Plant choices and lighting questions...

[nekomi]

Hi all,

I'm still getting ready to take the plunge... I'm setting up a 29gal dwarf cichlid setup this summer and I'm planning on trying live plants for the first time.

I'm planning on outfitting the 29gal with a twin tube flourescent hood containing one Zoo Med Tropic Sun bulb (5500K) and one 50/50 tube (50% blue actinic and 50% 6000K full-spectrum light). How does this sound? Would a trichromatic bulb (6500K) be a better choice over the Tropic Sun? Both bulbs are 20 watt bulbs.

Provided that my lighting setup is correct, can anyone recommend some hardy plant species that will thrive under these conditions? (I'm not sure if this is considered low-light or medium-light, so if anyone can answer that, I'd appreciate it... ^^) Since I'm doing a South American setup (Brazil), ecologically-correct plant types are appreciated, but not necessary.

Thanks so much in advance for any guidance you can offer! ^__^

 

[2la]

Because you'll have so little wattage over your tank, you're going to want to maximize your effective lighting by paying close attention to the bulbs' spectra. In that vein, I'd strongly recommend using 2 GE Aqua Rays Fresh & Saltwater bulbs (the bulbs that come standard in All-Glass Aquarium strip lights) or 1 GE Aqua Rays F&S with 1 trichromatic bulb of your choice (the ZooMed Ultra*Sun or Flora*Sun is also a good choice, though the latter is very similar to the GE and gives a very pink glow, which not everbody likes (though I do)). Actinics or 50/50 bulbs have limited application in planted aquaria, especially when wattage is at a premium.

Finding South American plants that will do well in such a low-light setting will be difficult. You may have to settle for cosmopolitan plants such as watersprite if you want to remain true to South America. Pennywort (Hydrocotyle leucocephala) may also have a chance. If you can break the biotope mold, Java moss, Java fern (all varieties), common crypts, and anubias spp. would do quite well in your tank. In fact, I'm keeping these exact same plants in a 7G housing a pair of Apistogramma borellii and some white star tetras. The fish could care less where the plants are from, and lady borellii has been doing the love boogie quite often as of late.

Another thing to consider is purchasing a power compact hood with a 55W bulb, which would allow you to grow a considerably wider range of plant species without necessarily having to resort to CO2 injection.

Regards,

2la

 

[nekomi]

Thanks so much for replying! ^_^ I guess I'll have to go without the biotype aquarium.

Can you direct me to any more information about the power compact hoods? I've never seen one before and I'm unsure about what it looks like, how it works, etc. Thanks again!!

 

[farm41]

http://www.ahsupply.com

 

[M0oN]

Whole lot of online retailers selling compact hoods, drsfostersmith.com bigalsonline.com marinedepot.com petsolution.com etc...

I wouldn't suggest buying any from Custom Sealife as they just went out of business, being sued over protein skimmers burning peoples houses down...

The CoraLife ballasts are probably the best pre-made systems out right now, I own one and it's fairly quiet...

 

[nekomi]

Thanks for replying! Just another question. Is purchasing an All-Glass triple-tube flourescent strip a feasible lighting option? Would this increase the environment to mid-light conditions? Just trying to figure out all my options.

 

[M0oN]

Thanks for replying! Just another question. Is purchasing an All-Glass triple-tube flourescent strip a feasible lighting option? Would this increase the environment to mid-light conditions? Just trying to figure out all my options.

Just need to figure hte wattage in relation to your gallons, anything at around 3 watts per gallon is going to most likely need co2 injection. As long as the kelvin rating is between 5000-10,000k the plants will be able to grow under it...it has to be daylight simulationt hough, not actinic.

 

[nekomi]

Thanks again... after doing quite a bit of research, I think I'm going to go with two 24" 20watt Vita-Lite Power Twist flourescent tubes. They have 5500K, CRI index of 91, and around 2300 lumens, which is pretty close to natural sunlight. They're a bit pricey online, so I'm gonna try to find a local dealer. Thanks again, everyone! ^_^ I'm glad you talked me out of the actinic light... ;

 

[farm41]

You can get real nice tubes for a fraction of the money at home depot. I am using 4 phillips F17T8/TL950 on my 20H. Nice lights, I buy them at my Electric Supply dealer, but you can get the same lights at Home depot. For example, the lights I use on my 4' tanks are F32T8/TL850 and only cost $2.45 each. The shorter 24" bulbs probably cost more, because they are not as widely used.

Anyway, my point is, you get the same light as the aquarium bulbs, but without the aquarium price.