[DSumma15530]

Hey, wasnt exactly sure where to post this question....I'm new to the forums and new to planted freshwater aquarium in general. I recently purchased a 60 gallon tank with dimensions of 48"Lx13"Wx24"H. My tank came standard with two 17 watt T8 lights. I assumed these were much too weak as I had been caught up in the old Watts per gallon measurement. I purchased an aftermarket T5HO lighting fixture which has four 54 watt bulbs at 6500K. I plan to run this fixture with only two bulbs switched on giving me 108 Watts total over the tank. Now that I've been reading much more I am afraid this lighting may be too much. I want a lowish tech setup where I do not have to supplement CO2. Now I am afraid these T5s will cause a huge algae outbreak as they are being complimented with eco-complete substrate? Is this lighting much too strong? It results in 1.8 wpg....sorry for the long post, I have plants arriving this week and would really love for everything to go smoothly. I am planting, Amazon Swords, Valliseneria Spiralis, Cryptocoryne Spiralis, Cryptocoryne parva and Echinodorous Tenellus(pygmy chain sword) Thanks so much for any help. It would be most appreciated. Sorry if this post is in the wrong place, once again!

 

[DSumma15530]

Please

 

[yakal]

IMO you should be fine, since your tank is 24 inch high, watch how the plants respond to the light. do adjustments on how plants respond

 

[jeffkrol]

What he said...

 

[NatureGirl]

I had the same exact wattage when I first started on my 75 gallon tank. Although mine is only 21" high. I think you will be fine since your tank is 24" high. You may only get to have 7-8 light hours per day though. The heavier you plant at the beginning the better though. That way the plants eat up all the available nutrients and algae has less of a chance to take hold.

 

[DSumma15530]

Thanks for the replies guys, I was hoping that the fact that my tank is a bit taller at 24" would warrant this type of lighting. Light should be arriving Monday.... So we will see if this results in a massive algae outbreak or not.