30 gallon setup need lighting help

[brockfishhawk]

Right now I am using a compact florescent shop light to try and light my 30 gallon planted tank. I am running into a lot of problems with algea and die off. I am think I need a straight forward nutrient plan and better lighting. I am looking for a 20" ho t5 but am wondering where is the best place to get my bang for the buck. I have found a 20" ho t5 ficture on ebay but it is only 36$ and to me that seems low and maybe a bad light.
http://cgi.ebay.com/20-Aquarium-Lig...208?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item43a703f8d0
thats the link. Any opinions will help! I have an amazing sword, baby tears, spiral grass and a couple of plants i cannot remember the name to. Thanks again!

 

[chonhzilla]

That light would work, but it greatly depends on the type of plant you are trying to grow. With more light you'll run into more algae if nutrient demands aren't met or exceeded. The only plant on your list I've seen that may actually benefit from the light are the baby tears, plus with more light you will need more co2 to control certain types of algae. Also with new plants, die off is normal. Most plants will shed old leaves in place of new ones to adjust to it's new parameters.

Good luck
Chonh

 

[brockfishhawk]

Makes sense. I am brand new to the aqua plant world so I am slowly piecing it together. I have a pressurized co2 setup but have been holding back on the amount I use because of lack of light. I have found good info on PAR-ing for the tank and found 2x t5 ho bulbs will be high light rating for my tank http://www.monsterfishkeepers.com/forums/showthread.php?t=73446 (a couple posts down). I also found a chart about ph, kH and the equivalant how co2 should be for set amounts http://www.rexgrigg.com/co2.pdf. Only issue so far is I don't have a meter for getting kH measurements. I also think I have not been feeding the plants well enough. I have been dosing 2x per week with seachem's flourish and 2x a week with seachem excel. My co2 is at 1.5 bubbles per second. What is a good solid liquid nutriant line for my plants?

 

[chonhzilla]

As far as dosing nutrients into the tank, I prefer the EI (Estimative Index) Dosing, where you dose dry fertilizers right into the water column. This method is more cost effective and simple. In addition, there are many different and mixes of micro and macro nutrients to choose from. If you already own a pressurized CO2 system then by all means use it haha. If you want to dial in that CO2 just right then use a drop checker, it'll let you know exactly where you need to dial it in.

 

[brockfishhawk]

I just ordered the Potassium Nitrates and Potassium phosphates online last night. I have the Seachem flourish as a micro/macro, also have the excel though I am not sure about long term use of the excel. Those drop checkers seem cool, definatly easier than Ph/kh readings then looking at the chart... or maybe not.