company before (they turned up in a quick google search) but I had no major issues with them. The only issue I had was being unable to track my package. I used Google checkout, received my receipt and everything, but didn't get a tracking number. I do not remember the details perfectly, but I think it may have been due to a poor integration between Google checkout and the website, so there may be a tracking number feature if you pay through their website. But in any case, I submitted my order before noon on a Tuesday, shipped Wednesday, and got it before Noon that Saturday via FedEx 'Home Delivery', a cross-country trip.
just need to make it look cleaner lol