29g planted tank questions.

  • We are currently upgrading MFK. thanks! -neo
If you use the lights from hagen, then make sure you use the life glow 2 bulbs. Hagen also just released a new line of HO T5 bulbs. They are VERY affordable.
 
WyldFya;749365; said:
PC and CF are one and the same. Power compacts are great lights, where a 24" fixture can have a 65 watt bulb. This is what I would recommend, 1 30" fixture. Make sure to get the planted light, 6700K bulb.
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Where can I get one of these bulbs? Online? I frequent all of the lfs here in town, and have never seen these. Could you recommend a good website?
 
WyldFya;749472; said:
The fixtures are not run in the same way as a normal fluorescent fixture. The bulbs are close ended, and the fixtures in larger sizes must have fans, as these bulbs get very hot.
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So what you are saying is that I can't buy one of these bulb and put it into the ballast that i am using right now?

I'm just using the regular hood that came with the kit. 30" ballast, 24" fixture. A 24" power compact wouldn't work in this?
 
No, you will have to buy a new fixture all together. The ballast, connection points, power use, and bulb type will be completely different. Once again, what kind of plants are you planning on keeping? This will greatly affect the type of bulbs that will be the best for you.
 
before you go out and spend the extra $$ on a powercompact, will you really need the extra light? based on what i've heard from other people who own the coralife t-5 striplights they're are fairly happy, the advantage of the strip light is that the bulbs are 30" long so they light the entire tank without any shadowed corners, a 65w pc bulb is only 22" long so while the entire bottom is nicely light the taller plants in the ends don't get much light. if the plants you want don't need the extra light from a PC bulb then you'd just be wasting money on a more powerful fixture and will be encreasing the chances of having an algae take over. later on if you decide that you really need the extra light you can always buy an AHsupply retrofit and stick that into the coralife fixture or a 24" t5HO retrofit from josh'sfrogs.com for $30(probably could use a better reflector but for the price it'd still be fairly cheap) or if your good with electronics, i'm horrible, you could a) buy the coralife fixture and replace the ballast with one from a 2x36" shoplight or b) buy a 24" shoplight and do an ODNO setup.
 
I personally don't like the current USA fixtures, as they are poorly made. A lunar light is simply an LED that is blue or white, mimicking moon light.
 
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