Go ahead and give it a try just keep in mind that ur best bet will be lower light plants like java ferns, java moss, crpts , anubis, etc it will be a low light tank and have slow plant growth i would recommend adding a good substrate but you may want to wait until youve decided if the lights are going to work for you or not .BadOleRoss;3998018; said:
What part of plant lighting am I mis-understanding?
- Thread starter BadOleRoss
- Start date
heres a alternate method with lumens, its up to you to figure out how many each bulb puts out, note this does change based on kelvin ratings.
http://www.monsterfishkeepers.com/forums/showthread.php?t=73446
http://www.monsterfishkeepers.com/forums/showthread.php?t=73446
OK, one more question. Like I said, this tank is about 29-30" deep, would you purchase the plants up front and plant the tank as you filled it, or would you add a handful of plants over time and just get wet planting them? I have a tankless water heater so 300G of 80 degree water is not a problem.
mgk;3998725; said:
Using that method, it puts me more up around the moderate to high lighting area. Recommended for most tanks w/o Co2. I like that!
fishbum;3999246; said:
I guess adding plants is not like adding fish. You dont need to cycle a tank for plants!
I would plant the majority of the tank before i filled it then adjust as it fills but definitely buy a ton of plants first cant wait to see the pics when its filled and growing
Lumens measure visible light, and are weighted based on the sensitivity to the human eye (which peaks in the greens.)
Photosynthesis occurs from light in the deep red and deep blue ranges, of which the human eye sees very little. Greens don't help much, if at all.
Everyone has different bulbs, outputting different spectrums at different efficiencies with different quality reflectors. I truly don't believe you can quantify it in watts per gallon or lumens per gallon or anything else per gallon.
Maybe if manufacturers started rating their bulbs based on a unit of brightness which is weighted for photosynthetic activity, there would be a proper way to select a lightbulb.
Photosynthesis occurs from light in the deep red and deep blue ranges, of which the human eye sees very little. Greens don't help much, if at all.
Everyone has different bulbs, outputting different spectrums at different efficiencies with different quality reflectors. I truly don't believe you can quantify it in watts per gallon or lumens per gallon or anything else per gallon.
Maybe if manufacturers started rating their bulbs based on a unit of brightness which is weighted for photosynthetic activity, there would be a proper way to select a lightbulb.
BadOleRoss;3999082; said:
all at once, or as many as you can. That should help curb algae growth, usually the initial start up is the most trying time in a planted tanks life, due to algae.
jschall;4001467; said:
Granted, I am still trying to educate myself on this lighting mess, but wouldn't going by lumens and the kelvin rating satisfy both the unit of brightness and the photosynthetic activity?
