Aquarium lighting for Java verns?
java fern will grow in any lighting in my experience keeping it. Just don't bury the roots and attach the plant to a large rock or driftwood with a rubber band or fishing line. Incandescent lighting is not very good for live plants since the spectrum is not ideal. You want to get a fluorescent fixture with bulbs that are a full spectrum.
Do you need any special lighting for plants if your aquarium is next to a window getting sunlight?
?1 How much time does tank get sunlight??2 Is it direct or indirect?!3 Make sure your tank does not rise in temperature due to the sun.The sunlight is pretty strong to grow aquarium plants in a healthy way. Unless its winter or too shady you won't need special plant lights. A simple LED will suffice just to light up your tank.Plus you will have to take care of nemesis: ALGAE! With so much light (direct and indirect) if there are too few plants algae will thrive.To counter algae, #1 have some fast growing plants eg, valisneria. #2 ensure there is sufficient water flow in tank. Algae thrives in stagnant water better. #3 have some herbivore fish that grazes OR have some shrimps OR uv filter.#3:1 herbivore fish: these are chiclids or any other fishes like catfish, etc that grazes on algae growing on rocks, glass and driftwood. However keeping them depends on several factors like compatibility with other fish, and size issues. Some grazers like common pleco gets too big for normal tanks so research on this.#3:2 shrimps are nice. Along with lots of plants that provide ample hiding places, your shrimps will thrive. Unless there are fishes that are big enough to hunt down each shrimp, a bunch of shrimps will make your tank a happy place.#3:3 uv filter is a nice addition to take care of algae in extreme cases. Its just like a regular filter but with a UV lamp inside it. You only use it for a 1–2 hours daily (depends on aize of filter, tank, and algae infestation). I suggest its use in evening so that any algae that is free floating will be exterminated. If you have excess algae, and no fish or plants, run it in morning and evening.Hope this helps.Happy fish keeping.
Is light necessary in a fish aquarium?
LIGHT plays a very important part in the maintenance of biological equilibrium in an aquarium, and it is therefore essential that its quantity and quality should be sufficient.Natural light from the sun is insufficient in quantity for an aquarium tank situated at the back of a room, but may be excessive for one placed on the window-sill, at least in summer. Although its quality is excellent, natural light cannot be regulated satisfactorily. It should not, therefore, be used as the sole source of illumination for an aquarium, but only as a supplement used in moderation.Fluorescent lighting is the most suitable type for an aquarium, provided the correct type is chosen. Very white light is not suitable, and the best fluorescent tubes for an aquarium are those designed for horticultural purposes.Duration of lighting:In normal aquarium tank with a suitable number of fishes and plants, the lamps should be switched on for about eight hours a day during the first three months after the tank has been set up.Finally, it should be remembered that although fishes have no eyelids and cannot, therefore, close their eyes, they still need to sleep. They should, therefore, have a period of at least eight hours darkness in the twenty-four, and care should be taken not to switch on the lighting too suddenly as this may cause a form of panic.
Shop Light for an aquarium!?!?!?
Most people that have large (50 tanks or more ) fish rooms use shop lights Just get the types of bulbs that suit you best You can even experiment using 2 different spectrum bulbs since most shop lights are double bulbed. I grow mostly floating plants and use shop lights to on my 70 + tanks On figuring wattage and light exposure time needed to grow some plants you must also consider the depth of water the light has to pass thru to get to the plant.The power of the light rays deminish the deeper the tank is I have friends in the aquarium club that grow great plants but for some plants they use 2 sets of shop lites ( 4 40 watt bulbs) over a 55 gal tank
How can I grow aquarium plants under LED lights?
It depends so much on the quality of the LED fixture you got with the tank.Such as MarsAqua LEDThere are a lot of plants which do well with low to medium light. Very high light plants are difficult and would only frustrate a beginner, but there are many choices outside the high light category that are beautiful and not too hard to grow well.Mainly, plants need enough light for their needs, enough food and enough carbon. Water has very little carbon. So most plant growers add some, often as a liquid supplement made from Glutaraldehyde. Brand names are Excel by Flourish, CarbonBoost by API, among others. This stuff can make a big difference even to low light, low maintenance plants.Plant families can have many members with the same first name, so full botanical names are very useful to have too. Fertilisers can be bought made up, usually liquid, or you can make your own from basic chemicals too.l Way cheaper, but it's easier to start with the made up kinds.Root tabs are for plants that are heavy root feeders. Swords or crypts are the common ones. Most get too large for small tanks anyway, but they don't do as well with only water column sources for food. So root tabs are the way around it. Some people grow their plants in what are called 'dirt' tanks too. Literally, soil with a cap of gravel or sand. Full of nutrients, plants grow great, but a bit messy and not well suited if you think you will change the landscaping much.
Can I use an aquarium light as a single indoor plant grow light?
1. Incredible Energy & Cost Savings A 90W LED UFO Grow Light produces as much light as a standard 400W HPS (High Pressure Sodium) light. According to the US Dept. of Energy, the average price of power is 10.7 cents per kilowatt-hour. For one year of use (12 hours per day) a 400 W HID light adds $187.46 to your bill while a 90W LED Light adds ONLY $42.18!! That’s nearly 80% less!! 2. Little or NO Heat Produced Unlike traditional lights, LED Grow Lights produce virtually no additional heat. In a side-by-side study, a single-unit LED light had NO significant impact on room temperature after 2 months of continuous use! 3. Eco-Friendly Unlike HPS and MH (Metal Halide) lamps, LED lights do not contain filaments and other toxic metals which are difficult to recycle and harmful to the environment. 4. Last Longer than Standard Lamps An average HID light lasts an estimated 10,000 hours (2.3 years) compared to an LED Light’s extended life of 60,000 hours (11.4 years). 5. No Ballast Needed Unlike other lighting sources that require ballasts that have limited life spans of 3-4 years, LED Grow Lights are fully functioning units that require no additional ballast 6. No Need for Heavy Reflectors Built-in directional adjustments mean no need for costly, hard-to-install parabolic reflectors. The result is a lighter weight, convenient and versatile LED Grow Light. 7. LED Grow Light Outlet EXCLUSIVE While Tri-band spectrum lighting is superior to dual-spectrum, LED Grow Light Outlets offers an amazing 4-Band Spectrum: red-blue-orange-white… ALL IN ONE LIGHT!
Why are aquarium lights SO EXPENSIVE!!!?
Now lets be clear here do you currently have a fluorescent starter? if so the chances are its not strong enough to start up a light that size, however he's correct in the fact that a stronger light will help you to keep plants. I would suggest you try some of the stores on the Internet I'm sure you will be able to pick up a starter and tube for less than that, even the U.K. is cheaper than that which is going some. I would have thought 40/50 watt tube would be better. I'd suggest a tube which peaks in the yellow/red spectrum which is better for the plants and shows of the red's and blue's in fish better. AJ
How should I keep my aquarium light for my zebra danios?
Thank you all very much about the light situation, it helped alot. I also have another question, ive not had my tank that long, 2 days at the most, but my water is already looking milky-white looking. Is that common for a new tank, or did i do something wrong? Before i put the fish in, I used the chlorine killer and everything like they told me to do at the pet store. And also, i was wondering how often should i change my water in my tank?