ok, so i'm doing some research on what kind of lighting would be best for my new tank which won't be setup until probably summer or at the earliest spring break.

i did a go0gle search about aquarium lighting, and it basically said the recommended lighting for freshwater fish is fluorescent lighting.

so far i am planning on getting two 24" light fixtures, and WAS planning on getting the Current USA Satellite 24" 65 Watt Power Compact Fixture-Single Strip W/Lunar Light, but after some reading i've realized that that may not be what i need. i wanted it basically because i want both regular lighting and lunar lights. i currently have 3 goldfish, barebottom, but eventually want to add live plants. so... with that said...

what kind of lighting is recommended?

should i go fluorescent with at least one white bulb and one blue or red for plants? and if so what about the lunar lights? would those have to be separate? or is that above listed Current USA light ok, but just go for a higher "model" that has room for at least one more light for plants? *sigh* this is so confusing.

all i really know right now is if i want plants, i should have at least 2-5 watts/gal for the plants. the site recommended one white and one blue light (or a plant light if affordable). i just personally want lunar lights, but i don't know if they are compatible with the fluorescent light setup.

oh i guess i should also mention that i'm trying to keep things affordable since i still have to purchase adequate filtration (i'm thinking one canister, one HOB if affordable. otherwise, two HOB power filters), a stand (which i think my bf is getting me now), python, and plants eventually.

If you want to save a buck or two on the lights for your aquarium check out the fixtures made by Coralife. They're pretty well made and IMO are the best value in aquarium lighting when it comes to power compact fluorescents. Plus, you can get the moon lights.

Here's a site where you can compare both the Coralife and Current USA fixtures.

http://marineandreef.com/

thanks for the suggestion bak2it...

i checked them out, and the coralife one does sound/look better. i'm guessing the one they have at bigalsonline isn't the same...

Bigalsonline light fixture

is the price difference so big because the site you sent me has 4 bulbs instead of two and includes two fans? (i'm looking at the 48" on the way bottom the dual linear strip light).

so expensive!

so if i were to buy the one from marineandreef.com, i should probably get the adjustable mounting legs so it would be easier to access the tank?

eh.. the edit button disappeared... but another question...

if i get the 4 x 65 watt 48" on the marineandreef website, AND i wanted to get lunar lights... would i just substitute one of the bulbs with a blue LED bulb? or would i need to get the coralife lunar aqualight 48" (which is currently out of stock?) heh... *sigh*

The link to the light at Big Al's is for a T-5 fluorescent fixture which is a heck of a lot cheaper than a fixture containing power compact fluorescents. A 48" T-5 bulb has only 28 watts. A 24" power compact bulb is 65 watts.

Marine and Reef has all kinds of light fixtures. Your choice really boils down to whether you want to have live plants or not. If you're not going to have live plants the fixture at Big Al's would work just fine.

OoOo.. haha i see. thanks for the clearification. i didn't realize T-5 and power compact were different.

welp okie dokes then. i suppose it'd be the better deal to just go ahead and get the power compact in case i ever do decide to get live plants... that way i won't have to worry later about getting lighting, bulbs, new fixture etc.

coralife freshwater aqualight (power compact version) it is!

::edit:: or would it be alright to just get the coralife lunar aqualight (not specifically made for freshwater)?

The only difference between the freshwater and the marine versions are the bulbs. The freshwater version comes with 6700K bulbs and the marine version has an Actinic bulb and a 10,000K bulb.

I decided on the 2 X 96W marine version with two moon lights because I didn't want to have live plants and I like the way my tank and my fish look with the Actinic bulb on. I used to run the lights as a dawn dusk setup, but here lately I rarely turn the 10,000K bulb on because the tank just looks too bright.

hmm ok, so IF for the time being, i run my tank w/ fake plants... i can use the 10,000K marine version bulbs... but if i eventually want to get live plants, do you know if the hood bulb connector thingies (haha sorry don't know the technical term) are also compatible with the 6700K freshwater bulbs? or would it be ok, since both light fixtures are made for 4 X 65W light bulbs? (does that make sense? )

i guess what i'm trying to say is... it's not the amount of "K" the bulb is, as long as the watts are the same for the bulb right? so i could just buy a different bulb, and the lights could be interchanged depending on whether or not my tank is planted?

haha thanks again for all the explainations and help!

Yep, it's the length, watts and the pin connection (either square or straight) of the bulbs that you have to match. As long as everything matches, You can use any color bulb in the fixture. The 10,000K bulb would be fine for plants it's the Actinic bulb you'd want to replace.

excellent! thanks SOOO very much!

so now i'm reading about UV sterilizers... do you happen to own one of those too? any recommendations on which ones are good?

haha i'm making my list of "stuff to buy" for my fishtank, and i know that a UV sterilizer is not absolutely necessary, but i figure i might as well learn and figure out which one i would want IF i ever do decide to buy one. the lights were a must for me though.

As a matter of fact... I own three. And since we've been talking about Coralife products... They also make a relatively good UV sterilizer. I have a 3X model on my 29 gallon hospital tank and it does a pretty good job.

http://www.marineandreef.com/shoppro/sterilizers_Turbo.html

But if you want to get a really good UV sterilizer take a look at the ones that are made by Aqua. Aqua has been making UV sterilizers for commercial applications since 1975. They also make their own bulbs, and they guarantee the full rated output of the bulb for fourteen months. As far as I know they are the only UV manufacturer that sells a unit with a wiper that will clean the quartz tube without disassembling the unit.

http://www.marinedepot.com/aquarium_uv_ult..._uv.asp?CartId=

I have two Aqua UV sterilizers, a 25 watt and a 57 watt. Both of them have the wiper option and they are GREAT units. I use the 57 watt unit on my main 90 gallon display tank and it keeps the water so free of bacteria and other nasties that, in a pinch, I'd drink the water from that tank.

The wipers aren't a waste of money option. when I do the yearly bulb change there is very little build up on the quartz tube. All it takes to clean the quartz tube is a quick wipe with some vinegar.

i was actually looking at the coralife ones.

okay, so i know the purpose of UV sterilizers and from the little page about UV ster's on the marineandreef website, i have an idea of how they are set up and stuff.

so is there any specific requirement for wattage for diff. size tanks? or is it basically higher wattage => more intense UV light => denatures more genetic material in the "yuckies"?

thanks by the way for providing me with all this great info, bak2it. i think you are my new best friend.

I wish there where some simple absolute rules to determine what size UV unit is need for any size tank, it would make the choice of a UV unit a lot easier.

Basically, it's all about how long the water is in contact with the UV light. The longer that the water is in contact with the UV light the more nasties are killed by the UV light. So the more wattage a UV unit puts out, the higher the GPH flow rate can past through the unit and still be effective.

The size of the nasty that you want to eradicate determines how much UV light is needed. UV exposure is equal to [uWs/cm(squared)]. Don't worry about what this stands for, all we need to know is how many of these units are required to kill the nasties in an aquarium. Common Bacteria are killed by 15,000 units, Waterborne Algae are done in by 22,000 units, Most Parasites bite the dust at 45,000 units and Protozoa need a whopping 90,000 units or more.

In the case of the Coralife Turbo-Twist 3X 9 watt: to kill parasites the flow through the unit needs to be 55 GPH, to kill algae 121 GPH and 253 GPH will kill bacteria. The Aqua 57 watt will kill parasites at a flow rate of 1066 GPH, algae at 2133 GPH and bacteria at 3500 GPH.

OK so how does this convert into what size unit should you get for a tank. From what I've read, the minimum turnover rate should be 1X - 2X per hour. I personally don't think this is enough and recommend 3X -5X per hour. The 57 watt UV sterilizer in my 90 gallon tank does 10X per hour.

wow... so this will get to be expensive.

hmm okay, soo higher wattage => the greater the effective "zapping" gph flow rate

so with what i understand, the way it's hooked up is

water from aq. = pump = mechanical filter = UV ster. = back to tank

so... if the UV sterilizer comes after the filter, and say i had a filter that filtered 350 gph, does that mean i would have to buy a UV ster. that can at least work at that rate?

I believe in running the entire output of the filter through the UV sterilizer, but it's not necessary. If you're using a cannister filter, you can add a "T" fitting and a ball valve into the return line from your filter and split the return flow into two separate streams, one straight back into the tank and the other through the UV and then into the tank. Then you use the ball valve to adjust how much water goes to the UV sterilizer.

Another way is to run the UV sterilizer as a stand alone system with a small power-head. A lot of people use this method, but I don't suggest it unless you use a pre-filter before the power-head. If you pump water directly from the tank into the UV sterilizer it will coat the quartz tube with gunk very quickly and reduce the efficiency of the UV sterilizer.

hmm... i think i would want to run all the water coming out of the filter through the UV ster. too... just seems more... haha clean i guess.

so in my case, if i purchase a canister filter, i want to get a UV ster. that includes the rate of the output of the canister filter right? so if i get like a fluval 404, i would want a UV ster. that can at least take 340 gph and still be effective?

Yep... You've got it.

YAY... thanks for ALL your help bak2it. if i have any other equipment questions, i will come knocking on your door! j/p... i'll probably just pm you. THANKS SO MUCH though!!!

No problem. It was my pleasure. If there's anything else I can help with... Don't hesitate to ask.

Rick

Thanks Tinko! This helped a lot!

Here are some links with charts that sum this up pretty well (about the lights - not the UV but the same site has some great articles about UV, too - Dr. FS articles give a good basic grounding I find - articles at www.aquariumpros.com great, too)!

http://www.drsfostersmith.com/pic/article....tid=287&aid=228

http://www.drsfostersmith.com/pic/article....pt_id=0&aid=350

http://www.drsfostersmith.com/pic/article....pt_id=0&aid=354

PS - Com eto think of it I remember peeking at this thread but it was over my head - then I only remembered it being about the UV...

thanks for the links graham!