# Is this enough light to grow demanding plants?



## petemaz (21 Apr 2016)

Hi All,
I'm just setting up a new tank (in the cycling stage at the moment); it's a 50x50 cm cube, 60 cm high. I have a JBL ProFlora CO2 system set up - not running yet as currently no plants.
The lights I have at the moment are all LED: 2 x Fluval Aquasky 50cm @ 16W each and ADA Aquasky Moon 40W - I know, a bit funny that these two released a product under the same name. The lights will be about 12 cm above the water, mounted in the hood, and there is glass cover on the tank.
The hardscape and substrate are already in - I've got ADA Tourmaline BC, Clear Super, Bacter 100 and Power Sand M, the top layer is Tropica Aqua Soil (I bought it before deciding on ADA and it seemed a shame to throw it away. Average water depth is 45 cm.
I'd love to be able to grow successfully plants like rotala macranda, rotala 'bonsai' and a few others - by successfully, I don't mean that I want them to just grow... I'd like them to thrive, with the best colours and growth possible.
I don't have a PAR meter, so don't really know what light intensity I'll have.
Any advice will be gratefully received Thank you.
Please let me know if you need any more info.


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## Staticrzr (21 Apr 2016)

from my little experience i think this is a huge huge overkill.


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## alto (22 Apr 2016)

Both of these lights (& that Fluval name is no coincidence  ) are really designed for 30cm - 36cm high tanks, emitters used are ~0.4 watt each & these are aligned in an array (rather than a cluster) ... so you will have blasting light in the upper half of your tank & much lower PAR at the substrate level.
If you want "high tech" grow anything light, I suggest you sell these lights on & invest in a single Kessil  or Ecotech Radeon etc (there are several other brands as well that offer high intensity LED technology)

(don't worry about distance through air as this has much less effect on decreasing PAR than distance through water)


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## petemaz (22 Apr 2016)

Staticrzr said:


> from my little experience i think this is a huge huge overkill.


Thank you for your opinion Staticrzr - have you had a chance to try those lights, or similar ones?


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## petemaz (22 Apr 2016)

Thank you Alto - very helpful and very informative! 
I actually did think of one of those you suggested, but I was advised that they cannot be mounted inside a hood... shame
I've also got an Arcadia 30W spotlight that I managed to pick up recently (second hand) - not mounted in the tank at the moment - I spoke to Arcadia and they said that these can be used inside a hood, no problem.
When I looked at their parameters online, they don't deliver a particularly high PAR with the standard 120 degrees lens, but there are 40 and 60 degrees lenses available and those offer a much higher PAR at 50-ish cm depth - I've done some calculations and with 40 degrees lens, the 'cone of light' should cover the whole substrate area, maybe apart from small bits in the corners... - would you think adding that spotlight would help?
Again, thank you for your help and advice.


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## alto (22 Apr 2016)

This article offers an analysis of a reef marketed LED but the general concepts remain the same with freshwater versions (except the intensity/PAR is generally dialed down so as not to completely melt fragile plant leafs  )

Orphek PAR test  - I believe the "wide" is a 120* lens, while the "narrow" is 90* lens - note the shape of the actual light distribution curves (all lights, including T5, generate this sort of distribution curve, any statement of X PAR for a given light is an averaged value) ... earlier LED versions offered narrower than 90* lens but "burning" from the concentrated beam was an issue so most current Reef etc LED's offer 90 - 120 degree lens (I've seen the odd 130* )

You can obviously try the 40 & 60 degree lens, but expect very intense light areas & rather shadowed areas

I'm a bit dubious about Arcadia's agreement re mounting their LED inside a hood - I doubt they have cooler running LED's than industry standard ... if by hood you really mean a "box" that surrounds the lights, you likely can get away with Kessils in there as well, just make sure of ventilation & perhaps add some fans
You might choose a lamp of interest & contact the manufacturer & discuss pros/cons of "hood" mounting - ask for someone in the technical department rather than going through sales etc


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## petemaz (22 Apr 2016)

Thank you again, Alto.
I'll digest the info and make a decision - luckily, I've still got at least 2-3 weeks before i'll be able to put any plants in, so plenty of time to make any changes - at the moment the ammonia is completely off the scale, released by the substrate, and nitrites only started showing a couple of days ago.
So, would you say that the lights I have now don't really give me a huge chance of success? I mean, the Fluvals and ADA?
As for Arcadia's agreement, I can't really call it an 'agreement' as such - I spoke to a very nice chap in their technical dept, and he said that they are not designed for hoods, primarily, but they have been mounted in hoods by various people and there was no adverse effect on the performance or lifespan, these particular spotlights have massive heat sinks, so I suppose this is what helps.


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## alto (22 Apr 2016)

That sounds a bit more like what I'd expect (re Arcadia response)

Current lights will certainly grow plants, you'll just need some trial & error for what does best - especially longer term.

I have a 55 deep tank with Kessil A160 & mostly run at lower light re fish I like to keep, so growth is slower & CO2 levels are lower (again a fish consideration for me), so it really just depends on your goals


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## micheljq (22 Apr 2016)

Hello tank is high, 60cm, not easy to have high PARs at the substrate.

There is the Orphek PR72 planted version, Kessil A160, but Kessil A360 Tuna Sun is more powerful and probably more appropriate, especially if you want to be able to grow rotala macrandra.

http://kessil.com/aquarium/Freshwater_A360.php

TMC Aquaray's Grobeam 1500 Ultima (2 years warranty, 5 years if registered with them, my prefered), IP67 protection lights.

Some of the leds lights you could check.

I would definitely forget the Fluval's, they will not cut it.

Michel.


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## petemaz (22 Apr 2016)

Thank you guys, your advice and comments are very much appreciated
Very good food for thought.
I'll put some pics on, once I've got the plants in, and will post an update as to what I've done with the lights.

Thanks again,
Pete


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