# 90 gallon lighting led or fluorescent?



## osbora (Feb 10, 2015)

So I just upgraded to a 90!! Yeah!!! Since then had some issues with fish,ahh...but with lots of water changes things seem to be better. Now I notice my plants are looking a little droopy. Same thing happened when I did not have enough lighting on 55 gallon and lost a lot of plants and money.Tank is 24" deep and about 3" substrate.I would like to stay in medium light 30-60 PAR range(on lower end), I dose 15 ml excel almost daily.Lights are current USA satellite led plus and dual flourecent fixture (agromax T5bulbs) Currently Photoperiod is 4 on 4 off 4 on. It works for viewing and I like the idea of CO2 building back up in the break. Anyway the lighting portion really confuses me. I like the idea of leds and cost effective in the long run? But then all the Kelvin values and different colors. And then sometimes you need 2?Or should I just go fluorescent? With yearly bulb changes? So suggest away..


----------



## BBradbury (Nov 8, 2010)

Hello os...

Florescent lighting is inexpensive and burns cool, so the fixture can sit directly on top of the tank cover. A bi-fold glass canopy is a good tank cover and doesn't cost much. A shop light, 2-bulb fixture with a couple of GE 6500K aquarium plant bulbs will be fine for most plants that require low to moderate light. A 48 inch fixture should work for your 90G. As for lighting, keep the watts to just under 2 per gallon of tank volume and avoid T5 bulbs, so you won't need added CO2. The CO2 from the surrounding air and the version the fish produce will be enough for your plants.

Keep it simple

B


----------



## osbora (Feb 10, 2015)

So would this work? It says T12 tho... And if I shouldn't use T5 bulbs because it might be too much lighting, then why isn't it working with my setup now?


----------



## BBradbury (Nov 8, 2010)

*Your Tank Lighting*

Hello again os...

The T12 is 40 watts and a couple in the fixture is enough for plants that just need low to moderate light. The smaller the T number, the more intense the light, but the light shines over a smaller area.  Your T5 is bright, but doesn't cover much of the bottom. If I had your 90G, I'd get a couple of 48 inch, 2-bulb fixtures and four T8, 32 watt bulbs. The cost would be around $50.00 at the local hardware store and give the tank decent lighting. 

B


----------



## ralph50 (Oct 20, 2007)

90s are deep and you are going to need a little more light to penetrate.

I tried a current satellite on my 90 and it wasn't bright enough so I added a Beamswork which was actually brighter than the Current and it was OK.

I recently added two 46.5 inch 10K 95 watt VHOs and wow.

Current and Beamswork are on for 18 hours the VHOs on for 5 hours.

My nitrates are zero after 6 months without a water change. lol


----------



## Jeff5614 (Dec 29, 2005)

I have 2 Kessil A160we's on my 120H which has basically the same dimensions as a standard 90 gallon. Intensity and spectrum is adjustable and with the added controller you can also do a ramp up/down, etc. There's no problem with getting sufficient light to the substrate. They're a bit pricey though.


----------



## osbora (Feb 10, 2015)

Thanks for the responses.The lighting portion of this addiction has completely confused me. I have read so many articles and can't grasp all of the information that goes along with it. The kessil looks awesome but not for right now. I like the shop light idea for right now. And thanks for the quick and easy explanation of the different Ts. And I found this light at good old lowes. And just curious why you think I should run 2 2bulb fixtures instead of just 1 4bulb?


----------



## klibs (May 1, 2014)

Because if you run the 4 bulb fixture on top of your tank and it's too much to handle / you get algae you're screwed. That's why higher end programmable LED lights are better IMO - easier to adjust things and make sure you're all set with the right level of lighting.


----------



## ralph50 (Oct 20, 2007)

Run two fixtures on seperate timers so you can better adjust your photoperiod.


----------



## osbora (Feb 10, 2015)

Thanks for replies and explanations. I decided to go with 2- 2 bulb 32W 6500K T8 fixtures. I do not plan on going high tech so hopefully this will be enough light to penetration to my substrate.If not that is what returns are for!


----------



## BBradbury (Nov 8, 2010)

HI os...

Good decision on the lighting. You won't be disappointed as long as you keep to the plants that require low to moderate light. I have a 60G and use two of the 48 inch, 2 fixture shop lights. The florescent bulbs last well over a year. Lowe's had this lighting on sale and I got the whole works for $40.00. Your 90G is less than 2 inches taller than my 60G and the four, T8, 6500K bulbs work fine for my tank.

I keep Anubias nana (short species) and nangi (taller species), some Java fern, Anacharis and Hornwort. Amazon swords would work well too. Planting Anubias and Java fern is easy. Just get some lava rock at Lowe's and use some cotton sewing thread to attach the plants to the rock, then just arrange them on top of the bottom material. No planting needed. Cotton thread will dissolved in the tank water, but by then the plant roots will be established in the rock and bottom material. Don't use nylon thread or fishing line. This stuff won't dissolve for several 100 years and can create a dangerous tangling problem to your fish. The other plants, with the exception of the swords, are even easier. Just drop individual stems into the tank. They'll grow well directly under the light source.

Have fun! 

B


----------

