lighting question

[joeg]

I'm new to aquariums as well as this forum and i'm hoping you can clear something up for me.

Most things i read about lighting tend to be turtle, fish, or plant specific... i am setting up a tank that will have all 3. (75 Gallon tank, Red Eared Slider, fish/plants TBD)

My tank came with a hood that has a single 48" fluorescent T8. I have a Reptisun 10.0 32watt UVA/UVB bulb for it. This should be good for the turtles (in addition to a UVA basking bulb i have for the basking spot).

My question is this... will that bulb be sufficient for fish/plants (ie. photosynthesis) as well? Do i need a full spectrum bulb as well? (which would mean i need to buy a new hood)

sorry to be so long winded. thanks for the help.

 

[Toby_H]

First point, be sure there is no glass or anythign else between the bulb and the basking animal. Glass, Plexiglas, etc will filter out 100% of the UVB rays turning your high dollar UVB bulb into nothing more than an expensive low light bulb.

Your bulb will work for low light plants, but for plants with higher needs you will need special plant lighting.

 

[andyjs]

That bulb may support some plants, but it doesn't really matter because that turtle will make sure none of them have the chance to grow. A young slider might not eat the plants too much, but it probably will at least accidentally tear them up while swimming around. As it ages though, it will start being more herbivorous. You'll also need fast fish or they might also be eaten

 

[paul112]

For fish, try White Cloud minnows, Danio species, Tiger Barbs - nothing slow moving or too expensive, and having schooling fish in large numbers mean that each one will have a smaller share of the turtle trying to hunt them, whilst if you just have one or two, they will be hunted to exhaustion. Fish will inevitably start to dwindle in numbers, but I've kept these species with my slider for several months at a time before there is a noticable loss.

For plants, I've tried and tried, but it's extremely difficult to find something that a slider wont tear up, and is non-toxic. I've tried most aquatic plants from pet stores, plus various types of pond weed, water lily, marginal plants - nothing manages to last long. I must have spent a small fortune on plant species, and nothing has ever lasted longer than a couple of weeks. If you find anything though, let me know!

Reptile UV lighting should be sufficient for most aquatic plants, although the addition of a similar fluorescent meant for planted aquariums is likely to help too.

Best,
Paul

 

[joeg]

thanks for the advice guys! i'll let you know how it works out.