Lighting advice

[Alien Anna]

Hi Everyone,

I have recently set up a 10 gal tank for my betta and a few black neon tetras. It also contains some mopani wood, some bogwood, a java fern, a dwarf anubias and I've just added some crypts. The plants are all pretty pathetic because the lighting unit had blown in their previous tank.

Now I have the opposite problem - I set up a 15w lighting unit but it looks terribly bright. I'm using a Sun-glo which was originally in another, much deeper tank, but couldn't penetrate the depth. It'll do for the moment (why are fluorescent tubes so outrageously expensive?) but I need to upgrade it. Would would you recommend?

The tank is 18x15x12 (12" deep).

 

[Great Lakes]

Hi Anna. I am sure you are not overdoing it. It may look bright, but you are only at about half the wattage for even medium light loving plants. The spectrums can fool our eyes at times.

Bulbs for our hobby are pricey because they have been "tuned" to a certain spectrum for the best results. The price we must pay..

I have seen a lot of questions on lighting lately. Perhaps it is time for a lighting article. I'll try to post one before the holidays, or just after seeing as how I'll be putting some miles under my feet over the long weekend.

So stay posted...