# Par rating for medium light?



## rollinghills (Sep 19, 2011)

What's considering medium light? Read the posts here one says it's 30-50 while another says 70 to 150. :icon_conf Maybe I'm just reading it wrong. Anyway what type of light would 2x 14w spiral CFLs give me? My hood has 2 bulb bases in the middle. The bulbs will be in a horizontal position.

This is the bulb I'm considering.
http://www.amazon.com/TCP-TruStart-...UTF8&qid=1355730997&sr=8-5&keywords=tcp+6500k

The light is 12in from the substrate. It's for a 15 gallon tank.


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## Darkblade48 (Jan 4, 2008)

35 - 50 mmol per square inch of PAR would be considered medium light. Not sure where you got the 70 - 150 mmol per square inch numbers from.

Any reflectors?

I would say medium light, given that you are mounting it horizontally, and the likelihood that you don't have a good reflector, etc (loss of light due to restrike).


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## Sluggo (Nov 6, 2010)

Darkblade48 said:


> Not sure where you got the 70 - 150 mmol per square inch numbers from.


Here:

http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/showpost.php?p=837592&postcount=21


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## rollinghills (Sep 19, 2011)

Yea that's the one. Sooo which is right?

My hood does come with a reflector.


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## Seattle_Aquarist (Jun 15, 2008)

rollinghills said:


> What's considering medium light? Read the posts here one says it's 30-50 while another says 70 to 150. :icon_conf Maybe I'm just reading it wrong. Anyway what type of light would 2x 14w spiral CFLs give me? My hood has 2 bulb bases in the middle. The bulbs will be in a horizontal position.
> 
> This is the bulb I'm considering.
> http://www.amazon.com/TCP-TruStart-...UTF8&qid=1355730997&sr=8-5&keywords=tcp+6500k
> ...


Hi rollinghills,

What size aquarium; what depth to the substrate?


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## rollinghills (Sep 19, 2011)

It's 15 gallon. Light is 12 inch to the substrate.


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## Seattle_Aquarist (Jun 15, 2008)

Hi rollinghills,

In my low tech, non-CO2 10 gallon I use 2X 10 watt cfl with good results. I do dose Seachem Flourish Comprehensive and Seachem Flourish Excel as a carbon source.


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## Darkblade48 (Jan 4, 2008)

Sluggo said:


> Here:
> 
> http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/showpost.php?p=837592&postcount=21





rollinghills said:


> Yea that's the one. Sooo which is right?
> 
> My hood does come with a reflector.


Should ask Hoppy or i4x4nMore where they got those numbers from. 

Though i4x4nMore has not been active since August 2012.


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## AVN (Oct 3, 2012)

around 40-60ish is med, anything above is high or extremely high.


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## biogenetic40379 (Jan 19, 2012)

Look at the meters reading/ units. Looks like it isn't in inches


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## Darkblade48 (Jan 4, 2008)

biogenetic40379 said:


> Look at the meters reading/ units. Looks like it isn't in inches


PAR is usually measured in umol per metre squared per second; the PAR meters in i4x4nMore's and Hoppy's post are measured in the same units.


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