I have a 90 gallon tank with mostly low light plants. My current lighting is a 130 w pc light that I run for 12 hrs. Im getting bored and want to expand my options a bit so I ordered a 108w t5 fixture from aqua traders. will this be to much ligjt to run 12 hrs? I am injecting c02 and will be dosing ei. Should I want to use both fixtures to get a better light spread my pc light cant cover the tank as well ad I would like.
How long should I run my extra fixture
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Watts doesn't tell us anything. My wife has a 1800 watt hair dryer. Should I hang that over my tank ? See what I mean. Now if you could tell us the PAR output over various wavelengths we could answer the question more precisely. Have you read the lighting sticky's ?
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that's the sort of response that frightens people off.
jl209, is your lighting normal output or high output?
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I suspect it is a 2x54 watt T5HO.
You might start with 8 hours and bump it up a notch every couple weeks if you like how it is going. You also might start with the lights raised up or shaded just at first so as to not shock the plants and to give you a chance to increase your dosing of fertz and CO2 before algae take advantage of hungry plants. Lights might need to be raised for good light coverage as well.
I used to run my lights for 12 hours. Now I run them when I am watching the tank, 3:30-11:30. I kept dropping the light period down watching the plants. Rotala, myrio and wisteria close up their leaves once they are done for the day, that was my cue I didn't need to have the lights on.
You might start with 8 hours and bump it up a notch every couple weeks if you like how it is going. You also might start with the lights raised up or shaded just at first so as to not shock the plants and to give you a chance to increase your dosing of fertz and CO2 before algae take advantage of hungry plants. Lights might need to be raised for good light coverage as well.
I used to run my lights for 12 hours. Now I run them when I am watching the tank, 3:30-11:30. I kept dropping the light period down watching the plants. Rotala, myrio and wisteria close up their leaves once they are done for the day, that was my cue I didn't need to have the lights on.
It shouldn't. It should make them say: I see what you mean. I need to find that out.
Are you asking if it's normal lumens, high lumens or normal PAR or high PAR. Your question isn't precise enough to answer the question accurately.
I know what you are asking. You are asking about efficiency. They don't appear at first blush to know that. What they know is it's 108 watts.
Aqua Traders does not list the important spectral emissions as far as I can see. Answering this question is difficult but that's what we want to do right ?
At the moment there are no precise answers without more product information.
If you are set on this 108W T5HO what you could do is run this new light at midday or mid point in your light cycle for about 3 hours. Instead of running it the full 12 hours. That would simulate peak noontime sunlight.
I dont have access to any product information that I am aware of other than this is a low end t5ho fixture. No individual reflectors, low end bulbs (Im assuming), and probably a lower end ballast. I apologize for not providing more information. I just assumed most of the more knowledgable people could give me a rough ballpark figure of the performance I could expect from a fixture like this. Im basically worried about adding a whole bunch of light to an existing system and throwing it out of whack. Im sure even a low end t5ho fixture can still add a decnt amount of light.
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How many of us, especially those who are new know what PAR their fixture produces? Give me a break. This isn't rocket science or brain surgery. It's a hobby and a the OP could and should have been give a much more helpful response than this. I don't know why you even bothered to post.
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Either fixture alone on a 90 should provide decent light but not high light. The height of the fixture above the tank has a lot of bearing on the intensity of the light. I would start out using the additional fixture for 4 hours and go from there. Give it a few weeks and if you're not getting the growth you're after then try going a bit longer. Be sure to maintain adequate CO2 and O2 by providing good circulation and surface agitation.
It's more than just a hobby. This is underwater horticulture which more than just a stab in the dark and like any terrestrial horticulturist knowing what the products we use can do in more than just general terms is a benefit to the individual and everyone else.
Watts is antiquated. I realized it was antiquated when I got into planted tanks over two decades ago. But there wasn't any better way to determine how well a light would perform. Now we have PAR values.
Every electrical thing consumes energy measured in watts. That's why I used the example of the hair dryer to really drive the point home.
P.S. When I renewed my interest recently in planted tanks I knew nothing of PAR. After reading the sticky I learned a lot. That's what sticky's are for too help.
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This is very sound, usable advise. Use the second light for a few hours and see how it goes. Honestly whenever possible on my display tanks I run my main set around 8 to 9 hours and the second light around 3, but of course this will vary from setup to setup. It's a good way to give plants higher light and not having to deal with algae issues in many cases. I've been amazed at what even 1 hour of high light can do for certain plants. Again assumes good co2, ferts, water change, etc.
It's not you who is at fault. It's the retailer. I looked at their site and I don't see any info on spectral distribution or PAR output. Perhaps someone has measured the PAR values and will post them.
A ballpark guess is all we can give you. It should work though. Plants are fairly accommodating when it comes to lighting. Just keep an eye on algae with this increase of light. And like Jeff said have adequate CO2 and ferts.
Don't worry about making sure of adequate O2 unless you don't have a heavily planted tank. If you do and you don't have a heavy fauna load plants will during the photo period produce enough O2 to last through the night. If not then a air pump might be needed. Do you feel your tank is stock heavily with fish etc. ? Do you feel your tank is now or will be heavily planted ?
C02 will be monitored via drop checker. Ferts will be dosed per the estimative index. Ill start out at 4 hours for the extra light. I will be adding fast growing stems when I add the extra light as well. The tank is filtered with a sump filter and a eheim canister filter which doubles as my c02 reactor so I can easily accommodate more 02 without an airstone. Thanks for the advice everybody.
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