petermc Posted April 19, 2009 Report Share Posted April 19, 2009 Hey all. Im currently running two T8 bulbs(39w,power glo) on a 450L tank (1000mm long,700mm high&650mm front to back) I am running the lights for approx 12 hours per day.I have several plants in tank,the cabomba is doing reall well but a couple of the other plants(unsure on sorts) are good and healthy looking on top leaves and the ones closer to the bottom of tank are going brown...Does it sound like the light is not penetrating right to the bottom of the tank? What could my next step be?More light?Another pair of t8's? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phoenix44 Posted April 19, 2009 Report Share Posted April 19, 2009 how long are the lights? and what are the other plants? It could also be a nutrient deficiency that is causing the leaves to go brown. But it really depends on the plant. eg. crypt wendtii only goes brown in good conditions/ but if your swords are going brown it means it is a nutrient deficiency. HTH oh and post some pics! :bounce: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HaNs Posted April 19, 2009 Report Share Posted April 19, 2009 at 700mm you will strugle to get full pen with out metal halides Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whetu Posted April 19, 2009 Report Share Posted April 19, 2009 Yeah 700mm is a pretty deep tank, so the light will have trouble getting all the way to the bottom. You'll probably find that your quick-growing stem plants will shoot up to the top pretty fast, then their growth will get thick and bushy near the surface of the water. This will then compound the problem by blocking the light to the other, slower-growing plants. I can think of a few solutions: 1) Get a lot more lights to increase the wattage (then keep your faster-growing plants well trimmed so they don't hog the light) 2) Get someting like metal halides (which I haven't used personally) to increase light penetration through the water 3) Select plants that prefer low light conditions Do let us know more about the plants you already have - photos are best but descriptions would also help. You may already have some suitable ones mixed in with the others so once you have identified what you have you can try to meet their requirements. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
petermc Posted April 22, 2009 Author Report Share Posted April 22, 2009 The lights are the same length as the tank...i have since noticed since writing this post that also because of the lenght front to back of the tank(650mm) that moving the lights back and foward are showing shady spots and bright spots so could running another pair of t5s be a good option? So you all trim your plants back once they reach the surface of the water? (eg: cabomba)? Thanks for the replies guys... Plants are proving alot more difficult than uptight fish! Pete Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JarrenB Posted April 22, 2009 Report Share Posted April 22, 2009 I'm (with help from this forum) changing from fake to real plants, and I know what you mean I'm been told live plants do great things but all mine seem to go brown and rot before doing anything I think I need more lights too, but they cost so much! does anyone know where to buy cheap lights. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
petermc Posted April 22, 2009 Author Report Share Posted April 22, 2009 Yeh these metal halides...who here uses them on fresh water? What are the running costs like? And what is there to know about setting them up? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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