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Your comments on my inquiry to AH Supply

Below is a copy of an inquiry I sent to AH Supply 
(http://www.ahsupply.com).

Are these acceptable light levels for a planted tank using PMDD fertilizer 
and CO2 addition?

What color temperature would you recommend? They have 5300, 6700, and 
10,000 deg in the 55 watt bulbs, and 5000, 6700, and 10,000 in the 96 watt 
bulbs.

Any comments you have would be greatly appreciated. BTW, the delivered 
cost, including bulbs, for the 2 x 96 kit is $208, and the 4 x 55 kit is 
$233. I will build the enclosure, as I ran across some beautiful red oak 
plywood I just could not pass up.


-----Original Message-----
From:	Douglas Guynn [SMTP:dguynn at nwol_net]
Sent:	Saturday, March 10, 2001 4:18 AM
To:	'info at ahsupply_com'
Subject:	Your recommendations, please

I have a 70 gallon 48L x 18W x 18D.

Using the Brite Kits, how much light do I need for a planted aquarium. I am 
aware of the 3 to 4 watts per gallon rule common in the hobby. Using the 
reflectors you provide should cut this down some.

My first guess was the 2 x 96 kit would probably be adequate. This would 
result in 192 actual watts over the tank. Using the 162% figure from your 
website, this would be equivalent to 311 watts. This results in 4.4 watts 
per gallon.

Second guess was one 4 x 55 kit. This results in 220 watts, or 356 watts 
equivalent, 5.1 watts/gallon.

The difference would be coverage. The 2 x 96 watt kit would install with 
the back bulb on one side (left or right) of the hood, and the front bulb 
on the other side. This may result in dark spots in the corners where there 
is no bulb, as the bulb is 12 inches shorter than the hood. I could mount 
the bulbs in the center of the length of the hood, leaving a 6 inch gap on 
both ends

The 4 x 55 watt kit would install with one bulb front left, one front 
right, one rear left, and one rear right. The 21 inch bulbs would leave a 5 
inch gap in the center of the tank. As above, I could move the bulbs one or 
two inches from the end, leaving a smaller gap in the center, with an 
equally small gap at the ends.

Is the corner/end coverage issue a significant concern? Which setup would 
you recommend?

Douglas Guynn
	Home
	dguynn at nwol_net
	915 368 5411
	Work
	dguynn at hess_com
	915 758 8605

Nobody cares in what direction you want the wagon to
go if you won't get out of it and help push." --Jonah Goldberg