# Good budget lighting any ideas ?



## AquariumNut-Josh (Jul 18, 2014)

Hi all ... ive spent far too much money on my tanks already ..... ive taken on a bit too much at once lol I've started a saltwater reef at the same time as my freshwater cube .... it all adds up fast . Ive spent about $800 on credit cards so trying not to add much more to that . But heres my problem I hate the leds I got for my aquarium . They are cheep but I dont think they are bright enough . Its an 11 gallon cube and I have 2 18 watt led lights over it and it just doesn't look bright enough . Im used to seeing plants pearling off air bubbles and theres none of that . So im looking for ideas on lighting that will be enough for this size tank that wont put me in even more debt lol thanks


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## Wasserpest (Jun 12, 2003)

Have you covered CO2 and fertilizer before you add more light? If plants "pearled" before and now don't, it may be a sign of nutrients running out. Adding more light would spiral this into algae doom even faster. 2x 18W of LED light _sounds_ already a lot, although I have no idea how this translates into plant-level PAR or Lux or whatever we measure these days.


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## morelight (Jun 2, 2013)

two 18watt led's is alot of light. I used a Finnex Fugeray on a 29 gal tank and that's only 10watts led. The plants were growing too fast with co2.


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## AquariumNut-Josh (Jul 18, 2014)

My last tank was 2 years ago . I dont have co2 anymore as the tanks were a spontaneous purchase and I got rig of my diy one a few months ago *facepalm* ...... im lookin at the lights now . They are about 6 inches above the water maybe thats a problem


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## ibfan1 (Dec 15, 2011)

It wont be the most attractive, but I've heard that those clamp lights you can get at stores like home depot or lowes can work really well if fitted with CFL bulbs. 

Lights like this --> http://www.homedepot.com/p/HDX-75-Watt-Incandescent-Clamp-Light-CE-200PDQ/100354513


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## burr740 (Feb 19, 2014)

ibfan1 said:


> It wont be the most attractive, but I've heard that those clamp lights you can get at stores like home depot or lowes can work really well if fitted with CFL bulbs.
> 
> Lights like this --> http://www.homedepot.com/p/HDX-75-Watt-Incandescent-Clamp-Light-CE-200PDQ/100354513


Indeed. Here's a 17 page thread dedicated to their use and application - http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/showthread.php?t=153195&highlight=cfl

I've had great success using them on a 20 gal grow out tank. Had 23 watt bulbs for a while but they were a little too much, now using 18 watt 5000Ks.


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## AquaAurora (Jul 10, 2013)

ibfan1 said:


> It wont be the most attractive, but I've heard that those clamp lights you can get at stores like home depot or lowes can work really well if fitted with CFL bulbs.
> 
> Lights like this --> http://www.homedepot.com/p/HDX-75-Watt-Incandescent-Clamp-Light-CE-200PDQ/100354513





burr740 said:


> Indeed. Here's a 17 page thread dedicated to their use and application - http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/showthread.php?t=153195&highlight=cfl
> 
> I've had great success using them on a 20 gal grow out tank. Had 23 watt bulbs for a while but they were a little too much, now using 18 watt 5000Ks.


+3 cfl bulbs and clamp on lamps (can be hing from simple cheap chain to make adjustable) are a great cheap light source! I got 6500k 13 watt cfls in a* 4pack* at home depot for less than the cost of 1 "grow light" cfl from amazon or other sellers. Have a set of 3 over my 20g long and 1 over my 7g office cube. Also have cfl bulbs for my picos and 'scrap' plant tank but they are not in clamp on reflectors


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## AquariumNut-Josh (Jul 18, 2014)

Awesome . Ill look into that . Ive been stressed out about money . I even thought about shutting it down . But ill try that first


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## twaatz (Oct 19, 2013)

I use three of those clamp lights on my 29 gallon and never looked back


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## PlantedRich (Jul 21, 2010)

I find CFL from the home center works fine. And for a different look, some open minded looking can change the look a lot. Got a Goodwill or other thrift shop close by that you could spend some time in for a while? Rather than shop style lights, you may see some other types that you can convert for close to nothing. While the reflector is part of the project as far as the lighting, how many and how close has to figure in also. A "tree" of three bullet lights can be re-purposed into a nice setup at a reasonable cost. I liked the 6500 Kelvin rated CFL but they seem to suddenly be harder to find. 
The cheapest light I've built was CFL in construction bulb holders strapped to the inside of a wooden frame around the tank top. 
This with 3 11Watt 6500K CFL









Soon became this.









Water splash seemed to be no trouble with CFL as the bulbs don't heat as much and don't break when water might get on them.


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## AutumnSun (Jun 28, 2014)

You can use clip on or standing desk lamps for the cfl bulbs too.


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## Aquadawg (Aug 18, 2012)

AquariumNut-Josh said:


> Hi all ... ive spent far too much money on my tanks already ..... ive taken on a bit too much at once lol I've started a saltwater reef at the same time as my freshwater cube .... it all adds up fast . Ive spent about $800 on credit cards so trying not to add much more to that . But heres my problem I hate the leds I got for my aquarium . They are cheep but I dont think they are bright enough . Its an 11 gallon cube and I have 2 18 watt led lights over it and it just doesn't look bright enough . Im used to seeing plants pearling off air bubbles and theres none of that . So im looking for ideas on lighting that will be enough for this size tank that wont put me in even more debt lol thanks


Hydroponics store. 1/2 the price


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