[Date Prev][Date Next][Thread Prev][Thread Next][Date Index][Thread Index]
Re: novice aquatic plants questions
On Tue, 20 Jul 1999, Chuck Church wrote:
> One of the things I am concerned about is the plants going in to shock from
> being in mostly full sunlight to an indoor aquarium. One idea I had was to
> float pieces of Styrofoam in the pond to reduce sunlight and then transfer
> them inside.
I've not done this before. I suspect it would be a good idea to shade
them for a while before bringing them in. Probably not necessary, though
as long as the artificial light indoors is sufficient.
> One of the other big concerns is the lighting. Are the single bulb
> fluorescent lights going to be sufficient or do I need to go to double bulbs?
For most aquarium sizes you need at least two fluorscent tubes running
full (or nearly full) length over the tank in order to have enough light.
More usually doesn't hurt. Incandescent lights in general produce too
much heat to run over an aquarium. They're also inefficient and don't
last long. It's possible to use incandescents but most of us would use
something else - usually fluorescent light.
> What type of inexpensive bulbs will probably be sufficient for success?
For low cost, use cool white bulbs in inexpensive shop light fixtures.
For better color rendition you can use more expensive fluorescent lights.
For a more attractive display you can buy or build a hood.
Roger Miller