# Best light for growing plants



## Doktordet (Sep 22, 2006)

So I stopped by Petco today and was thinking of changing my current 20W fluorescent bulb (5500k) with a 17W (10,000k) bulb. The tank is a 40g breeder. On my current bulb, the plants are growing fine, but will the switch to the 10,000k bulb yield better results? The tank is a non-CO2 setup. I dont intend to change my light fixture to a new one and would just prefer to use what I have to keep costs down. Thanks.


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## TFMBIGDOG99 (Mar 19, 2006)

Not sure how serious you are, but damn is metal halide worth the money. 8800K Metal Halide Amano Bulb, make sure its the GREEN ONE tinted one....Had it for a year and I find a way to trip out daily looking at the tank. But if you have compact flourescent lighting or regular flourescent go with one 6700K bulb, and one 10000k bulb, the combination makes it look sweet.


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## Doktordet (Sep 22, 2006)

I dont have compact fl. lighting. I was thinking of getting one at Petco but it was like $220! Cheapest CFL was around $100, bulbs included. I only have a cheap All-Glass Aquarium hood light that has one 24" fluorescent bulb in it.


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## Doktordet (Sep 22, 2006)

TFMBIGDOG99 said:


> Not sure how serious you are, but damn is metal halide worth the money. 8800K Metal Halide Amano Bulb, make sure its the GREEN ONE tinted one....Had it for a year and I find a way to trip out daily looking at the tank. But if you have compact flourescent lighting or regular flourescent go with one 6700K bulb, and one 10000k bulb, the combination makes it look sweet.


Yeah MHs rock. I have 3 metal halides in my main show tank. This one is just for my home office...so not anything serious here. Just trying to find out how to maximize my current fixture. I could imagine how a combo of 6700k with 10000k would look. Very nice!


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## Uncle Rico (Sep 4, 2005)

What are the implications of a higher or lower kelvin rating. What is the difference between a 12000K vs lets say a 6000K. What does the heat actually mean, does it have to do with spectrum? When would you want a lower kelvin rating and when do you want it higher?


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## traumatic (Jan 29, 2003)

the actual color of lights or kelvin rating is based on this scale.

a 6700k bulb is typically blueish
a 10000k bulb is typically pinkish
a 2700k bulb is typically yellowish










from TidalGardens.com


> What does a Kelvin Rating mean? The Kelvin color temperature of the light source is the color of light emitted by a "black body" when heated to a certain temperature measured in Kelvins (K). As the heat of the material increases it undergoes a color change from the warm colors to cooler colors. Unfortunately, the ratings when applied to a particular bulb mean almost nothing. When you see a bulb described as a 10,000K bulb, you can derive very little from that label. Some bulbs, depending on the manufacturer, have a yellowish color while others are bluer than the bulbs labeled as 20,000K. The Kelvin scale is now a marketing tool more than an unbiased indicator of bulb color. There are even bulbs out now that are marked 50,000K which is interesting, considering the visible part of the scale doesn't go that high


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## DiPpY eGgS (Mar 6, 2005)

> So I stopped by Petco today and was thinking of changing my current 20W fluorescent bulb (5500k) with a 17W (10,000k) bulb.


If you want to grow just crypts, moss and java ferns, your light is fine, and the K rating is fine too. If you don't want to grow any medium light plants, you're golden


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## Doktordet (Sep 22, 2006)

DiPpY eGgS said:


> > So I stopped by Petco today and was thinking of changing my current 20W fluorescent bulb (5500k) with a 17W (10,000k) bulb.
> 
> 
> If you want to grow just crypts, moss and java ferns, your light is fine, and the K rating is fine too. If you don't want to grow any medium light plants, you're golden


Dippy, not sure what these plants are called. Got them from Hater and some of the small ones sticking out of the ground were from my lfs. Forgot what these plants are called, but if you know them or looks familiar, need ur adivce if they are high or medium light. There are 3 kinds of plants in there. The most obvious is the morimoto moss ball. The second plant is the one in the pictures that is the most prominent. It's like a vine with roots growing out of it's stalk and grows vertically; snaps easily too. The third one has very tiny roundish leaves and grows in clumps.

I also got the 10000k bulb and it is somewhat of a whiter color than my old bulb which was sort of pinkish. Personally, I love the pinkish bulb as it highlights the browns, reds and orange colors. But Im willing to stick it out with this whitish color if it would benefit my plants more.


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## DiPpY eGgS (Mar 6, 2005)

U sure u have only .5wpg on that tank? -Looks bright in there lol

5500k is fine, but if you like the 10000k bulb, that's fine too.

The big plant with the longer leaves looks like _Hygrophila polysperma_ and the small plant looks like _Hemianthus micranthemoides_

They are both medium light plants


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## Doktordet (Sep 22, 2006)

DiPpY eGgS said:


> U sure u have only .5wpg on that tank? -Looks bright in there lol
> 
> 5500k is fine, but if you like the 10000k bulb, that's fine too.
> 
> ...


In these pics, I was already running the 10000k 17w bulb. Thanks Dippy.


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