aquarium lights

[Fire eel 18]

Where can i get lights for my aquarium? Home depot?ACE? Lowe's or do i have to buy lights from petsmart petco? the tank is not saltwater and is 48 inches long.

[mnemenoi]

It is a complicated answer. Home Depot and even Wal-Mart all sell standard stock flourescent shop lighting. Most aquarium lighting is sheilded from water and humidity, but these are not. If you can place some glass tops and possibly hang them to isolate them from humidity and provide some air circulation they can be used. In a canopy setting this can be harder and thus why many use ventilation/cooling fans. Spectrum is determined by the bulb and can vary quite a bit. There are a variety of different tpes of flourescent bulb types and each has its own pros and cons, T12, T8, T5, T2, PC.

[johnnymisty]

Post in the b/s/t section im sure someone has some lights they can LTE go fairly cheap

[suicune]

you need to specify what type of lights you're looking for. Most aquarium hobbyists use fluorescent because they are cost effective and readily available at pet stores. Others use LED because they are sleek, small, energy efficient. But LEDs can be quite expensive. There is also incandescent but this type grows a lot of algae, high energy consumption, bust easily... etc. You need to think about how you put your light over your tank too. Most have a canopies with built in light socket so you can put a fluorescent tube on. Some use a glass canopy and set their light on top. A new style is to have open top aquarium, but you will have to top off your tank often due to evaporation.

[cu0ngsayz]

Check out sunnys lighting in the DIY. It's a par38 led flood light fixture.

[mistahoo]

you need to specify what type of lights you're looking for. Most aquarium hobbyists use fluorescent because they are cost effective and readily available at pet stores. Others use LED because they are sleek, small, energy efficient. But LEDs can be quite expensive. There is also incandescent but this type grows a lot of algae, high energy consumption, bust easily... etc. You need to think about how you put your light over your tank too. Most have a canopies with built in light socket so you can put a fluorescent tube on. Some use a glass canopy and set their light on top. A new style is to have open top aquarium, but you will have to top off your tank often due to evaporation.

LEDs are expensive up front, but they save you a ton of money in the long run because the electricity used to run them is so minimal compared to other lighting types. Also, all lights grow a lot of algae. How much would depend more so on how much you are feeding, photoperiod, how much waste is being produced, etc. Canopies are just a wood cover over your tank. A lot of people attach lights to it or retrofit kits and then add fans to help with humidity build up underneath the canopy that could potentially cause damage to the lights. Setting lights on top of glass tops works. Open top aquariums is old news, but evaporation can be annoying especially if you're running warmer temps. If the temp is much lower, there is less evaporation but still a considerable amount compared to using glass tops.

[danielp]

Go to City Pets and talk to Donnie or David.

They have a little bit of everything.

I just bought two Marine land double bright fixtures and they had the best price in town.

[troy tucker]

Fish Gallery has a bunch of used Lights for sale cheep.

[moganman]

I wish my LEDs grew algae. I leave them on for 14 hours.

[mistahoo]

I wish my LEDs grew algae. I leave them on for 14 hours.

Probably because you have fish that eat algae... Get rid of the fish and leave the LEDs on. It'll grow plenty of algae.

[suicune]

Petco is selling a 10 gallon LED set with heater, filter, tank and LED hood for like 40 bucks. I'm sure those won't grow much algae... they're too weak

[Fire eel 18]

Thanks guys as always i appreciate your input. It has been a great guiding hand for me.