skippi

Ok I have standard hood on all of my tanks which take 18" flouresant lights, My question is how do I increase the wattage of the tank?? I read various lights and all of the 18" are 15watts and the 24" are like 20 watts.* Do I have to go to bigger bulbs or do I use the Lumes that each light puts out?? some had higher levels of these then others but all had 15 watts.. Pleaes help I am so confused??!!!??!!*

are the lunar lights any good? have been thinking of getting one like the orbit system??

Isabella

If you want a higher wattage over your tank, but have a standard lighting fixture that, say, holds one 20W or 15W bulb; any bulb with a higher wattage than that will not work in your fixture. You have to get a new fixture in that case. Current USA, Orbit type, fixtures have compact fluorescent bulbs. Of the smaller ones, there are Orbit fixtures that are 20" long and contain two 40W compact fluorescent bulbs; and 24" long fixture that has two 65W c.f. bulbs. There are of course even larger Orbit fixtures, up to 72" in length. Here is Current USA website that has all of their fixtures explained (Orbits, Satellites, and others): http://www.current-usa.com/index.php

Remember one thing though: any wattage higher than 2wpg or so, will require CO2 injections and fertilization for your plants (I presume you want this high wattage for your plants - otherwise fish DO NOT need so many watts of light).

P.S. Maybe you had in mind Current USA's Satellite fixtures. Satellite fixtures come in smaller wattages. For example, a fixture that is 20" long and has one 40W bulb; or a 24" fixture that has one 65W bulb. *All Current USA fixtures (whether Orbit, Satellite, or still others) are compact fluorescent and they have square pins.

Boxermom

You can also retrofit your hood with a DIY kit. http://www.ahsupply.com sells some, as does http://www.bigalsonline.com and http://www.drsfostersmith.com and they are generally cheaper than buying a new fixture.