I was browsing thekrib
(specifically
http://www.thekrib.com/Plants/Tech/light-spectrum.html concerning the post
Color spectrum Vs Degree Kelvin??)

since I was planning on getting a 6x13W compact flourescent( yes,
thats 1x13W individual ballasts) for my 10 gallon, to upgrade.

The offering of bulbs are as follows

2700K
3500K
4100K
5000K


Now I could get an assortment, i.e. 2 of each color temperature,
but i read that plants photosynthesize best at under high red spectrum
lighting. So im concerned about selecting the best color temperature bulb
since I (think) i want to go with strong reds in my light selection.

According to the aforementioned post on thekrib, a 3000K temperature
will have very strong reds, and at the high end of the temperatures
such as 9000K, you have alot of blues. Does this mean that a 5000K
bulb has a roughly even mix of reds and blues?

THe primary question is what bulbs do I select?

Also as an aside, as a quick analysis between
bulbs.com versus AHsupply.com

2x13 watts at AH supply using the cheapest AHsupply bulbs
= $28
2x13 watts at AH supply using the $2 bulbs
= $19

2x 13 Watts at bulbs.com (using double 1x13 ballasts ) with $2 phillips
= $14 =

Summary

1.86 Watts per Dollar 0.93 Watts per dollar
at bulbs.com at AHsupply


If anyone can help me find even a stronger watts per dollar on compact
flourescents, let me know!!! Im always on the conquest to get the most
out of my money.


Dave Wee
--

AC/DCdude17 wrote in
:

X-No-Archive: Yes

David Wee wrote:

I was browsing thekrib
(specifically
http://www.thekrib.com/Plants/Tech/light-spectrum.html concerning the
post Color spectrum Vs Degree Kelvin??)

since I was planning on getting a 6x13W compact flourescent( yes,
thats 1x13W individual ballasts) for my 10 gallon, to upgrade.

The offering of bulbs are as follows

2700K
3500K
4100K
5000K


The combination sounds like the typical trichromatic fluorescent
lamps. They are optimized specifically to human eye's sensitivity
curve and they achieve higher efficacy by concentrating output in what
our light receptors are sensitive to. They have higher efficacy at
illuminating, because our eyes are more sensitive to their output, but
they're probably not suitable for plant growth.


I use a 3500K CF bulb, I get excellent plant growth, without CO2, it's
about 1.5Watts/gal.

Take a look at this site to see what difference the bulb temperatures can
have:
http://www.culbertfamily.com/jenya/aquarium/lights/
it's really nice to see the combination of bulbs and thier effect.


Now I could get an assortment, i.e. 2 of each color temperature,
but i read that plants photosynthesize best at under high red
spectrum lighting. So im concerned about selecting the best color
temperature bulb since I (think) i want to go with strong reds in my
light selection.

The red from typical trichromatic lamp is what red receptor is most
sensitive to. I don't know the exact wavelength, but if it doesn't
coincide with the red plants likes, it probably won't work good.

Color temperature of 5,000K CCT means the black body radiator
temperature the lamp looks closest to. The spectrum of Colortone 50
and 5000K trichromatic lamps are very different even though they look
similar in color.

Get a 10,000 Kelvin bulbs.

For the plants it seems to doesn't matter if you have 10,000K, 6,400K,
or 5,500K. But the 10,000K make everything to look whiter and
crisper. In comparison the 5,500/6,400 make the tank look yellowish.

Some, not all, fish greatly change color under 10,000K or
5,500/6,400K. I got some threadfin raibows that look totally
different under the 2 different lights.

It's a matter of preference, but I really think once you have tried
10,000K you will not want to go back :-) Let't put it this way -
under the 10,000K what is white actually appears white.

78 watts for a 10g tank. Does that strike anybody else as a little high? I
don't know what the fish are going to think about it (unless you have those
Stevie Wonder Tetras), but I'd be buying an aquarium-safe John Deere for the
insane level of plant growth you're likely to experience!


"David Wee" wrote in message
...
since I was planning on getting a 6x13W compact flourescent( yes,
thats 1x13W individual ballasts) for my 10 gallon, to upgrade.

Nikolay,

Really?? I've certainly noticed some "yellowish" hues to my tank with 6700k
bulbs...(especially with the high amount of iron I need to add on a daily
basis!)

So a 10k bulb works ok for the plants?? I want something really bright, and
pleasant to look at..

Thanks!
Troy




"nikolay_kraltchev" wrote in message
om...
Get a 10,000 Kelvin bulbs.

For the plants it seems to doesn't matter if you have 10,000K, 6,400K,
or 5,500K. But the 10,000K make everything to look whiter and
crisper. In comparison the 5,500/6,400 make the tank look yellowish.

Some, not all, fish greatly change color under 10,000K or
5,500/6,400K. I got some threadfin raibows that look totally
different under the 2 different lights.

It's a matter of preference, but I really think once you have tried
10,000K you will not want to go back :-) Let't put it this way -
under the 10,000K what is white actually appears white.