lighting question

[MXPX4318]

ok so I have a marine land 24" "perfect a lite" full aquarium hood with a full spectrum eclipse fluorescent lamp (This is sold as a kit at petsmart for like 30-35 dollars). I have a few questions about this set up:
a) what is the wattage of this bulb? I can't seem to find it marked anywhere on the package or the bulb itself
B) what kind of plants could I do with this set up?
c) what would be a better bulb that would fit in this hood that would improve lighting and increase plant growth?

 

[clutterydrawer]

what is the legth of the acutaly tube? if its 18" i suspect its a 15W light.

whats the volume of the tank?

 

[MXPX4318]

20 gallon tank, yeah probably an 18" tube

 

[clutterydrawer]

look for some low-light plants then

unless yo ucan be bothered upgrading it all

 

[MXPX4318]

so there is nothing that will replace that bulb in my current hood that would make the lighting better? if not what are some nice low light plants? kinda new at this whole live plant thing.

 

[Aquascaper]

The majority of 18" tubes (if not all) are 15W so there's no real way of getting 'better' tubes. There is one solution that will get you increased wattage - buy a reflector. These clip onto your existing tube and reflect the light that would normally be lost upwards back down into the tank. They claim to increase your lighting by 100% but I would suggest a figure more like 50% - 75% when working out total wattage for plants.

HTH

 

[MXPX4318]

ok well maybe this will help you guys help me some more, I want to do water sprite and banana plants in my tank (for now) and so will getting a reflector for my lame 15w tube be enough to support these plants? Also if not what options do I have for hoods for a 24" tank as far as getting more wattage and how much will it set me back? I don't feel like I got robbed with my hood and light, because when I first started this I never dreamed of getting live plants, thought I'd just stick to artifical but then it seemed cheaper to just buy live plants (artifical banana plant is 8 bucks for a small one at my lfs and I can't even find artifical water sprite) but now it looks like live plants may cost me more then artifical b/c of the lighting required... well I'll see what kinda of options I have for lighting and costs and then I'll weigh the costs and benifits, thanks guys

Phillip

 

[smithrc]

The majority of 18" tubes (if not all) are 15W so there's no real way of getting 'better' tubes. There is one solution that will get you increased wattage - buy a reflector. These clip onto your existing tube and reflect the light that would normally be lost upwards back down into the tank. They claim to increase your lighting by 100% but I would suggest a figure more like 50% - 75% when working out total wattage for plants.

HTH

cool so my 3x 40 watts =120W

and now with reflectors... i'd be around 180W - 210W

I hope my plants like it B)

Anyway - plants for a 24" tank with an 18" 15W tube...
(see my 15gal)

I've got anubis nana and some pigmy swords in there. the anubis is fine and grows. the sword grows but VERY slowly

 

[modernhamlet]

I did a heavily planted tank with less than 1 watt per gallon for my first tank. Real plants are much more attractive in my opinion. And if kept healthy, they also add a level of stability that artificial plants just can't.

HOWEVER, I'd urge you to stick with low light plants, particularly those described in The Proven Performers list.

I've had great luck with most of those plants and was quite happy with the way they made my 29g community look.

Good luck!

 

[MXPX4318]

haha guys I feel really dumb, I posted about not knowing the wattage and then today I was doing my normal check on everything and what did I see other then a BIG WHITE STICKER on the back of the light strip (like that the light tube is held in) that gave the exact specifications of the light, I felt so dumb, if it was a snake I'd be dead it would have bit me so hard, it's a 120 VAC, 60Hz, 17w bulb. Thanks though for all the replies, I'm really ready for some live plants so I'll see what I can do, and hey maybe I'll have some pics up after christmas (really pushing for a nice digi cam) sorry it'll be so long, unless I can find someone to let me borrow their camera. Thanks guys