Martymc83 Posted April 11, 2017 Report Share Posted April 11, 2017 Hi All Could I please get advice on which T8 tube to replace my dead 30' one? The tank is a Aquaone AR850 165L 84x44x59H and it holds 2x30' 25W and 1x23.5' 20W, The remaining 30' tube is a aqua one daylight tube and the 23.5' tube is an aquaone tropical tube. The tank is low tech with Cryptocoryne wendtii, watersprite, a bit of java moss and some recently added twisted val. Since it has been added the twisted val leaves have started to go brown at the ends so Im thinking I might need a bit more light? I did add flourish excel every few days before I added the Vals but seen that it might melt them so I have stopped adding it. Also Since the tube has stopped working my watersprites new growth has been more white than green? All advice appreciated I was looking for a daylight tube ~ 6700k as I have read that will be the best to grow plants but I cant seem to find a 30' daylight tube here in Christchurch either in pet stores or hardware stores or trademe! Does anyone know where I could get one? My lfs seems only to have the aquaone tubes, powerglo's and aquaglo's in 30', what would you guys use? I have searched this forums and seen a few people saying powerglo is good for a planted aquarium Thanks in advance guys Martin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nays Posted April 14, 2017 Report Share Posted April 14, 2017 I have the same tank, bought it second hand and it came with Hagen 30" tubes fitted. I looked for cheaper non-aquarium 30" tubes but couldn't source any so in the end I ordered the Aqua One tubes, one 30" daylight, one 30" tropical and one 23.5" tropical as they were less expensive than the Hagen. I've actually stopped using the 23.5" tube as I was getting some sort of black algae/bacteria stuff that looked disgusting and was killing off the plants. Running just the two big tubes is working out well, the plants are fine, still slowly growing and the tank is basically algae free as long as I use minimal ferts. Honestly I wouldn't stress too much about what tube you get, none of your plants are particularly demanding so it probably won't make much difference. Usually plants will go pale when grown in too little light. I would guess that the dieback on your Val is either just normal transplant shock or a reaction to the Excel. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Martymc83 Posted April 15, 2017 Author Report Share Posted April 15, 2017 Thanks nays, Went to lfs today and there was none of the aqua one 30' tubes, picked up a power glo cheaper anyway and I'll see how that goes. Hopefully the plants will get more green back. Marty Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nays Posted April 17, 2017 Report Share Posted April 17, 2017 Just had another thought Marty - you may want to consider replacing your other tubes depending on how long they've been in use, even though they're still working. Their spectrum shifts down as the tubes age which means they put out less light that is useful to plants. The recommendation is to change them every year, I believe that's based on 8 hours use per day. Then again, if your plants perk up and are happy with just the one new bulb, and you're not having algae problems, you probably don't need to bother :-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Martymc83 Posted April 17, 2017 Author Report Share Posted April 17, 2017 Yep will get another 30' it hasn't been quite a year since I got the tank but its not far off. If you don't mind I would like to ask you what ferts you use? My plants are not hard to grow but I'm just interested as would I like to add a few more demanding ones in the future. Thanks Nays Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nays Posted April 18, 2017 Report Share Posted April 18, 2017 Dry ferts and Flourish, but I'm still trying to find the right balance in that regard, my tank's only been set up a few months so I'm definitely a novice. Got brown algae and green water, when I stop dosing ferts they go away but I've got very soft water and zero nitrate without the ferts, so then the plants start going downhill... hopefully as the tank matures it will improve... at least I seem to have got the lighting sorted. We started with mostly stem plants but the tetras have developed a taste for some of them so now trying out crypts, etc. Definitely a work in progress! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Martymc83 Posted April 19, 2017 Author Report Share Posted April 19, 2017 Ok Thanks again Nays The plants seem to be getting on ok, It's early doors but the val is putting out runners so it must be getting sufficient light now Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nays Posted April 20, 2017 Report Share Posted April 20, 2017 Awesome! A new baby crypt emerged from my substrate in my other tank today, nice to see them settling in isn't it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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