What Tubes Should I Use In My Tank?

[white9870]

I have a fluval 125, the tank curuntly has these tubes and light unit in atm

Fluval GLO lighting unit,
One Power-Glo Fluorescent Aquarium Tube 20W 60.96cm (24in) T8
One Aqua-Glo Fluorescent Aquarium Tube 20W 60.96 cm (24in) T8

I'm jus wondering if these are good enough for my plants or should I change them for different tubes?

Any info would be great thanks.

 

[OldMan47]

Your present lighting level is just adequate for "low light" plants. The color spectrum can be anything between about 3000K and 10000K but that will depend more on your own preferences. The 3000Kwill tend to seem yellowish and the 10000K will look quite bluish. Noon daylight has a spectrum of about 5500K to 6000K, it is often cited as 5700K. Within that range of spectra the plants will respond almost exactly the same. With only 40 watts of light over a tank your size almost no change in plant response will be seen for a color change. The wattage that you can use will always be 20W for each tube unless you choose to actually change lighting ballasts and tube types. A T-5 HO will give more light than a standard T-8 normal output of the same length, for example. If you choose to go that route it takes far more than simply changing light tubes.