lights ????

viva la viv · #1 10-19-2009, 10:46 PM

Before i ask my question I would like to give you the specs on my palu. The tank is 3ft x 3ft x 6ft high the pond in the botom is at most 9 inch deep it has 2 pc fans on speed control switch, one just above the water the other 2ft from the top on oposite wall, both pull air from outside the tank..Thats about it. Oh! and for those that care it has a fluval 205 ext filter(which i love)
It is home to 1 cwd 3 years old...And now the ? the lighting used to be 4 56watt t5 suntech fl. It is a very good light but did not have the penitrating power to reach the bottom so i went and bought a 250watt MH coral light the bulb says 10000k full spectrum hqi pure crisp white peaks in 420-460nm from hamilton tech. IS this light OK I paid almost 400$ for it so while i can still return it I would really appreciate some input on it. Thanks in advance

beckdg · #2 10-20-2009, 12:22 AM

should be ok. it isn't the greatest spectrum in my opinion for terrestrial plants though. it should still have great penetrating power and reach the bottom without a problem. the plants should grow too.

Epiphile · #3 10-20-2009, 06:38 AM

I second beckdg regarding the spectrum. And make sure you're moving all that heat away from the tank, too.

What are you growing in there? I'd love to see a photo if you have one handy.

viva la viv · #4 10-20-2009, 07:13 PM

thanks for the response I asked about light because of all the reviews i read on other sites some good some bad I got nervous when i read that they can explode and there is no radiation shield on the bulb only on the reflector which you must inspect for cracks from time to time...as for plants, right now there is only wal-mart specials in there I gave all the good plants to a buddy till i get my lighting issue worked out but i must say they had some nice plants there. 75$ stuffed it full and it looks good The one thing i'm missing is ephitites(think i spelled that wrong) there is never a good supplier around me specially in the winter(If someone here wants to part with some i'm interested) In the water area there is sword plant, java moss/fern ,flame moss, onion, spear grass and a bushy green plant donated by a friend sadly they are in poor health due to weak lights and poor substrate, I think eco-complete will take care of that. I have a construction log going when i can get the end results i'll put it up..the cage has a good overall design i can take it to a shell in 5 min and put it up just as fast any way you'll see when i put up the log..so you all take care and have a safe yet scarry haloween this year. Bye

jason_sps · #5 10-09-2010, 03:03 AM

This may be a silly question but, is it unheard of to put lights on the bottom of the tanks? I mean, I was thinking about putting lights at the bottom to shine up and through the river pebbles I plan on putting in the bottom, just in case the top lights don't shine all the way down.