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i have about 59watts on my 29 gal. i have some java fern and the tips are curling and turning brown. but i also have a little algea growing on the ferns as well.

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Thatt's not too much light. How much and what are you fertilizing? Sounds like nutrient issues to me.

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Critical Fertilator: The Micromanager of Macronutrients

sodaaddict84,

To answer your question quickly I would say "maybe".
And that would count for "is proper lighting" as well.

This of course does not help you, but what I wanted to express is that 29s do well with less light (like 40W produced by 2 x 20w flourescent) and with more light (like 65w produced by one Power Compact). It is one of these "it depends" situations.

And what does it depend on:
- Lights (which we are currently discussing here)
- Fertilizers
- Fish Load
- Water Changes
- CO2 addition (in an form, like gas or liquid)
- Substrate
- Tab water
- And maybe some more components that I cannot remember

With regards to the light, I would be curious to know what combination gives you 59W, what the K rating is, and how old the lights are. I saw in another thread of yours that you mentioned 42W over the 29G, did you upgrade?

With regards to all the other points, remember that the successful growth of plants in an aquarium depends on a balance on primarily the light, fertilizer, CO2 content of the water, and of course on the water itself. In general, the higher the light is the more likely it becomes that other factors have to be increased as well.

If I had to guess that your curling of the leaves is because you changed the light then I would say that it is not the light in itself but the lack of Nutrients for the plants to keep up with the growth. But that is just a guess as you provided way too little information to narrow the issue down for sure.

Hope this helps somewhat,

Ingo

EDIT: Just saw Mattys entry and I am glad he is on bord with my guess as well

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Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

well lets see. i dont have any c02 addition. just plain gravel for now. the old post stating that i had 42w is from my corlife fixture which is 21w 6700k bulb and 21w full spectrum bull.the fixture is only about 3 weeks old. the remaining 17w are from the factory hood light, which i have been told the bulb is rated at 8000k but im not sure as to the validity of that. im trying to stay consistant with water changes, about 5 gal every thrusday. as for fertilizer i have some mardel plant nutrient i was puting it in after the weekly water changes

*click *flash *click "whered he go???"

I am not familiar with the dosing that is required for the Mardel stuff, sorry about that.

I don't think the light is the issue, why don't you take a look at Chuck Gadd's site to identify what fits your problem the closest. If you happen to have a very low GH then I would assume it is a calcium deficiency.

And a note about the light: I thought the 24" long flourescent bulb from Coralife is 20W (this is the size for a 30" long tank, as I assume your 29G is).

Hope this helps,

Ingo

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Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

thanks for the link. that is correct the all glass 24" fixture does fit the 30" opening and is rated up to 20w but the bulb is actually 17w

*click *flash *click "whered he go???"