Low light planted tank

meili.harrison

meili.harrison

Love my plecos!
Apr 28, 2008
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OK...so I recently decided I would like to have live plants in my tank. It's a 46 gal bowfront. I currently have a few hardy plants, but I want to add more i.e. java ferns, anubias barteri, maybe java moss or weeping moss on my driftwood. I have a problem though, the light strip that came with my tank (It's 36"L) only holds one light bulb. I went to my lfs and the guy who worked there recommended a t6 light by quantum which I bought, but I don't think it will work. The light seems pretty dim. I have read about the 2 - 3 wpg need for plants, and mine is only a 30watt light!! Does anyone know if this light will be ok for some low light plants? Should I just go back to the regular fluorescent light bulb that came with the tank instead?? I would love to upgrade but I can't spend too much money. All the light kits that I have seen online are $150 and up. Any advice?
 
So is my wpg 1.5? I don't really know how to calculate this out. I have a T6, which is supposed to give more intense light than a T8...at least that's what I read somewhere.
 
Hey, I'm no expert, but I went through this all when I was doing something similar to you, trying to set up some low-light plants. I think calculating wpg is just dividing watts by gallons. I have a measly 30 watts on a 55 gallon tank, so that means about .54 wpg. So, on your 46g, 30 watts would be about .65 wpg.
I have regular fluorescent lights, and I am able to keep java fern, java moss, and anubias alive. I've had many of them for over 6 months. The anubias does the best--it puts out a new leaf every few weeks. The java fern does ok, but it'd probably like a few more watts....
 
LeahK said:
I have regular fluorescent lights, and I am able to keep java fern, java moss, and anubias alive. I've had many of them for over 6 months. The anubias does the best--it puts out a new leaf every few weeks. The java fern does ok, but it'd probably like a few more watts....
Click to expand...

Thanks, it's nice to know that I'm not the only one! I will try to track down a light strip for double bulbs, but I'm glad that you managed to keep these plants alive with your lighting!
 
meili- while 1.5 is a general 'minimum' plants will surely grow with less. If you are only planning on lightly planted, I'm certain you can find some plants to grow, and you can always upgrade later.

Some plants to look into:

hornwort
watersprite
hygro (green, willow, giant- the easy keepers)
the ones already mentioned, of course
erm.. i know there's more but can't think right now.

try these sights:
www.plantgeek.net
planted tank low light list

However, with such low lighting, i would only buy a small amnt at a time and see how each does. And look for deals. Try the for sale forums on here and plantedtank, they have great deals, and even ROAK w/ free plants from time to time. That way, if they die, no big loss.
 
Up until just last night I had only 1wpg on my 45g and have been able to grow some plants in there. I had great success with assorted plant bulb package from Petco. I paid $8 for 10+ bulbs and most of them grew very nicely (one is even reaching the surface now). I would say thats the cheapest way to give it a shot. otherwise you will end up spending $5 per plant and have no guarantees either.
 
So I am wondering if there are any light kits or relative cheap double light strip I could upgrade to. I came across this light strip - anyone has experience with these : http://www.bigalsonline.com/edealin...086&catParentID=18360&scId=18360&ctl_nbr=3684 OR this : http://www.petmountain.com/product/retrofit-kits/504823/current-usa-nova-t5-retrofit-10%2C000k-slimpaq.html. I don't have much information on how to use the retrofit kit.
I know there are much better lights, but I'm on a tight budget. Any advise?
 
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