400 Watt Metal Halide ~too much?

[John Little]

I have a 400 watt metal halide on a 90 gallon corner style aquarium. I have
the choice of a 20K or 10K bulb. Wondering which one is the best for a
planted tank with Discus.

I have a smaller tank with 10K pc bulbs and that tank is doing fine. I was
just wondering if a 400 watt metal halide is too much for a plant tank.

Thanks,
John

[Michi Henning]

"John Little" > wrote in message
...
> I have a 400 watt metal halide on a 90 gallon corner style aquarium. I have
> the choice of a 20K or 10K bulb. Wondering which one is the best for a
> planted tank with Discus.
>
> I have a smaller tank with 10K pc bulbs and that tank is doing fine. I was
> just wondering if a 400 watt metal halide is too much for a plant tank.

That's a bit over one watt per liter. You can do that, but will have to use
CO2 injection (and do a lot of weeding, I suspect). Plants will grow
very fast at those light levels.

I'm concerned about the color temperature though. Most people use
5000K to 5700K for planted tanks. Higher color temperatures
encourage algae. (I've never tried using 10K on a planted tank
myself -- I'm just relaying advice I've received from a few experienced
people.)

Cheers,

Michi.

--
Michi Henning Ph: +61 4 1118-2700
ZeroC, Inc. http://www.zeroc.com