# What type of fish tank top do I need for planted tank ?



## ppaskova (Apr 27, 2010)

I'm planning to upgrade to 30Gl fish tank and make it planted tank with low light plants same as my 10Gl tank currently. BA guys told me that I can buy regular 30Gl tank with regular top but I would need to replace florescent light there with the daylight one and also remove protective glass between the light and the tank as it will reflect the light. My question is: Do I need to remove that protective glass form the top canopy or it's fine to keep it for growing low light plants ?


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## Darkblade48 (Jan 28, 2008)

It is fine to leave the glass there. While all of the light will not reach the aquarium, glass is still relatively transparent, and can pass light quite well.


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## ppaskova (Apr 27, 2010)

Darkblade48 said:


> It is fine to leave the glass there. While all of the light will not reach the aquarium, glass is still relatively transparent, and can pass light quite well.


Why all the light will not reach it ? Also if i remove the glass would it be better ?


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## sig (Dec 13, 2010)

The glass breaks the flow of the light and it also never clean. Without glass water will be evaporated much faster.

Buy just tank and get light separately. I got new lamp in BA with T5 bulbs. It is not cheap, but the tank is absolutely different - much better

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## AquaNekoMobile (Feb 26, 2010)

ppaskova said:


> Why all the light will not reach it ? Also if i remove the glass would it be better ?


If I read and understood this right (quick skim) glass has a 92% light transmission. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glass#Optical_properties

Also glass does retain some thermo heat in it along with the air stone bubbling and the evaporation on the glass it'll leave mineral deposits which will further degrade the amount of light reaching the bottom of the tank over time.

You can clean it using vinegar to desolve the mineral deposits and the original light transmission will be restored. Say pending how bad it gets once every 2 months vinegar wipe more/less.


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## ppaskova (Apr 27, 2010)

AquaNekoMobile said:


> If I read and understood this right (quick skim) glass has a 92% light transmission. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glass#Optical_properties
> 
> Also glass does retain some thermo heat in it along with the air stone bubbling and the evaporation on the glass it'll leave mineral deposits which will further degrade the amount of light reaching the bottom of the tank over time.
> 
> You can clean it using vinegar to desolve the mineral deposits and the original light transmission will be restored. Say pending how bad it gets once every 2 months vinegar wipe more/less.


Interesting. So what you are basically saying it should be fine for my low and medium growing plants as long as I keep it clean and clean every two month or so ? But what about cleaning it with windex instead of vinegar ?


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## LexiBadger (Oct 19, 2010)

No no, don't use Windex. You don't want chemicals like that to get into your tank.

I usually just wipe down my glass with a damp paper towel every once in a while and when the hard water spots get too much I use vinegar. Vinegar works _really_ good.


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## Darkblade48 (Jan 28, 2008)

Windex is mostly ammonia and will not help with removing hard water deposits. 

Vinegar and/or hydrochloric acid work well to remove hard water deposits.


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## Lee_D (Jun 11, 2010)

I use CLR, however I make sure I rinse the glass extremely well before it gets near the tank. HCl is nice but i wouldn't recommend it for home use. It will dissolve the copper in your drain pipes. Newer houses are mostly PVC pipes but there is still some copper in your sink.

Lee


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## Darkblade48 (Jan 28, 2008)

Lee_D said:


> I use CLR, however I make sure I rinse the glass extremely well before it gets near the tank. HCl is nice but i wouldn't recommend it for home use. It will dissolve the copper in your drain pipes. Newer houses are mostly PVC pipes but there is still some copper in your sink.
> 
> Lee


Copper will barely react with hydrochloric acid. Using HCl at home is perfectly safe for your pipes/sinks (though personal safety is another issue altogether).


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## Lee_D (Jun 11, 2010)

Curses! Foiled again! I just dropped a penny into a beaker of HCl and although I ended up with a very clean penny, I did not get the spectacular display I expected. We must have been using Nitric when we dissolved the pipes in that home made lab many years ago.

Lee


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## waj8 (Jun 30, 2010)

There are at least 3 reasons for a glass cover. Protects the light fixture from moisture, reduces evaporation and prevents fish from jumping out or shrimp from climbing out. They can block a lot of light however due to light reflecting off the bottom surface in addition to the dirty glass problem. You more or less have to pick your poison. I don't use one but the moisture will probably eventually destroy my light fixture.


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## Darkblade48 (Jan 28, 2008)

Lee_D said:


> Curses! Foiled again! I just dropped a penny into a beaker of HCl and although I ended up with a very clean penny, I did not get the spectacular display I expected. We must have been using Nitric when we dissolved the pipes in that home made lab many years ago.
> 
> Lee


Nitric acid would do the trick


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## AquaNekoMobile (Feb 26, 2010)

ppaskova said:


> Interesting. So what you are basically saying it should be fine for my low and medium growing plants as long as I keep it clean and clean every two month or so ? But what about cleaning it with windex instead of vinegar ?


Inside the tank (I consider the glass lid inside the tank) I only use vinegar for cleaning as if I get any drops or residue of the vinegar after clean up back in the tank it will be ok as it is small amounts and won't shift the pH (tho vinegar can be used as a natural pH down adjuster).

You may have to take a paper towels and a spray bottle filled with vinegar, spray, and let soak about 10-20mins then clean the lid for the least amount of effort as the vinegar will dissolve most of the hardwater stains.

Personally I would NEVER use Windex on a fish tank except on the outside to wipe the glass but a mix of vinegar + water into a spray bottle does just as good a outside glass cleaner job with natural products.


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