Hyde

I have a 48gl breeders tank. the lighting for it is current 2 bulbs 1st has a t5 HO 39w 10kk The 2nd bulb is t5 ho 39w 460 nm actinik looking to support live plants there is no co2

pepetj

The actinic would be of no use for plants so I figure you should consider replacing it. The 10,000K should be fine. If you can replace the actinic with a 6,700K T5HO you should be able to grow low to mid light plants there.

If you are not injecting CO2, consider dosing with Seachem's Flourish Excel. Also it would be a good idea to use adequate substrate (a mixture of nutrient rich substrate and sand should work OK) as well as add chelated iron with your water changes.

Pepetj
Santo Domingo

Hyde

what is the purpose of the actinic bulb

omnitheforsaken

The actinic bulb is usually used in saltwater tanks. I'm not sure exactly how it differs but I know it's designed for those types of tanks. I immediately replaced mine with some bulbs specifically for plants. It's a waste of the other bulbs for sure but what can you do?

omnitheforsaken

Also, for more information on lighting I suggest this link

http://woo.gotdns.com/Aquarium/Lighting.htm

Hyde

Thanks for the help would the lighting i have right now cause my plants turning yellow with black spots?

omnitheforsaken

Can't say. Maybe some one else can. We would definitely need to know what types of plants you have to start with. If you're asking in general, then yes, improper lighting can have that effect on your plants, but then again, so could insufficient nutrients and/or CO2 (carbon). Plus, without knowing the effects of the Act lights on FW plants, it's hard to say still. I have a book that tells me what those are usually symptoms of but as usual, I can never find it when I need it. Once I will do, I will share with you what it says. Sorry I couldn't get that to you right away.

Hyde

Thank again for help Im still learning. What a great website this is, talk to you later

omnitheforsaken

Aren't we all.

Nate McFin

Very good advice above.
I used actinic bulbs in my tank when I first got it. It didnt do anything good for the plants but it didnt harm them either. When I swapped out for 10,000K bulbs (which look best to me and still benefit plants) I couldnt believe how much better the tank looked.
As far as yellowing and black spots...it could be anything as Omni said. Co2,light,nutrients etc. Pics would help but here is a quick nutrient deficiency list...this would be the first place to look IMO.
http://www.csd.net/~cgadd/aqua/art_plant_nutrient.htm
Plants also take awhile to acclimate to the environment as well so bad looking leaves may just be that. Do take some time during your next water change to remove the dying leaves as this will focus the plants energy on new growth rather than repair.
It is also more than possible that you may have non aquatic plants which are all to commonly sold as aquarium plants. These are common at Petco, Petsmart, and the like.
Again pics would help.

EDIT_ WELCOME TO FISHLORE!