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Re: Aquatic Plants Digest V4 #592



> ErikJW2000 at aol_com
> Subject: Lighting a 10 gal
> 
> I was wondering, if you have enough light, does it really matter with the
> temp (k) of the bulb is? Can you use 3000k bulbs if there is maybe 4-5 watts
> per gal?

Yea, but you'll be happier with the 5000K to 6500K bulbs(they look better to
your eyes) but cool whites work too. For your 10 gallon-2x15 watts with say
a 5000 and 6500K bulb would give you nice results for peanuts(those under
the counter 18inch fixtures for 5.94$ at Home Depot with bulb). You can get
6500K and 5000 K bulbs cheap at most large hardware supply places for 2-6$
ea ........maybe less. If you want 4-5 watt a gal go for it but you'll need
a fair amount of CO2. The combo idea of different colors does well for the
plants. The plants will grow but you'll have better growth with the higher
temps or a mix. I used Quartz lighting for about 5 years to see about
this(3050K) and had great results but I like the bluer colors for the plants
growth. Quartz has a much nicer color than the cool whites and lower temps
yellow bulbs.   
Regards, 
Tom Barr