Newbie lighting questions

S

Statman

AC Members
Nov 3, 2004
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Im going to be trying to grow some easy low light plants in a 120g tank, I really have no knowledge at all about changing/upgrading lights.

The hood(s) on my tank each hold one light for a total of 2, they dont say what their wattage is but Im assuming its definately sub par. I measured the bulb and Im gettin 23", the closest match I can find is 24", what do ya think? Maybe im just somwhere measuring wrong? Anyway to my main question...

Im thinking of 2 of these maybe? http://bigalsonline.com/catalog/product.xml?product_id=23819;category_id=2907;pcid 1=1843;pcid2= These are going in your standard stock hood, do I run any risk or anything of over powering it or what not? I'd rather not burn the house down.

Thanks.
 
If you are going to be serious about a planted tank, I don't think you're going to be happy with 150 watts over a 120 gal. tank.
What are your goals for the tank? What are the inside dimensions of your current hoods?

Len
 
VHO bulbs aren't going to have Very High Output if they're being driven by a Normal Output Ballast.

I'd sort of expect they have a different pin setup and probably won't fit in a Normal fixture.
 
im just shooting for easy plants, anubias, an such.

i do have a question that is rather silly however...

Im looking at air pumps, and i was going to get (2) 300w air pumps, one for each side of the tank. I read though that the bubbles allow the co2 to be released. Soooooooo. How important is it to have oxygen in the tank? I mean obviously the fishies need it, but do I need to go heavy like I planed on, or can I maybe just run a single 300w pump on one side an be ok?
 
If you have 2x55 Compact Fluorescents (CF) up there you'd be approaching 1 watt per gallon, which is more or less what most folks consider to be a minimum threshold for low light plants. If they're Normal Output (NO) bulbs, they're probably 20w each, giving you a third of a wpg.

A 120g is a pretty deep tank and even anubias on the bottom aren't going to be getting a lot of light. If you want to go live plants, I'd go for more light.

CO2 has a normal ambient level in the water. Lots of folks supplement this and boost their levels up by quite a bit. This extra CO2 wants to leave the water and go into the air. Anything that makes the surface of the water larger (ie. produces ripples) makes it easier for the CO2 to get out. This is really a problem for folks who are supplementing: ambient is ambient.

I don't have any air pumps, so I don't think you need them. The fish need O2 as do the nitrifying bacteria. Sort of depends on the bioload.
 
You don't need any air pumps at all. If properly balanced with the fish load, the plants will take care of the fish by using excess nutrients and CO2. This, as well as regular, weekly water changes will keep your tank's inhabitants happy and healthy.
On the other side of the coin, in a low tech tank the CO2ppm will generally mirror the CO2 in the atmosphere ( approx. 2 - 4ppm). Water movement aids in this exchange, but this would be accomplished with an adequate filter, suited for the tank size and it's contents.
In a higher tech tank where one injects CO2, you want as little surface movement as possible, opting for a gentle roll created by the filter or power head's circulation. In this instance you want to keep as much gas in the water table as possible.
In any case, you want to buy adequate filtration from the start, to both cleanse the tank and supply good circulation.
A 'low tech' tank in your case would be one that supplies 200 - 240 watts of PC lighting, IMO. I would not consider less than 200 watts, which would be adequate for growing only low light plants. This means, other than red and bronze varieties of Cryptocoryne, you'd have very limited success in adding color other than green to your aquarium.
 
i was recommend to get (2) of these. lights that puts me at 130 watts, your saying 200 minimum? I was under the impression that if I were to be getting that high, co2 would almost be required or I'd have an algae farm.

edit: if you can link me perhaps to what lighting you think would better suit me, please do. =D

thanks guys!
 
130watts will put you at about 1 wpg. That's sort of the minimum treshold, and its the minimum for a normal tank. A 120 isn't a normal tank. You have to take the depth into consideration.

I have 2.4 wpg over a 30g. The light needs to penetrate maybe 14 inches at most. Typically a bit less than 12 (and I am very happy with my CO2).

I'd probably look at the 4x55 kit at AH Supply assuming you're 48" long. They're retrofit kits that need either a pre-existing hood or a canopy (which they also sell for about $50).

That'll put you at about 1.8 wpg and in a tank almost twice as deep as mine. If you're still unsure a 2x55 plus a 1x96 would drop you down to about 1.7 wpg. You could put a 2 banks of 2x55 each on timer, run 1 bank for 10 hours and the other for 6 (for instance) 12 hours and 8, keep it adjustable.

Kim, the guy who owns AH, is very friendly: I emailed him a wiring question and he called me up to talk me through it. Send him an email, he'll work with you on figuring out the particulars.
 
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