[lochaber]

I recently acquired an old (but unused) eclipse I twin bulb. I'm pretty sure it will put out more light then I want to deal with on a 10-gallon for low-tech, (also, once I get substrate in there, there won't be much room for plants).

I was thinking of getting one of the 20 extra talls, they have the same footprint as a 10 (20"x10"), but are ~24" tall.

what sort of light levels would two 15watt T8 NO bulbs put out?

Looking at some of the charts and calculators and stuff, I'm guessing that it will be on the high end of low-light, but I wanted to see what other people thought.

Thanks

 

[rrastro]

That's pretty much what I've got on my 20 XT, also known as extra high, except my fixture is from coralife. I have heard that it is a bit on the low side but it suits me just fine. I don't dose ferts too often and I don't run CO2. If I wanted to see faster plant growth it might be a limiting factor but the highlight of my tank is the livestock.

 

[lochaber]

That's pretty much what I've got on my 20 XT, also known as extra high, except my fixture is from coralife. I have heard that it is a bit on the low side but it suits me just fine. I don't dose ferts too often and I don't run CO2. If I wanted to see faster plant growth it might be a limiting factor but the highlight of my tank is the livestock.

Thanks rrastro, that's about what I want to do, I'm not interested in messing with CO2, and I don't mind slow growth.

 

[rrastro]

No worries.
If you ever want to talk fish / tanks IRL, El Cerrito isn't too far from Oakland and I'm at as many SFBAAPS meetings as I can be with other helpful Bay Area aquatic enthusiasts.

 

[lochaber]

hell, I completely missed your location bit...

I've been hitting a few of the San Francisco Aquarium Society meetups (where I got the eclipse...), but haven't yet made it to any of the sfbaaps... I think I initially ran into some delays or something during registration, and then neglected to check back in. I've stopped in at Albany Aquarium a few times, and I'm likely to order the tank through them, I've been pretty impressed with their store.

Anyways, thanks again for the first-hand account of the tank/lighting set up I'm thinking of, and thanks also for reminding me of the sfbaaps, I've been meaning to check up on that, I just never managed to follow through, etc.

 

[rrastro]

Albany Aquarium is where I ordered mine from. They are a bit more pricey than a standard 20 or 20L but when you need something to fit in that footprint..... you do what you gotta do. I love Albany Aquarium for being an excellent lfs but many of their things are overpriced, especially plants. I've gotten so many more plants through SFBAAPS for free than I could ever afford from Albany Aquarium or anywhere else.