Lighting Question

[Hopfrog]

Hi all,

I have had my 40 breeder planted set up for over a year now and it is going pretty well overall, but I have a lighting question. Aside from my fish I have the following in my tank:

Vallisneria
Rotala Rotundifolia
Cryptocoryne Wendtii
Java Fern
Bucephelandra
Staurogyne Repens
Ludwigia Repens

Out of all of these I have had the most success with the crypts, rotala, and the val. Java fern has been okay but I feel like it should be doing better, and I am having a devil of a time keeping the Ludwigia growing well. I am wondering if it might have to do with my lighting set-up. I have a single Finnex Planted+ 24/7 ALC light roughly centered above the glass canopy. It is not especially elevated as I am just using the plastic lifts that come with the light. My question is: is a single Finnex enough to give coverage front to back with a 40 breeder? I am asking because I have seen in a few places people suggesting that because of the width of a 40 breeder that two such lights are a better solution.

 

[Colin_T]

Can you post a picture of the tank with light above it and the light turned on?

How long is the light on for each day?

Is it an LED light unit with adjustable colour spectrums?
If yes, what are the colour/ wavelengths you have set up?

Do you add any aquarium plant fertiliser?

-------------------
The plants might be on the sides of the tank and not be getting sufficient light.
Ludwigia is a marsh plant that does best with wet roots and dry leaves.
Java Fern is a slow growing plants.

 

[Hopfrog]

Can you post a picture of the tank with light above it and the light turned on?

How long is the light on for each day?

Is it an LED light unit with adjustable colour spectrums?
If yes, what are the colour/ wavelengths you have set up?

Do you add any aquarium plant fertiliser?

-------------------
The plants might be on the sides of the tank and not be getting sufficient light.
Ludwigia is a marsh plant that does best with wet roots and dry leaves.
Java Fern is a slow growing plants.

Here is a pic:

It is an LED fixture with a 24/7 adjustable light cycle. I created a customized lighting set-up a while back because I thought the factory settings might have been too high. I have attached a PDF file that shows the factory settings for each colored LED (White, Red, Blue, Green) that the fixture has and the current customized settings I am using at each 3 hour interval for the entire 24-hour period. I use Easy Green liquid fertilizer.

Any help would be appreciated because I am very much a novice when it comes to lighting and would love to be able to fine-tune my set-up better than I have already.

 

[Hopfrog]

Just bumping this to see if anyone else wants to chime in. I am still really wondering if I am getting enough intensity and coverage with one Finnex fixture as opposed to two due to the fact that a 40 breeder is fairly wide.