Lighting needs

  • We are currently upgrading MFK. thanks! -neo
N

nicko378

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
Apr 24, 2012
167
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Central New York
Hello. I have recently started planting a 50 gal tank I have. I currently just have dwarf hair grass and micro swords in there for plants. I do not know what kind of light is on there as this is a tank I acquired off of Craigslist. I assume nothing special. I was wondering how necessary is t for me to buy a light specifically for plant growth?


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2 watts per gallon. essentially a 2x54 watt system will work fine or 1x108 watt. Oh and 5,000k - 10,000k range. I always buy lights according to future projects as well. Don't be afraid to go a little more than what you need in case you ever decide to mix and match set ups.

The plants you have don't really need co2, so lighting and some type of substrate should be fine, preferably a soil type.
 
most aquarium lids come with standard fluorescent bulbs that are not suitable for plant growth. They are used to see your fish that's it. If you plan on going with a good amount of live plants or even aquascaping, you'll want to follow my 2watts per gallon, except for when you go larger than 75g tanks. You can try to see if there's any compatible bulbs for your current fixture. If not, t5ho is the way to go for plant growth.
 
Dwarf hairgrass requires alot of light if you want it to spread and grow like crazy, it will live at lower light but wont look as nice, get a few 5000k-6000k lights and they will be fine
 
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