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View Full Version : best lighting for lightly planted discus tank?



chiuey
03-20-2019, 07:59 PM
I know this has been discussed before but wondering if anything new is out. Preferebly LED lighting, will have lightly planted anubias, maybe swords. On a 6 foot tank. Thanks!

Filip
03-21-2019, 08:57 PM
You don't need any specific brand name or quallity led lights to grow Anubias and Swords Chiuey .
Just make sure that the light intensity meets their minimum requirements and they will grow for sure . Aim for at least 1.5 Watt of led light per gallon and you should have enough light.

chiuey
03-22-2019, 01:47 AM
are there any lights out there that make the discus color pop more tho?

Paul Sabucchi
03-22-2019, 12:11 PM
Cold white light (5000-6000 Kelvin) will make blue and turquoise pop more, warmer white light (3000-4000 kelvin) will enhance more reds and orange. Both discus and the plants you mentioned are actually most happy with lower levels of lighting, you can either go for dimmable LED fixtures (so you can adjust as required) or multiple lower power units if they have just an on/off switch.
If you are in North America you can look at the ones made by Current, they are regarded as good quality for the price

ggillies
03-22-2019, 02:26 PM
I have three of the Prime LED Freshwater lights. Great value for money and they certainly let my fish colors pop. They are also tunable across the spectrum, and they have a sunrise and sunset program, as well as moonlight, storm, etc.

123179

RogueDiscus
03-22-2019, 02:45 PM
Nice tank! I nominated it for pic of the month.

ggillies
03-25-2019, 12:46 PM
Nice tank! I nominated it for pic of the month.

Well, thank you very much! Very nice of you.

chiuey
03-27-2019, 12:33 PM
I decided to get the fluval 3.0 plant LEDs. Anyone with experience with that? Im hoping a 48" is enough for my 72" tank

Jack L
03-28-2019, 12:26 AM
those look like current usa LED lights that i have.

if they behave the same it will be dark on the ends and side. but i have the lights on the glass, if you raised them up, the light would spread for you.

danotaylor
03-28-2019, 08:03 AM
I agree with Jack. I have a 48" fixture on my 72" tank. LED's are very unidirectional, meaning the beam is straight line with very little spread. I personally like the look of the light fading to shadows at each end. Just be sure to put lower light needy plants on the ends of your tank.

Filip
03-28-2019, 08:09 AM
I decided to get the fluval 3.0 plant LEDs. Anyone with experience with that? Im hoping a 48" is enough for my 72" tank

I would choose the 48-60 inch the biggest model .
Not only for it's lenght but for it's lumen output too.
The 48- 60" of this led light claims only 4250 lumens in total that IMO is the lowest range for your tank size .

Jack L
03-28-2019, 09:55 PM
or two shorter models and place end to end

i didn't like the dark zones.