I have a 55 gallon tank, with 2 standard florescent light hoods. What would be the best bulbs to buy to encourage plant and green algae growth?

Robin

Generally the highest rating you can find, 9000 or 10000k is what most people suggest. But dont pay extra for special "plant" bulbs, regular old "daylight" or the "GE Sunshine" bulbs work just fine, those are often around 6500k. While spectrum helps, the wattage is usually more important to plants. Also, its important to put fresh bulbs in every 6 months or so.

Honestly though, in my experience, I've used 60 watts of normal strip lights on one tank, and 55 watts of power compact lighting on another tank, planted both exactly the same, and the one with the power compacts had much much more growth and healthier plants. So if money isn't an object, upgrade to power compacts and look for the 9000 and 10,000k bulbs.

Myaj,

Can you tell me what power compact lighting is? Do I find it at petshops or hardware stores?

Thanks for the info

Robin

Okay, have you seen those new lightbulbs that are in a spiral shape? Last for 7 years and while they only use something like 15 watts they give the output of 55 or so?

What we use on fish tanks is similar. Only they are longer, still in the general shape of a standard flourescant bulb. They can not go in a standard fixture, you have to buy either a retrofit kit if you are handy, or you can buy regular double or single strip lights. The bulbs come in different wattages, though usually you find 55 or 65 watts. These last longer than standard bulbs when it comes to plants, and the plants really like the light.

They are expensive, but if you look hard you can often find a good sale price or catch a deal on Ebay or AquaBid.

Here's some examples:

http://petsolutions.com/search.asp?t=c&c=102442

Like I said, the prices are scary, but you can find good deals. A lot of these come with what they call a 50/50 bulb, that is half daylight and half actinic, which is intended more for saltwater. Generally you want full daylight, but I've found good deals that it was cheaper to buy the setup as is and also buy the bulb I wanted.

Thanks for the link!

Looks like I need to add something to my Xmas list!

Robin