planning 6x2x2 aquarium

fishkid951

fishkid951

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Jan 7, 2007
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hey all,:dance:

i am planning to get a large aquarium in the next few months(cant hurt to plan now) and was wondering a few questions. the tank will be 6x2x2(all in foot) which is 648 litres/170gallons.

i currently hav a 3ft discus, tetra, cory etc tank(planted) with diy co2 that i am upgrading. so i am no novice to plants...just lighting.

i have no idea about lighting for this tank. i dont want it to make my electricity bill blow through the roof as i dont think mum will apreciate this at all. :confused:

i hav heard that in a tank this size 3watts/gallon is very high light. is this correct? :confused:

i am intending to keep plants such as tiger lotus lilly, crypts, swords, riccia, anubias along with other plants too. :idea:

i will be putting together a presurised co2 unit using co2 cylinder(like the ones used in beer manufacturing) and regulator.

so my questions are.......

~what lighting will suit my needs?
~how many watts/gallon do i need?

thanks in advance:):):)
 
For 3 watts per gallon you are going to need 540 watts of lighting and thats going to be expensive on your electric bill. You need to research what plants you want before you decide how many watts of lighting you'll need.
A 6x2x2 tank is 180g/681 litres by the way. It's going to weigh about 3/4 of a ton, have you checked your floor can hold that much weight.
 
The average cost in the U.S. for electricity is 11 cents/kilowatt-hour. Running 540 watts of light isn't going to cost that much. Basically 8 hours of lighting (a full day) will cost you just over 40 cents if I'm looking at this correctly (please correct me if I'm wrong)...of course it does vary by region.

Lighting will depend on the plants, however larger tanks do need more light than smaller tanks with the same plants as you will need to deal with the penetration of light.

For Co2, go pressurized. DIY Co2 isn't going to do much for that size of tank and pressurized is much more efficient from what I have heard.
 
am intending to keep plants such as tiger lotus lilly, crypts, swords, riccia, anubias along with other plants too.
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they are the types of plants i plan on keeping. how can i check if the floor will hold that much weight? how do mh lights and t-5/pc compare to compact fluro? ands are they energy efficient compared to them? i am goin to do pressurised co2.

thank you again
 
fishkid951 said:
they are the types of plants i plan on keeping. how can i check if the floor will hold that much weight? how do mh lights and t-5/pc compare to compact fluro? ands are they energy efficient compared to them? i am goin to do pressurised co2.

thank you again
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Can contact a contractor to come check out your flooring and what wall can hold what.
The different lights differ by how much light they put out especially compared to regular fluorescent bulbs. They are more energy efficient.
 
Bk828 said:
You can go with 400w and you should be able to grow plants good in a tank that size. Can go for either t-5/PC or Metal halide.
You can expect your electricity bill to rise by $15-20 with just the lighting, then theres filters/heaters/co2. Overall you can expect a $20-25 rise in your bill.
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I stand corrected :lipssealedsmilie:
 
jpappy789 said:
I stand corrected :lipssealedsmilie:
Click to expand...
ex:
100w light thats on for 10hrs = 1Kwh (kilowatt hours or 1000watt hours) (X)
Take 30-31 day billing cycle (Y)
If avrg cost of 1Kwh is .11cents (Z)
Then:
X x Y x Z = Rise in bill just from the lighting

1kwh x 30 days x .11 cents = $3.30 rise
2kwh x 30 days x .13 cents = $7.80 rise
3kwh x 30 days x .15 cents = $13.50 rise

The kwh cost changes monthly and can be as high as .28 cents (as it was this summer)

Though it may be higher since the electric company charges for supply and delivery and above calculation is just for delivery. The supply charge most of the time is .05-.09 cents (also changes monthly)
 
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Bk828 said:
ex:
100w light thats on for 10hrs = 1Kwh (X)
Take 30-31 day billing cycle x the Kwh used = Kwh for the month (Y)
If avrg cost of 1Kwh is .11cents (Z)
Then:
X x Y x Z = Rise in bill just from the lighting

1kwh x 30 days x .11 cents = $3.30 rise
2kwh x 30 days x .13 cents = $7.80 rise
3kwh x 30 days x .15 cents = $13.50 rise

The kwh cost changes monthly and can be as high as .28 cents (as it was this summer)

Though it may be higher since the electric company charges for supply and delivery and above calculation is just for supply. The delivery charge most of the time is .05-.09 cents (also changes monthly)
Click to expand...

I forgot about the monthly billing...though seeing as I don't actually pay electricity bills I'm not quite sure if a $3 rise is significant.
 
jpappy789 said:
I forgot about the monthly billing...though seeing as I don't actually pay electricity bills I'm not quite sure if a $3 rise is significant.
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Can go from a $3 rise to a $8-10 rise during the electricity consuming months.
Throw in all other equipment and fluctuations in the Kwh cost it can add up.

Plus its $3 just for delivery. Add another $1.50-3 for supply and you got a slightly higher spike.

The cost is really insignificant for smaller tanks. But when you go BIG it really can put a dent in the wallet.
 
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