55g planted tank. What lighting is needed?

[tsweers89]

So im getting together a freshwater aquarium to start. Want to make sure i do enough research and have everything before i start. This is were my question come in.

Im going to be doing a planted aquarium. What lights do you guys recommend to work with? What kind of bulbs? I know i want to go T5 and i see many T5 fixtures ranging from $100-$500. What do i look for? I dont need the best, something in the middle is what im looking for.

if you could link me or give me a specific one to look for that would be great. I dont need the best but i dont want the worst. something in the middle is what i am looking for. Any advice would be appreciated.

Thanks

[louistheloach]

hi,

there is really a lot to consider when setting up a planted tank, not the least of which is the type of fish.....some will really tear up your plants, others may occaisonally nibble.....most probably just appreciate the more interesting habitat.

I have a 125, I use a fixture called the Hagen Glo dual bulb. It produces a light that is on the high side of med. There are many plants that will grow under this light. I also use CO2 and I fertilize with a home brew - PMDD (poor man's dosing drops). Buying the commercial fertilizers would cost me an arm and a leg. There is lot's of info out there about mixing your own.

here is what you have to keep in mind: Plants need: Light, food, a source of CO2, and an appropriate substrate. Many plants are able to absorb their nutrients from the water column, but many also require a rich substrate. The higher the intensity of light you have, the greater the demand will be on the plant for growth. That means you will have to have adequate nutrients (nitrates, minerals etc) and an adequate amount of CO2. If that formula gets out of balance (high demand / low food or low CO2) you will have algae issues, plant death or very low growth rates. When the plants are growing well it will keep the water well oxygenated which makes it an inhospitable environment for algae, your fish will also be much healthier and have fewer problems with disease.

You also have to remember that the greater the growth in your tank, the more puttsing you will have to do as far as pruning etc. They can quickly take over the tank. Do a lot of research on the plants you are looking at for size and placement etc., and maybe even have a drawing of the tank floor, showing placement of plants, rocks driftwood, allowing room for growth etc., before you start purchasing. It will be more cost effective to get your plants all at once due to high shipping fees. You will also want to throw in a bunch of stem plants which are generally faster growing while you wait for the others to mature and fill in.

good luck

ltl

[enthusiast1]

something in the middle, 2wpg (watts per gallon)

My 75 gal gets about 2.75 watts per gallon, i grow val, wisteria, pennywort, water sprite, java moss, & christmas moss. They all grow well and the val has exploded!

[texas9850]

i have a 55 and I run a JBJ 48" 260w Its works great....got it for like 200 bucks

[peanutbowl]

what do you use as a carbon source? sounds like a pretty cool tank.

[Jay]

puttsing

I love it when you use highly technical terms like that

[steve7680768]

Low to moderate lighting would be more like 2 wpg than 3. If it was me, I assume the 2x24" that you have are standard aquarium lights, about 20 watts each. I'd convert the 2 by 24" to 55watt bulbs. You can get very nice coversion kits from AHsupply.com. The directions are easy to follow and the parts are very high quality. I wouldn't go higher than that with lighting unless you are going to be adding CO2.

You will proably find having two light fixtures more convenient than having a single long one.

Depending on the kind of cichlid, they might tear up the plants. So anubias, java fern would be good candidates. They tend to leaves those alone.