flourescent tubes - what spectrum?

[dixiedog]

I've made the mistake of convincing myself that the plain old cheapo fluorescent bulbs which come standard with every four-foot "All-Glass" hood cannot POSSIBLY be the best for showing off discus colors.

I've tried an 18,000K - shows turquoise markings nicely, but very dim-looking, red markings are subdued.

Tried a 6,700K - worse. Again very dim, but this time ALL colors subdued.

Now, a 10,000K. Not too bad ... brighter than the 18,000K, shows the blues/turquoises, but still not so much the reds.

I should add that while the original bulb from All-Glass is a 32 watt, all these fancy aftermarkets are 40 watt - so the dim appearance is, I realize, more percieved than real.

Another hurdle, I THINK, is that the two colors I mainly wish to showcase are red and blue - and those are best displayed under two entirely different spectrums.

(Or is it spectra???)

Thanks,
Gene

[Elcid]

Ever try a Triton tube on ur All-Glass hood? U may be surprised

:antlers:

[Cosmo]

I use 50/50 bulbs, but not primarilyy to highlight colors. I know someone who swears by bulbs made for lizard cages :confused:
Jim

[Anonapersona]

I swithced out all the tanks to either the Plant and Aquarium bulb from Home Depot or the GE Fresh and Salt water 9325K bulbs.

[RandalB]

I've always used the Aquarays 9325's myself, good blue and red enhance bulb, Cheap too..

RandalB

[gators111]

I use the natural sun ones from home depot and they do well. 5000k

[Moon]

The higher the colour temprature the cooler the appearance. Blues and greens are highlighted. The lower CT highlights the reds. Ideally you might need one with a CT higher than 6500 deg K and one with 2500 deg K. For example the incandescent lamp has a CT of 2700 deg K. This is why it appears warm and rich in the red end of the spectrum.

In order to improve the colour rendition the lamp manufacturers have to double or triple coat the lamp walls with phosphors. This tends to reduce the efficiency of the lamp. If I remember correctly, the plant and aquarium lamp only puts out about 1400 lumens whereas the regular cool white or daylight lamp outpus about 2800 lumens. So the efficiency is sacrificed to get better colour rendition.
I have daylight lamps in my fish room and it does a good job. I use a flashlight to see details of my fish.
hth

[Alight]

I've tried lots of different spectrums, and the 5600 and 5000K compact fluorescents seem to be the best for showing blues and reds of Discus fish.

The higher spectrums definitely make the reds look bad.

The compact fluorescents I get from AH Hobby supply are 90% efficient.

[CAGE-RATTLER]

What would be a good light to use as a night light?

Ive been wanting something to use in the evenings so i can view the nocturnal fish better.

I know there is 2 Placostumus in that tank somewhere but very rarely see them with the normal light on.

[dixiedog]

Well, today's experiment was a Coralife 50/50 actinic/6000K. Nothing special, no better than the original bulb as far as color, and a lot dimmer. Waste of money.
:mad:

[discussmith]

It is a matter of what color spectrum the phosphors in the lamp transmit. A growlux or plant bulb is strong in the red and blue range and thus are good for discus colors even though not as bright. However when the fish are seen in natural or a sun type lamp the color rendition is truer but not as strong in the red and blue range so those colors do not reflect as much thus appearing washed out. Get a plant light and then compare to your 10k or 20k lamp and you'll easily see the difference.

[dixiedog]

It is a matter of what color spectrum the phosphors in the lamp transmit. A growlux or plant bulb is strong in the red and blue range and thus are good for discus colors even though not as bright. However when the fish are seen in natural or a sun type lamp the color rendition is truer but not as strong in the red and blue range so those colors do not reflect as much thus appearing washed out. Get a plant light and then compare to your 10k or 20k lamp and you'll easily see the difference.


Hmmmm ... okay ... I have always to some extent ignored the plant bulbs, because I have no plants, and also the algae issue.

[dixiedog]

FWIW ...

I went to Home Depot and picked up a G.E. "Sunshine40", which is a 2250 lumen 5000K bulb ...

... and a G.E. "Plant and Aquarium40" bulb, 1900 lumens, spectrum not specified.

The plant and aquarium bulb was just really dim. Nothing doing.

The Sunshine 40 was not noticeably different from my All-Glass bulb.

The conclusion I'm coming to is that All-Glass must just make a better bulb than I thought.:o

Gene

[satty]

Hey folks iam using 4 feet fluorescent tubes for my planted tank,is it true that i have to change my tube lights every 6 months once,please do reply

[Moon]

The light output starts to decrease after about 10,000 hours of use. It is a good idea to replace the lamp after this, specially in a planted tank.

[Alight]

Moon is right. The answer is yes! You will actually really notice the difference with the new bulb, and your plants will notice even more!