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aquarium lighting

2K views 4 replies 3 participants last post by  Oldman47 
#1 ·
Is a t8 8000k bulb a good choice for a freshwater tank with live plants that are relativly new to the tank. Is it too much light for angel fish. Will it cause too much alge growth?
 
#4 ·
Ahh, unfortunately, you're going to need to upgrade if you want to keep your plants in that tank.
34 watts of T8 is BELOW low light. You'll need 3-4 times that light to have any luck with your swords. You may be able to get away with slightly lower lighting for java moss, or java fern, but you'll still need to upgrade your light to be able to keep plants. Also, just as a note, florescent tubes need to be replaced every 6 months, as parts of the spectrum will burn out, which is bad for plants and good for algae.
On the other hand, light is not going to be a source of algae problems in this tank, and it's certainly not too much light for your fish! :D
 
#5 ·
The spectrum can be anything from the normal daylight type around 5500K to a hig energy spectrum around 10000K and be fine for your plants. The real issue is the amount of light not the spectrum. For a 55 you want to get at least 80W of light for a moderate planting of easy plants like you have. Because you have a 55, the quickest and cheapest way to do that is to get a twin tube fluorescent shop light at the local home improvement store and mount it over your tank. Even if it uses the slightly lower powered T-8 bulbs it will give you enough light for the plants and will get you going.
 
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