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Retirement and forum shutdown (17 Jan 2022)

Hi,

John Howell who has managed the forum for years is getting on and wishes to retire from the role of managing it.
Over the years, he has managed the forum through good days and bad days and he has always been fair.
He has managed to bring his passion for fish keeping to the forum and keep it going for so long.

I wish to thank John for his hard work in keeping the forum going.

With John wishing to "retire" from the role of managing the forum and the forum receiving very little traffic, I think we must agree that forum has come to a natural conclusion and it's time to put it to rest.

I am proposing that the forum be made read-only from March 2022 onwards and that no new users or content be created. The website is still registered for several more years, so the content will still be accessible but no new topics or replies will be allowed.

If there is interest from the ITFS or other fish keeping clubs, we may redirect traffic to them or to a Facebook group but will not actively manage it.

I'd like to thank everyone over the years who helped with forum, posted a reply, started a new topic, ask a question and helped a newbie in fish keeping. And thank you to the sponsors who helped us along the away. Hopefully it made the hobby stronger.

I'd especially like to thank John Howell and Valerie Rousseau for all of their contributions, without them the forum would have never been has successful.

Thank you
Darragh Sherwin

Are these lights suitable

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10 Apr 2014 09:34 #1 by Tommyk (Tommy Kearney)
Hi
Just looking for some more advice.

I have came across a local supplier of LED light Strips, Prices are very reasonable, I am looking for opinions on how suitable these would be for a planted tank, would they give low, med or high light.

My tank is 48 inched long 12 inches front to back and 18 inches deep. I would be mounting the strips approx. 4 inches from the water surface.

I currently have a 10000k 40 watt fluorescent tube over the tank and was thinking of adding these as extras.

The specs available on the website are as follows


* SPECIFICATIONS:


* Color:Warm or Cool White LED

* Waterproof: Choose (Waterproof +€5.00)

* Quantity: 300 leds/5 Meter (3528 type)

* Size: L500cm (5M) x W0.8cm x T0.25cm

* View angle:120°

* Working Input Voltage: 12VDC

* Working Current/meter: 0.4A

* Output power: 24W /5 Meter

* Working Tempreture:-20° to 50°

* Drive Mode:Contant Voltage

Dimmable using one of our LED dimmer switches. Click on the Accessories tab above



from online chatting to the seller he tells me that the cool white lights are 6000 Kelvin, he says that the 10000K bulbs are blue.
They come in 5 metre strips and can be cut to length,
Thanks for any help

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10 Apr 2014 10:34 #2 by Homer (Kevin)
Hi Tommy,

I would say that non-specific LED strips are merely for illumination, you would be able to grow Aquatic Ferns and Moss, possibly Anubias and some crypts or Amazon swords but Reds and purples and most carpeting plants would be difficult if not impossible, basic T8 would give better growth, just my tuppence worth.

Kev.

The Glass is always greener on the other side.


It's NOT "Chee lick", NOT "Chee Chee Licks"!!! Cichlids is pronounced as "Sick Lids"!!!!!

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10 Apr 2014 10:52 #3 by Tommyk (Tommy Kearney)
Cheers kev

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10 Apr 2014 11:38 #4 by JohnH (John)
You could ask your supplier if he can supply strips containing 'Cool white' 5050 LEDs, rather than the 3528 ones in the strip described?
These, although probably insufficient on their own, would help to supplement the fluorescent unit you're using.
Changing that bulb might help also - as he says 1000k is really a bit too blue for effective plant growth. around 650k seems to be a good output.
Maybe someone with better knowledge of kelvin units with regard to plant growth could give a better answer?

John

Location:
N. Tipp

We're just two lost souls swimming in a fish bowl - year after year.


ITFS member.



It's a long way to Tipperary.

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10 Apr 2014 17:16 #5 by proca (Peter)
i had 5050 led strips, burned out after 2-3 months i think (they need cooling system, getting warm/hot), stay with fluorescent tubes t5 or t8 if you want to keep planted tank, if you want to upgrade it get a kit from well known retailer (dont know if i can use name :) t5/t8 is cheaper than HQI and much better than led strips, if you want to go with led than CREE / power leds but it is not that cheap

I use 2x 6500K or mix 1x6500 + 1x9000/10000K T5s, it works fine for me.

but thats only my opinion :whistle:

regards

Peter

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10 Apr 2014 20:42 #6 by Tommyk (Tommy Kearney)
Cheers guys. I think I'll stick with the fluorescents.

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