re:Lighting through side wall?

To: Aquatic-Plants at actwin_com (Aquatic-Plants)
Subject: re:Lighting through side wall?
From: "David W. Webb" <dwebb at ti_com>
Date: Fri, 2 Feb 1996 14:35:08 -0800
Conversation-Id: <BMSMTP8233003705a0206807 at dlep1_itg.ti.com>

>From: "Shane Earl Wernsing" <wern0047 at gold_tc.umn.edu>
>
>   I have a 55 gallon tank and am thinking of adding some plants.  I'd like to 
>start small in order to see how green my thumb is.  I thought I would get a
few 
>hardy plants (Java fern?  anything else?) and place them on one side of the 
>tank.  Then, I would set up a bulb on that side of the tank and illuminate the 
>plants through the end wall.  Is the glass on the side too much thicker than 
>glass on the hood for this to light plants?
>   Thanks for any help

This should work, but expect the following:

1. The plants will grow in the direction of the light.
2. You'll get more algae on the lighted surface than normal.

David W. Webb in frozen Plano, TX