I’m going to start up a 37 gallon fish tank and i want to plant the hell out of it, but i need to know how much lighting and what type of lighting i should get. the cheapest thing i could find was a T-5 Twin lighting fixture for 68 dollars that outputs 48 watts
Will that be sufficient, i don’t want to spend to much money, over 100 dollars is allot for lights
Does anyone have any suggestions on a lighting strip or something i could get
!NOTE! = i want to grow mid to high light plant
T-5 lights are very strong and do not follow the watts per gallon rule of other bulbs like power compacts. I think you would be happier with a 4 bulb unit, as I suspect your tank is taller than 24 inches. But that unit would let you keep mid level light plants. If you insist on using the 2 bulb unit at least get this unit. it has better reflectors than the unit you saw which will get more light into the tank.
http://www.aquacave.com/SearchResult.aspx?CategoryID=649
Your good with the T-5’s you mentioned.
With 48 watts there are low light plants like…
Java Fern
Java Moss
Anubias
Any of the Hygro species, these grow extremely quick
Crypts
The bulbs I would recommend are….
1 Full Spectrum
1 6700K
Have fun.
Good lighting is expensive, but that basic lighting could be be sufficient if the tank isn’t too tall (taller tanks need stronger lighting) and as long as you choose lower light plants – they probably won’t thrive but they can get by.. Also you’ll want a good quality plant bulb with the proper spectrum. Consider the bulb a twice yearly, ar at the very least once yearly, expense because the bulb grows weak over time though you may not notice the gradual decline.