# New 84g fluval Osaka aquarium



## stephane (Aug 30, 2006)

We just got 84gallon Osaka aquarium. It is 48" long and 24" deep. It came with a hanging t5 fixture (2 x 54w bulbs). We have it suspended around 5" above the surface. This aquarium is going to be a community tank with tetras, ottos, some loaches, etc. 
We want it to be quite heavily planted because it is a center piece in a main room of our home. We are wondering if the fixture that came with the tank will be enough to have a lot of healthy plants. If we need more lighting, how many more watts of t5 would be needed?
And finally, would we require a co2 system if we wanted to have a very nice planted tank?


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## prototyp3 (Dec 5, 2007)

stephane said:


> We just got 84gallon Osaka aquarium. It is 48" long and 24" deep. It came with a hanging t5 fixture (2 x 54w bulbs). We have it suspended around 5" above the surface. This aquarium is going to be a community tank with tetras, ottos, some loaches, etc.
> We want it to be quite heavily planted because it is a center piece in a main room of our home. We are wondering if the fixture that came with the tank will be enough to have a lot of healthy plants. If we need more lighting, how many more watts of t5 would be needed?
> And finally, would we require a co2 system if we wanted to have a very nice planted tank?


That should be plenty of light. People tend to want more light when it's not necessary. Regarding the CO2, it really depends what sort of plants you want to grow. It's certainly an advantage and would help get that heavily planted look you're going for.


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## Hoppy (Dec 24, 2005)

I think you will have medium light intensity, where CO2 is desirable, but not absolutely necessary. If I were you I would get a good pressurized CO2 system, just because it is much easier to get good healthy plant growth with CO2 than without. You wouldn't need to run the bubble rate so high it is a potential hazard to the fish, so I don't see a down side to using CO2. 

If you want to do without CO2 entirely I would raise the light to about a foot above the top of the tank. Then you would have low light, and would need to use only low light plants. But, you should have no algae problems at all then.


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## NJAquaBarren (Sep 16, 2009)

I have one. I'd put it on the border of med-high light. I inject CO2 and fertilize. Most plants grow very well. A few high-light plants don't. Right now I have some C. Furcata that grows very leggily until it gets near the top of the tank, then gets very lush and bushy. 

Take a look at the link in my signature to see progress with the stock fixture.

I may upgrade to a 4-bulb fixture, but not because it is necessary. The benefit I'd like is to have greater spread between bulbs to better distribute the light and to have a short burst of 4-bulb light as an option for plants like the C. Furcata. Definitely not necessary though.

I don't do anything special so you should be able to achieve results at least equal to mine.

Good luck


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## FSM (Jan 13, 2009)

CO2 is very beneficial to plant growth, so it will look like you want it to much quicker.


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## stephane (Aug 30, 2006)

So what you guys are saying is I should keep the current 108w t5 lights but have pressurized CO2?

I also have another smaller 30 inch t5 coralife fixture that im currently using on my 25g aquarium (which I will dismantle when the osaka is set up compltely). 
It has 2 bulbs and I think each bulb is 18w (so its 2 x 18w t5). Would adding that to the osaka in addition to the current 108w be advised?


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## Hoppy (Dec 24, 2005)

I would just use the 108 watt fixture, without adding more light. If you lowered that light down to only an inch above the top of the tank you might get high light, but probably not great uniformity of intensity over the whole substrate.


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## NJAquaBarren (Sep 16, 2009)

Stephane,

Keep your 30 inch but don't use it yet. As your tank matures you may find that you need more light, or greater dispersion once the tank has a lot of tall plant growth. You might want to use it for a supllimentary burst of light. 

Don't start out with it though. those 2 54w tubes provide plenty of light to start. Initially, the 30 bulbs will likely just create an algae problem. Wait until your tank matures to decide. Keep it simple initially.

AB


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## rhytemaker (May 29, 2008)

congrats on an awesome tank and welcome to the 320 club! All I use on my 320 is the standard lights it came with and added 1 extra 54w T-5 as a noontime burst (12-4). You can check my journal for all the setup details. I dose EI and have pressurized co2. My results are fantastic (in my humble opinion).


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## NJAquaBarren (Sep 16, 2009)

I think your results are great too. Osaka are nice setups. 7 months with mine and I still like the design.


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