Suggestion on aquarium lighting please?
- Thread starter Maquar
- Start date
I was told that the 6700k bulbs would have a little "yellow" tint to them while the 10000k are a very crisp, bright light! I'm going to order some from A H Supply as soon as I know exactly what I'm going to get. So far I plan on buying the 2 x 55 watt kit (to equal 48 inches) across my tank. That would be enough light dont you think since they say they are 3 times brighter then normal flourescent fixtures? So what bulbs should I get for the look I would like? I don't want the color of the fish to wash out but I would like it to be bright. The tank is 5 feet long, 18 inches high, and 16 inches wide!
Thanks
Thanks
i think you should be ok with 6700; but heres a 10000 on my tank. and the lights dont go all the way across either. those lights are bright. colors dont look too washed out but my firemouth is usually a lot darker, hes scared of the camera. i havent had the light on long enough to notice any change in the fish, since i just put it there about 2 weeks ago while i get it ready for my saltwater. actually the firemouth picture might also have the actinic on i forget but having it on makes it easier on the eyes.
pm me if you want whole tank shots or anything. but those are all the fish i have in there
pm me if you want whole tank shots or anything. but those are all the fish i have in there
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I think this would look good, thats what I plan for my next tank. I have a shop light from HD with 2 40 Watt daylight deluxe bulbs.Maquar said:
EDIT : No Flash
Thanks everyone for your suggestions. I figured I would post the outcome in case others in the future have this question. What I ended up doing is getting a Coralife 48" 65 watt compact flourescent from a LFS that matched some prices I had given him on other lights so I got a great deal! I now have the light set up using 6700k bulbs. The owner of the LFS also told me since I had extra single fixtures (the ones I had originally) I could use one of them with a 40 watt actinic bulb. This gave me exactly the look I wanted. I went out today and spent "too much money too close to Christmas" 
and my Malawi Cichlid community is off to a wonderful, colorful start!
Thanks again everyone,
Mark
and my Malawi Cichlid community is off to a wonderful, colorful start!Thanks again everyone,
Mark
Lighting is a money vacuum
Man, I will tell you straight up: don't waste your hard earned money, go with what's cheapest. I've done that overanalyzing thing you're doing and wasted my money on something that didn't even fit the lights I had to begin with. Just take your light fixtures to your local pet store and tell them you want the cheapest light bulbs that will fit your fixture. It will be enough light and unless you have plants, which you don't, forget about the worry and save your money.
Man, I will tell you straight up: don't waste your hard earned money, go with what's cheapest. I've done that overanalyzing thing you're doing and wasted my money on something that didn't even fit the lights I had to begin with. Just take your light fixtures to your local pet store and tell them you want the cheapest light bulbs that will fit your fixture. It will be enough light and unless you have plants, which you don't, forget about the worry and save your money.
Visualeyes2 said:
The type of bulb you use can actually really make a difference to how your setup looks - there's a huge range of colour temperatures available, and depending on what you get your tank may look too red, yellow, blue or even purple!
I agree that cost-effectiveness is an issue with lighting - I try to buy bulbs somewhere other than the LFS. Home Depot sells 'daylight' (daylight bulbs are usually ~6500K AFAIK) fluorescents in many sizes. It's a nice temperature for viewing and plants and the bulbs cost very little compared to a pet shop/LFS.
