# this desk lamp good enough?



## snail_keeper97 (Mar 10, 2011)

hello guys,

i need to know if this is an appropriate desk lamp to display my fish when it gets a bit dark, and another dumb question, i dont know how much light i should be shining into my tank.. like not too much or too less. look in my gallary to see the pictures.


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## phys (Feb 4, 2011)

I dont see a desk lamp in your photos but if you're just using it to give light to fish only, then there really isnt a problem. Maybe try for a 15-25 watt CFL and that should work. If you have plants, you'll need to get a hood with some better lighting. About 2-4 watts per gallon if you're using a CFL or T5.


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## snail_keeper97 (Mar 10, 2011)

yeah sorry the photos are up. i dont have live plants, because people said if i didn't have live plants then i didn't need to go out and pay that much money on a proper aquarium light.


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## phys (Feb 4, 2011)

That looks fine enough. If you want to get plants, then go buy one of those desk lamps that can be positioned over the top of your tank. It looks small enough for you not to need more than a single 26 watt 6500K CFL. Most small plants will grow fine with that in a small tank.


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## Gizmo (Dec 6, 2010)

phys said:


> That looks fine enough. If you want to get plants, then go buy one of those desk lamps that can be positioned over the top of your tank. It looks small enough for you not to need more than a single 26 watt 6500K CFL. Most small plants will grow fine with that in a small tank.


Agreed. In general, you want one Watt or more of light power per one gallon (about 4 L) of water. So if you've got a 15L tank, ideally you would want an 8-12 Watt light. Most CFL (Compact Fluorescent, the spiral bulbs with integrated ballasts that screw into regular light sockets) bulbs put out about 13 Watts, so you're golden there for medium-high light conditions for your plants, should you grow any.

As far as plant-specific bulbs, etc., anything that has a black-body temperature rating of 7000K or less is great for plants. The temperature rating (in degrees Kelvin, absolute scale) refers to the color of light emitted. Generally for plants you want softer light more on the red side of the visible spectrum, which is around 5000K to 6000K. So a 6500K 13W CFL desk lamp is perfect for your tank. Only thing I could think you could improve the light with would be a good reflector, but again, what you've got is great.


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## snail (Aug 6, 2010)

I'd try java moss, java fern, marimo balls and anubias with just about any light, they will grow slower but probably hold their own fine. Start with java moss.


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