Setup advice: low light 20g long

[tuvok]

I'm in the process of setting up a 20g long planted with my favorite pair of plants: anubias and java fern, both of which I intend to grow attached to the driftwood I am soaking. With that said I still have a lot of questions, if you can answer any please reply:

- Currently planning to filter with a AC70, is that too powerful?
- What would be the best way to 1.5 - 2 watts per gallon over this tank (looking at pre-built systems)?
- I usually find my aquariums end up with dead spots, I was planning on using a power head this time but I was not sure what size?
- I plan on using Excel as the carbon source, any other ferts likely to be required?

Cheers!

[fischkopp]

I will give it a shot:

- Currently planning to filter with a AC70, is that too powerful?
No, current is a good thing as it supports nutrient exchange - or better said nutrient transport to the plants.

- What would be the best way to 1.5 - 2 watts per gallon over this tank (looking at pre-built systems)?
I am not sure what you mean with pre-build, do you mean the hood? Anyway, you have two options: use a incandescent fixture with compact fluorescent bulbs or go for 2x 24" T5HO.

- I usually find my aquariums end up with dead spots, I was planning on using a power head this time but I was not sure what size?
Could help. I use maxi jet 400 in 15gal tanks.

- I plan on using Excel as the carbon source, any other ferts likely to be required?
I would start without extra ferts. Both anubias and fern grow pretty slow so that the nutrients added by a weekly waterchange could be sufficient. You will have to watch the growth for a few weeks to see any deficiencies or appearance of algae.

[charlie]

I will give it a shot:

- Currently planning to filter with a AC70, is that too powerful?
No, current is a good thing as it supports nutrient exchange - or better said nutrient transport to the plants.

- What would be the best way to 1.5 - 2 watts per gallon over this tank (looking at pre-built systems)?
I am not sure what you mean with pre-build, do you mean the hood? Anyway, you have two options: use a incandescent fixture with compact fluorescent bulbs or go for 2x 24" T5HO.

- I usually find my aquariums end up with dead spots, I was planning on using a power head this time but I was not sure what size?
Could help. I use maxi jet 400 in 15gal tanks.

- I plan on using Excel as the carbon source, any other ferts likely to be required?
I would start without extra ferts. Both anubias and fern grow pretty slow so that the nutrients added by a weekly waterchange could be sufficient. You will have to watch the growth for a few weeks to see any deficiencies or appearance of algae.

Think that guy said it all  , the only thing i would add, is if those are the only plants you will keep for a while try to keep your lighting more on the 1.5 WPG side with the option of increasing if you decide to try other plants, also you might want to consider DIY co2 which is quite doable for a 20 gallon & cheaper than Excel, but not really a requirement for the 2 plants you mentioned.

[tuvok]

Thanks. Good advice so far. By pre-built I just mean non-DIY. I am considering the following:

Coralife 30" Freshwater Low Output Aqualight T-5 - Double Linear Strip
http://www.petsandponds.com/en/aquarium-supplies/c5813/c293075/p16890102.html
-Not sure from the write up if this will be enough light

Hagen Glo T5 High Output 24" Single Light Fixture - With Powerglo 24Watt T5 High Output Bulb
http://www.petsandponds.com/en/aquarium-supplies/c5813/c293075/p16872671.html
-Not sure if the fact that it is a high-output T-5 makes up for the relatively low wattage

Eclipse 3
http://www.petsandponds.com/en/aquarium-supplies/c5813/c64267/p9571135.html
- T-8 bulbs (I think) easy to get
- Not sure if the whole integrated system is any good
- Lacks versatility

[charlie]

Thanks. Good advice so far. By pre-built I just mean non-DIY. I am considering the following:

Coralife 30" Freshwater Low Output Aqualight T-5 - Double Linear Strip
http://www.petsandponds.com/en/aquarium-supplies/c5813/c293075/p16890102.html
-Not sure from the write up if this will be enough light

Hagen Glo T5 High Output 24" Single Light Fixture - With Powerglo 24Watt T5 High Output Bulb
http://www.petsandponds.com/en/aquarium-supplies/c5813/c293075/p16872671.html
-Not sure if the fact that it is a high-output T-5 makes up for the relatively low wattage

Eclipse 3
http://www.petsandponds.com/en/aquarium-supplies/c5813/c64267/p9571135.html
- T-8 bulbs (I think) easy to get
- Not sure if the whole integrated system is any good
- Lacks versatility

The Coralife is not HO , i don`t recall the wattge now, my pick woud be the Hagen glo, not sure if you can remove one bulb & have it work as a single, if that is the case i would shell out the extra for a double ,giving you the abilty to up the ante down the road, which i`m sure will happen

[dan2x38]

You got great advice from 2 gurus already not much I can say. Just buy a simple fixture. Maybe even a double tube bench fixture from Home Depot. You can run daylight T8 tubes from them too. Whole thing won't cost you more than $50. You can easily make into a hood if you wanted it to be fanicer.

Best advice go slow. Watch the plants like mentioned they grow slow but watch for algae this tells you a lot.

[pminister]

This post would be interesting to follow up on, as i am kinda in the same boat for the setup that you have.

[fischkopp]

Hagen Glo T5 High Output 24" Single Light Fixture - With Powerglo 24Watt T5 High Output Bulb
http://www.petsandponds.com/en/aquarium-supplies/c5813/c293075/p16872671.html
-Not sure if the fact that it is a high-output T-5 makes up for the relatively low wattage

I have a couple of those (double), they are high output and overall ok. But also a bit on the pricy side. You may wnat to consider a visit at B&B Hydrophonics: you can get 2x 24" T5HO and one 48" reflector for just about $100. This would be my choice. It may not hahe the nice look of the Hagen fixture, but will allow you to switch both bulbs seperately. Maybe you will find out that a single T5HO is good enough for you because you can control undesired algae growth better.

[tuvok]

Looking for something nice looking to put on top so the single power glo might win. I did a test fill of the aquarium and I tried out the AC70 with no media and it did not seem too powerful for the setup. To my surprise there was relatively little current so the power head looks to be still on the menu of things to get.

[Agnate]

not sure if you can remove one bulb & have it work as a single

Unfortunately, it does not allow you to operate with a single bulb.  I tried this on my double bulb Hagen Glo and it was a no-show. 

That said, I do like the look of the Hagen Glo fixtures, and their bulbs are pretty great also. 

[sas]

I'm running a Hagen Glo fixture on a 24 inch deep tank. Two bulbs, a Powerglo and a Lifeglo as suggested by another member here. I'm able to grow anubias, jungle val and crypts with no extra ferts.