2800k too low for plants?

[Nickgsr]

are the 2800k flora glo bulbs too low for plants and what range is good 5500-6500k? thanks

[armthehomeless]

Re: 2800k too low for plants?

I've always heard 5500-6500K was a good range.

[eklikewhoa]

Re: 2800k too low for plants?

That kelvin will work but it won't be pleasing to the human eye....also you say its flora-glo?

I'm guessing that's the std. Fluorescent t8/t12 which by itself would be very low lighting to sustain plant health/growth.

[Nickgsr]

Re: 2800k too low for plants?

That kelvin will work but it won't be pleasing to the human eye....also you say its flora-glo?

I'm guessing that's the std. Fluorescent t8/t12 which by itself would be very low lighting to sustain plant health/growth.

ok guess i should give some more info since i need help overall with the plants not just lighting. I have a 72 gallon bowfront with the double 48" lights and i recently purchased three sword plants(1 amazon and other two not sure either brazil or ratican) and one hornwart plant. I replaced both lights with the flora glo since it was recommended for planted tanks and it has 40 watts each at 2800k which im now reading might be too low for plants. they are t-10 bulbs.I know thats barely over 1 watt per gallon but iv read thats enough for a bare minimum till i can upgrade my lights. I also added a nutrafin co2 system and im not sure how to read the co2 levels but my ph dropped from roughly 8.1 to around 7.5 within 24 hours and kh dropped from 20 to 18. I used sugar and one teaspoon of dried yeast for my mixture and have been getting 50-60 bubbles per min so im pretty sure the co2 levels are atleast high enough that my plants should not be dying but they are. Im also using a fertillizer called leaf zone for added nutrients. The hornwart seems to be doing well but the amazon swords leaves are getting thinner and lighter by the hour and are starting to get holes and overall just withering away.
Any help would be greatly appreciated and if i left anything out please let me know.
Nick

[Nickgsr]

Re: 2800k too low for plants?

almost forgot, my substrate is a mix of aquatic plant soil from home depot and regular gravel with river rocks.

[eklikewhoa]

Re: 2800k too low for plants?

Not enough lighting and no where near enough co2....

[wesleydnunder]

Re: 2800k too low for plants?

I think 2800K is gonna be at the very low end of the wavelengths your plants will need. I've always had really good luck with 6700K, but have 6500K as well. I was told that dropping the ph a full log from 8.1 to 7.1 will put your co2 in the 25-30 ppm range. I agree with ek that light wattage is low. Also, DIY co2 is gonna be a pain eventually. I'd go with pressurized the first chance you get. With co2 and higher wpg, you'll want to look into ferts also.

Mark

[Nickgsr]

Re: 2800k too low for plants?

ok then so im looking for my ph to drop down to around 7.1 then for a good co2 level?... seems like a huge drop for the fish...and whats the problem with the natural co2? cant i just add another one of the same system? as for the lighting, if i were to add another single 48" tube fixture would it be worth the cost or should i look into a diff type of lighting all together?
thanks for all the replies everyone i appreciate the help

[mahoro]

Re: 2800k too low for plants?

the co2 you are using now is a waste of money, with the size of your tank, even with 6 of them won't be good enough...  even with diy, its still pain in the ( Y ), you might want to do a pressureized setup...

[Nickgsr]

Re: 2800k too low for plants?

well i looked into the pressurized and i wanted to know if the systems that hook up to the paintball co2 tanks are any good and also how long could a 12 or 20 oz tank last on one of these systems before needing a refill since i already have a few of these tanks. If there is another system which is better and still affordable <$200 i am open to other recommendations

[Ramius]

Re: 2800k too low for plants?

address the lighting issue first, then c02.

c02 is only useful if the plants are receiving enough light to actually use it. t10 bulbs are not powerfull enough, neither are t8's, get t5's.

Once you do that, then you can move onto the next issue which would be c02/fertz. Fertz are really a non issue. C02 will be, I do not recommend the paintball can method, it's a pain in the butt, the bottles will be cheaper up front but will cost more in the long run. The kits cost the same money to buy paint ball/Standard. Spend the extra money, buy a 5/10 pound bottle (I bought a 10 it was only 20 dollars more) then when you go to refill it you are looking around 15 bucks. Which... could last you a while.

Right now, lights are your problem, not c02.

[Nickgsr]

Re: 2800k too low for plants?

address the lighting issue first, then c02.

c02 is only useful if the plants are receiving enough light to actually use it. t10 bulbs are not powerfull enough, neither are t8's, get t5's.

Once you do that, then you can move onto the next issue which would be c02/fertz. Fertz are really a non issue. C02 will be, I do not recommend the paintball can method, it's a pain in the butt, the bottles will be cheaper up front but will cost more in the long run. The kits cost the same money to buy paint ball/Standard. Spend the extra money, buy a 5/10 pound bottle (I bought a 10 it was only 20 dollars more) then when you go to refill it you are looking around 15 bucks. Which... could last you a while.

Right now, lights are your problem, not c02.

ok im a bit lost on your response its kinda vague... so your saying that the overall system is ok but just to buy a larger co2 bottle to use with it rather than the smaller paintball bottles? and as for the lighting, even with a triple light tube with 3- 40 watt bulbs giving me 120 watts on whats basically a 55 gallon tank with an extra half circle in the front(where there are no plants) it still would not be enough? I figure i can sell my double tube fixture and get a triple for not much more and then reuse my current bulbs which i just bought and just buy one more rather than spending a few hundred dollars on some t5 lighting but if the triple light would be a waste anyways then it does not do me much good anyways...

[Ramius]

Re: 2800k too low for plants?

Ok.. heres the deal.

On C02, yes, the bigger bottle is better in the long run. You will get tired of messing with the paint ball refills. I promise.

However, to have a better understanding of how plants work.. ok.. the c02 is like food to the plants.. so.. in order for them to need the food, they have to be hungry. How hungry your plants will be depends entirely on how much and what type of lighting they receive. The more lighting they have, the hungrier they will be for more nutrients to grow. So... add c02 in on top of that and then suddenly you will find yourself weeding your tank on a weekly basis.

On lighting, it's not so much about the wattage but the ability of the light to penetrate into your tank. Since water is more dense than air it takes more power to push through to the bottom. a t-5 light will penetrate it's rays deeper into the water than a t-12 or t-8. A metal halide will go the furthest (but not needed for this application) That is why you see that cool ripply effect on the bottom of tanks with MH's.

Now.. with less lighting, you need less c02, that is why I said upgrade the lighting before you upgrade the c02, otherwise your kinda wasting your time. It's not that you won't see a difference, because you will see one, but, only a fraction of a difference compared to a properly set up tank.

From there you get into the various kelvin ratings, 4500k to 6000k is considered the best for plants. Some times they can look kinda bleh though. In my case I had six bulbs, four 4500k's and two 10k's. The 10k's did squat for the plants but, made the tank look better, in my opinion.

You can get a good t5 set up for not too bad.. I bought a six bulb set up with fans and everything from a member here (Lord forgive me I forgot his name, but I remember his face) for like, 125.. with six new bulbs installed too.

[eklikewhoa]

Re: 2800k too low for plants?

Ramius pretty much nailed it.... As for the paintball canisters.....gonna be painfully tedious.

[Nickgsr]

Re: 2800k too low for plants?

aahhh its all coming clear now thank you for the explanation, its always better to know why your doing something! I actually moved my non rooted plants to the top of my drift wood  and turned off my airstone(i know should have done this sooner) and within 24 hours they both look way better. the hornwart seriously grew an inch or more in every direction. But like i said now i know what i need and more important why i need it, so ill be looking for a deal on some lighting and co2 so i can finally have a nice planted tank! Thank you very very much for taking the time to help me out and hopefully when i get everything going ill get some pictures to post up of the final product.
special thanks to the CAK club haha