# lights too much???



## j66213b (Jul 29, 2006)

6,700 k 150watt/55gal so almost 3 watts per gal obviously ill need co2 which i have but is that still too much light?? will it fry my plants or just burst algee?


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## pirayaman (Nov 3, 2007)

i say way to much light but dont even listen to me cause i dont know squat on this stuff i can tell you though that i have a 210 planted tank and i have 2 shoplights each containeing 2 bulbs at 40 watts each and my tank is bright plus its a 210 your talking about a 55 the light will deff hit the plants much faster with more intesity than in my tank i would say use 100 watts even 80 for that size tank but then again im not the lighting guru so


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## j66213b (Jul 29, 2006)

I dont know I tanked to a guy that does just plants and he said between 2-3 watts per gal and 6700k lights so thats what i did it just seems like alot..


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## pirayaman (Nov 3, 2007)

see ithink it als odepends on the tank depth but hats just me it seems like the guys who know all this stuff only reply we they want so i dont know i reply cause i see someone in need of a awnser i hate serching the topics real pain in the a-s so but thats just me


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## j66213b (Jul 29, 2006)

i agree... Thanks for the imput though!!


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## traumatic (Jan 29, 2003)

150 watts on a 55 is not a lot. It's about average for a well planted tank. You will need to experiment with fertilizer and if you want - CO2. It is not a necessity to have CO2, but it will boost your plant growth, health, reproduction and will help keep algea stable.

As far as wattage goes, I have a 28 gal tank, I fully intend on putting between 110 and 130 watts over it. BUT I will choose my plants carefully, and work on keeping up w/ solving the riddle of how much/how often to fertilize, as well as having CO2, my tank will become less stable at first until I get it figured out. It's not a huge issue to have a lot of light on a tank and there's really never TOO MUCH light just how you use the light. WATTS PER GALLON IS A MYTH!!!


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## ryanimpreza (Jul 19, 2006)

j66213b said:


> I dont know I tanked to a guy that does just plants and he said between 2-3 watts per gal and 6700k lights so thats what i did it just seems like alot..


this is an avg. amount of light. for a 55 gallon. I have seen light up in the 6 wpg. Yes you will need co2. good luck and post some pics.


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## rbp 4 135 (Mar 2, 2004)

i would recommend co2 because with 3 wpg you could grow some nasty algae in a hurry, also plant fast growing plants first, to establish a competition with the algae early on. I personally run 3 wpg on my planted tank, without any issues, and am receiving great plant growth.


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## Sacrifice (Sep 24, 2006)

rbp 4 135 said:


> i would recommend co2 because with 3 wpg you could grow some nasty algae in a hurry, also plant *fast growing plants* first, to establish a competition with the algae early on. I personally run 3 wpg on my planted tank, without any issues, and am receiving great plant growth.


What are some fast growing plants? Im getting ready to start a 125g planted tank and would be very interested in some fast growing plants to help with the algea.


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## DiPpY eGgS (Mar 6, 2005)

I didn't read the whole thread, but

3 wpg, you will absolutely need 30ppm CO2. 
You will absolutely need Nitrate, phosphate, iron, potassium, and micro nutrients to dose

I have 3wpg over my tank, but I like lush plant growth, and higher light plants. You will be able to grow most higher light plants in your tank. So in that way, you are not limited to which plants
you can grow except for the most difficult plants to grow such as Toninas, and Eriocaulons

However, you will have less of a learning curve, or less room to make mistakes with your water params. Remember, with your setup, you will absolutely need to maintain at all times 30ppm CO2, 10-25ppm nitrates, .5-2ppm phosphates, 20ppm potassium, and dose micro nutrients, and extra iron
I say extra iron only because if I don't dose a ton more iron in my tank than seems necissary, all my new growth turns a pale white, and looks terrible

hope that helps


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## j66213b (Jul 29, 2006)

pics of planted tank and fry tank with the light c02 my plants are 2x the size of a month ago some algea at first but gone now.....


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