Dumb question?

Joeymozzer said:

My kit hood with 9 small LED isn't probably the best and might be considered low ligthing, I have a few low-medium light plants, I'm not sure if they will do well. I'm wondering since I really don't or can't upgrade my lights (since I'll upgrade my tank hopefully soon) is it possible to put home lighting around the tank? I have 2 spot/reading lights that are fairl bright and wondering if they might work.

Plants:
Brazilian sword
Anacharis
Hydgrophia compact

Click to expand...

Without getting too complicated.. light is light... it is additive..

jeffkrol said:

Without getting too complicated.. light is light... it is additive..

Click to expand...

As said, more light will cause more growth. However excessive light of the wrong type can cause algae problems. So I'd say try it, and if you see new algae growth, change it up.

I'll try that thanks. I'm not sure if the anachrias isn't doing well, it looks thinner at the bottom and the leaves almost look transparent in a way compared to the top.

Does it matter what kind of play fertilizer I get? Is there one that helps all 3 plants?

I haven't kept Anacharis, but I know its leaves can sometimes appear translucent. However, I don't personally know whether this is a sign of poor health on this plant. If it is like other stem plants, you can occasionally trim the plants, throwing away the rotted bottom parts and replantings the top pieces. This will keep the leaves fresh and new.

All of your plants absorb nutrients through both their roots and their leaves. But the sword plant tends to be more of a root feeder and the stem plants tend to feed more through the leaves. It you don't have a nutrient rich substrate, you should add root tabs for all the plants. You can also add liquid fertilizers to the water. But you have to balance the light and the ferts to prevent algae problems. Too much ferts and too little light or too few ferts and too much light can both be a problem.

Also excel is a nono for anacharis

A pretty reasonable bulb for cheap is getting a bit harder for me to find but you might give it a shot. My first lighting was twisty CFL bulbs from Lowe's. In the prefferred Kelvin rating of 6500K, they seem to have gone out at most places but I find them in light bulb shops. They can be screwed in most any fixture to add some temp light. Any salvage goose neck lamps around?

Someone told me about a marineland fixture that attached to the hood, think it runs $45 or so. Anyone know of which?

Might be this one:
http://m.petco.com/product/116628/Marineland-LED-Single-Bright-Aquarium-Lighting-System.aspx#