# Upgrading planted tank, have some questions



## destructo (Aug 12, 2009)

I recently bought a 75gal tank to upgrade my 35gal along with a 48" Aquaticlife HO T5 dual strip light. I have yet to set up the tank, as I am building a tank stand for it in a week or two. Now for my questions.

1. With the 48' 108 watt light, where does that put me, in high light or med light category? Will I be able to grow other plants then just java fern and crypts?

2. Will I need to use CO2 with the HOT5 light or would Excel be fine?


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## ubr0ke (Jul 12, 2011)

it puts you in high light if you use the legs provided ...You will need pressurized co2 with that light..excel will not work..but you have a few options if you dont want to add co2..first option is raising the fixture about 10" above tank..this will also give you a better spread of light...the second is using a window screen over top of the tank to cut the intensity..


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## Zebrapl3co (Mar 29, 2006)

108 watts over a 75G will only put you in medium lighting. That means your choice of carpet plants are limited. Excel would become expensive to dose for a 75G (5 ml per 10G => 35 ml each day, in ~ 1 month you finish 1 L of excel). You will probably be better off with CO2 and fertz.

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## destructo (Aug 12, 2009)

SO which is it high or med light? lol 

I am looking at pressurized CO2, but for the time being Excel may be my best bet. 

I would like to do DIY CO2 but with a 75Gal that would be impossible from what I have read.


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## ubr0ke (Jul 12, 2011)

wpg can only be applied to t8-t12 fixtures...

If you using pc or t5ho fixtures it doesnt work..ex...a tek t5ho is approx 3 times as bright as a t12 or t8 at the same length...so how could wpg work?
t5ho and pc fixtures have to be measured with a par meter to determine intensity.. Par meters measure Photosynthetically Active Radiation..which basically means it measures the useable light for plants..

A guy from another site measured a bunch of different fixtures with a par meter and came up with a chart to help other choose lighting..The guy's name is hoppy from plantedtank.net...

heres the chart...All measurements are from directly under the bulb...so it doesnt account for spread..par levels drop off as you move away from under the light...










This isnt exact since not all fixtures or bulbs are created equal..Relectors in high end fixtures can make a big difference..but it gives you a general idea of what to aim for..


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## ubr0ke (Jul 12, 2011)

stop wasting ur money on excel...buy metricide 14...its the same shit but its not made by an aquarium company so its cheap....


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## george (Apr 11, 2009)

Ubroke, from your point of view, if I buy for example this http://www.aquatraders.com/ProductDetails.asp?ProductCode=52123P&CartID=2 and I put it on top of the 75G tank I will have high light?


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## ubr0ke (Jul 12, 2011)

I would stay away..they have a rep for starting on fire..they run hot, there noisey...
The par levels off the chart are based of a Catalina fixture..which is a higher end light..so expect a lower end fixture to be less intense..crappy reflectors make a big difference.

how deep is the tank?..


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## george (Apr 11, 2009)

I've read the same things about the fire hazard but that was based on their old ballast. They changed it and the new buyers are happy with them. 

Regarding the tank, it is a 75G so it's 20" tall.


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## coldmantis (Apr 5, 2010)

fire issues were with MH not T5HO, I have 2 of these one 2x24w and 4x39w with 6 blue leds, the 24w one is perfect for my 20g tall the 39w on my 45g tall is way too much light. fyi aquatraders ships fast expect to get it in 3-4 days and I never had to pay any taxes for either of the fixtures.


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## george (Apr 11, 2009)

I just ordered a 78W (2 x 39w) for my 65G and a 108W (2x54w) for my 75G. To think of, only the price of bulbs are close to what the fixture costs. BTW, how good are their bulbs? Should I look into changing them or are they ok?


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## coldmantis (Apr 5, 2010)

how good are their bulbs? some of my plants grow an inch a day and I have to do weekly trimmings. If your going for lots of red plants then I would suggest changing out the bulbs other then that use it first see how your plants grow then decide to take out the wallet and get better bulbs


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## ubr0ke (Jul 12, 2011)

the problem with t5ho fixtures is that they are really intense directly under the bulb but the spread is not the greatest...If your tank is 20"...I would suspend the light 12" above the tank...this way the light is spread out...that would put you at medium light...IMO high light plants are kind of a myth...high light plants typically are just more co2 demanding...you can grow healthy compact "high light" plants in low light..as long as co2 and ferts are non limting..they just grow slower...tropica has a pretty good article regarding this...

this 20g tall has 1x24watt t5ho


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## Zebrapl3co (Mar 29, 2006)

ubr0ke said:


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Just because it's T5HO doesn't really mean you gain alot. It basically give you more penetration so that the light will reach the bottom of your tank without losing too much intensity.
But going by this guy's chart. A 75G is around 48X24X16, assuming you have a leg for your light, it's at least 4" off the surface. So 24" + 4" give you medium ligth ...

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## george (Apr 11, 2009)

75G is 48x18x20.


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## coldmantis (Apr 5, 2010)

odyssea lights don't really have legs like the more expensive fixtures, their "legs" are more for extending the fixture to a large size and not really for raising the actual fixture. So


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## george (Apr 11, 2009)

I think you wanted to say something more or that was about it?


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## ubr0ke (Jul 12, 2011)

the reason i suggest raising the fixture is so you have more wiggle room...
with high light you have a high demand for co2 and nutrients..if you don't meet those demands...you will see algae....

If you raise the fixture to lets say 10"...it puts at medium light or close to it...
It makes it a whole lot easier to keep co2 and nutrients at non limiting levels...
and light being your limiting factor...

you can slowly lower your light to increase growth but remember co2 and nutrients also have to be increased due to demand...nutrients can be easily looked after by dosing ei...that leaves co2...if when lowering your light you start to get algae..then ur co2 demand is not being met....so you either increase co2 or raise ur light back up...


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