low light plant list

So was looking for a list of low light plants that I could keep with me when I go to pet stores and I found this. Has the scientific names as well as the common names(for people like me who can't remember scientific names let alone pronounce them correctly). Hope this helps.
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Hi everyone, Im the one that created this list origonally on MFT.net. Glad to see it spread around. This is where I beg to differ. I had rotala grow great in just 15 watts over 10g's and dosing iron caused red to come out in them. The tank also didnt have CO2. I have actually tried most of those plants and they all did very well in my tank with just 15 watts! The only one I find debatable on that list is the Downoi. I will post the new list right now with a few more plants that others found work well in their tanks with low light.

Java Fern - Microsorum pteropus
Windelov Java Fern, Windelov Fern - Microsorum pteropus 'Windelov'
Narrow Leaf Java Fern - Microsorum pteropus v. 'narrow leaf'
Java Moss - Vesicularia dubyana
Green Hygro - Hygrophila polysperma
*Sunset Hygro - Hygrophila polysperma 'Rosanervig'
Ceylon Hygro - Hygrophila polysperma 'Ceylon'
*Rotala Rotundifolia - Rotala rotundifolia
Rotala Rotundifolia sp. Green - Rotala rotundifolia sp. 'Green'
*Rotala Indica - Rotala indica
Hornwort - Ceratophylum demersum
*Parrots Feather - Myriophyllum aquaticum
Moneywort, Water Hyssop - Bocapa monnieri
Brazilian Pennywort, Pennywort - Hydrocotyle leucocephala
Crypt Wendtii - Cryptocoryne wendtii
Crypt Balansae - Cryptocoryne Balansae
Pygmy Crypt - Cryptocoryne pygmaea
Guppy Grass - Najas guadalupensis
Anubias barteri - Anubias barteri v. barteri
Anubias barteri 'marble' - Anubias barteri 'marble'
Anubias barteri v. 'glabra' - Anubias barteri v. 'glabra'
Anubias nana - Anubias barteri v. 'nana'
Coffee leaf anubias - Anubias barteri v. 'coffeefolia'
Crypt retrospiralis - Cryptocoryne retrospiralis
Crypt spiralis - Cryptocoryne spiralis
Golden nana - Anubias barteri v. 'nana golden'
Narrow leaf nana - Anubias barteri v. 'nana narrow leaf'
Petite nana - Anubias barteri v. nana 'petite'
Philippine Java Fern - Microsorum pteropus 'Philippine'
Red Java fern - Microsorum pteropus "red"
Crypt Becketii - Cryptcoryne becketii
Pelia - Monosolenium tenerum
Waterwheel Plant - Aldrovanda vesiculosa
Bacopa - Bacopa caroliniana
African Water Fern - Bolbitis heudelotii
Crypt Aponogetifolia - Cryptocoryne aponogetifolia
Micro Crypt - Cryptocoryne petchii
Tropica Sword - Echinodorus parviflorus 'Tropica'
**Downoi - Pogostemon helferi
***Lotus- Nymphaea pubescens
American Waterweed- Elodea canadensis
Vallisneria natans
Water Celery- Vallisneria americana
Vallisneria asiatica
Red Ludwigia- Ludwigia repens
Marimo Ball- Aegagropila linnaei
HC- Hemianthus callitrichoides
Dwarf Sag- Sagittaria subulata
Crinum calimistratum
Water Pennywort- Hydrocotyle ranunculoides

*Do not ned high light to attain pink color. Dosing Iron can bring out this color. I have learned this from experience.
**Debatable
***This is the plant from the bulb pack you get from petsmart. It is not Nyphaea lotus like many believe.

Thanks for the list. I'm going to write some of these down to help me figure out what to bid on at the plant auction tomorrow.

I have tried about 5 variety of plants and so far the Anubias is the only one that survived in my low light tank. Very tough & slow growing.

I have trouble keeping the larger anubias healthy for some reason.

@Betty, have you tried crypts? Fast growing under low light. Crypts are susceptible to crypt melt meaning a lot of the time they'll die off in new tanks but if you leave the roots in there it will spout new leaves. Water sprite was my first plant, and that stuff grew quicker then I could get rid of it. It was growing in 30w in my 55gal. Here's a pic of when I was tearing down the tank to swap out substrates. You can see what a jungle it is:
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There's a couple non aquatic plants in the tank at the bottom at the time of this pic, what can I say I was a newb. 99% of the plants in that pic is water spite. At that period of time I wasn't using ferts either. The sprite grows new plants off of it's stem and unlike some plants like hygro where there's roots going all the way up the stem, sprite will just shoot off a single root ball(if I'm making any sense ) where the new plant is growing which makes it super easy to prune. You just pinch under the root ball to remove the new plant. A lot of time if you leave the new plantlets attached to the "mother" plant long enough it will prune itself and release the plant which will be conveniently floating at the top for you. Some people don't like this plant because it will shed a few leaves here and there but they're easily scooped off the surface.

I have some growing like mad in my mothers tank with the magical betta(I have some plants I put in there that wouldn't grow in any of my tanks until it was put into hers) and once I have enough sprite built up I'd be more then happy to share. I just need to get a few more mother plants. I've got one now that is constantly releasing new plant to the surface for me to plant. Before I had to take down all my tanks last year when my mom got sick I was constantly giving it away or trading it for things.

Yes, I have tried crypts and they are still alive, so those will be on my list. I also have some anubias that are clinging to life. And java fern is another one that I've tried with limited success. Very limited.

It's funny, years ago I used to put all sorts of plants into my tank and they would grow like crazy. I didn't know anything about them -- I'd just buy what looked nice and stick them in and they would grow. Now with all the information available, I have a terrible time keeping anything green alive.

I've found with my java fern that it will die back and then all of a sudden explode with new leaves. I'm still waiting to see if my windelov fern is going to make a comeback or not. But like I said you're welcome to some sprite when I have some to give away. My marimo ball seems to be doing good although it did feel softer last time I moved it. I'm tempted to split it open to try and get it to reproduce because they're so spendy but I'm afraid of failing. I don't know, I've learned that if you don't have a high tech setups for planted tanks it's just going to be a lot of trial and error and when you find something that works, stick to it and get more of it. A lot of the time just moving a dying plant to a different tank will help because of the different type of lighting. I call my moms tank the hospital tank because whatever is put in there blossoms with only 8w per 15gals and minimal ferts. I have another thread that might be worth looking at for your substrate feeding plants. I think it's like "economical root tabs" or something like that.

Please tell us if you used more than one bulb.

EllensburgWA wrote:Please tell us if you used more than one bulb.

The number of bulbs shouldn't matter. What matters is the number of watts per gallons you have. If you're growing low light plants you need 1 watt per gallon although in some of my tanks I use less less then one watt per gallon. Whatever bulb you are using should say how many watts it is. Another thing you should keep in mind is that you need a florescent bulb, not incandescent.

My appo0logies. I did not mean to offend.

lol and yet you have clear issues with english... or a typing problem, good info but take it down a notch. We're hobbyists here

Anthraxx wrote:lol and yet you have clear issues with english... or a typing problem, good info but take it down a notch. We're hobbyists here

My hero lol

@Ellensburg- I'm always up for learning and look forward to the wealth of information you can share with us. However the majority of the people on this forum are here because they like what they do and want to share with everyone. It's not a competition of books smarts on this forum. We're here to have fun and learn along the way. But I do appreciate you sharing your wisdom of the subject. Thanks.

Definitly interesting
I know i still get confuse when it comes down to all the types of lighting

lol me too. here i thought i even understood lumens.. haha well looks like everyone got something out of it.

Example, I can but a '200 watt' light bulb over my tank putting out warm white light (actually 1,000k)

Wow! A 1000K bulb. Please let me know where you can buy a bulb rated 1000k. I'll try it over my shallow tanks.

I am sorry if my meaning came out so terribly. I type with one hand lying in bed - bedridden 22+ hours a day. I was not trying to be evil or rude. Nobody listens so I have to speak out louder. I had no intent to be offensive. I will go away and just let things go on as they were. So sad.

Ken

From what I've read and gathered recently, plants will grow under even the most inappropriate light "color" (wavelength). Granted, they'll likely grow better under more appropriate wavelengths, but they will grow under just about every type of bulb you can buy at your local home improvement store.

Yes, watts per gallon is a useless measurement. The power output of a given bulb doesn't mean much, especially when different types, brands, and color outputs are involved. A far more appropriate way to measure the amount of light aquarium plants are getting is with a PAR (photosynthetically active radiation) meter. At $300 a pop, though, very few of us have one. This is where it helps to join a club or what have you.

However, given the same K-rating on your bulbs and the same depth between aquariums, watts per gallon can be interesting and even a useful comparison.

I use dual 23w 6500k CFL setups on a couple of my 10g tanks, a dual 18w 6500k CFL setup on one, and a dual 9w 5000k CFL setup on the last one. I grow a ton of plants very well in my 4.6wpg tanks and the 3.6wpg tank. I grow guppy grass, java moss, and frogbit in my 1.8wpg tank.

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It's very difficult to convey body language and intent over the internet and so people tend to take things a million different ways from how you intended them That's what SMILEYS ARE FOR! We all need to use more smileys. Too bad this site doesn't have the dancing banana...

Don't go away, just adapt!

I will produce videos one day instead.

pbmax wrote:From what I've read and gathered recently, plants will grow under even the most inappropriate light "color" (wavelength). Granted, they'll likely grow better under more appropriate wavelengths, but they will grow under just about every type of bulb you can buy at your local home improvement store.

Chlorophyll is composed of a magnesium atom at its core. Atoms will emit light in a particular pattern of distinct wave lengths. In astronomy we can determine the elements of a star (or any light source) based on the unique signature of the light. At rest (not excited) atoms will absorb light in a particular and unique signature or pattern. And this is why plants only utilize red and blue light. The other atoms in a molecule (carbon, oxygen) in this case the 'organics' in a chlorophyll molecule, will also absorb some light but is usually not used in photosynthesis. This then is not reflected visible light but generally re-emitted as heat (which is in fact 'light' in the infra-red).

pbmax wrote:Yes, watts per gallon is a useless measurement. The power output of a given bulb doesn't mean much, especially when different types, brands, and color outputs are involved. A far more appropriate way to measure the amount of light aquarium plants are getting is with a PAR (photosynthetically active radiation) meter. At $300 a pop, though, very few of us have one. This is where it helps to join a club or what have you.

PAR is a measure of all things : wavelength, intensity (lumens), and frequency AND time as it all mixes up at the final destination of absorption. But it does not measure Watts - or how much you pay your utility company.

pbmax wrote:However, given the same K-rating on your bulbs and the same depth between aquariums, watts per gallon can be interesting and even a useful comparison between tanks.

You cannot look at the price of gas and use it 30 minutes later to gauge how fast you are driving down the highway. I am not trying to be offensive. This is a very appropriate analogy.

pbmax wrote:I use dual 23w 6500k CFL setups on a couple of my 10g tanks, a dual 18w 6500k CFL setup on one, and a dual 9w 5000k CFL setup on the last one. I grow a ton of plants very well in my 4.6wpg tanks and the 3.6wpg tank. I grow guppy grass, java moss, and frogbit in my 1.8wpg tank.

Watts cannot be used this way. The relative difference you are observing is a result of a particular mixing of lumens and wavelength... neither can be 'converted' or related to wattage. You can only say 'watts' or energy was used to turn the light bulb on but not quantity... and not to convert or measure the light emitted by the bulb. It is an impossibility. Please think carefully about the analogy above.


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It's very difficult to convey body language and intent over the internet and so people tend to take things a million different ways from how you intended them That's what SMILEYS ARE FOR! We all need to use more smileys. Too bad this site doesn't have the dancing banana...

Don't go away, just adapt! [/quote]

When Einstein first presented his theory of relativity, he was not well received and even ridiculed. We see this everywhere in the great minds of the past. Some of our greatest thinkers were actually killed for daring to express the truth of science in opposition to the 'political correctness' that the majority inappropriately 'perceive'. This is unfortunately human behavior. People do not like 'know-it-alls'. They are generally offended by people of great intellect. I am not trying to be offensive but actually trying to share and explain things.

flo77 wrote:

Example, I can but a '200 watt' light bulb over my tank putting out warm white light (actually 1,000k)

Wow! A 1000K bulb. Please let me know where you can buy a bulb rated 1000k. I'll try it over my shallow tanks.

MOST incandescent bulbs produce K values of 2000k (warm white light). But they do in fact go lower. K values under 1000k are infrared lights. You can buy them. So go ahead and try them over your shallow tank. The result will be death of the plant from heat. You can even go lower to a single K. We call it microwave. You can even go lower to what we call radio waves.

I have a decent background in physics and chemistry. I understand all of what you're saying. I realize that watts are a measure of work that doesn't directly reflect on what plants require to photosynthesize. However, it's a simple fact that putting bulbs rated at higher energy consumption over my tanks produces better growth when supplied with increased amounts of fertilization. More energy consumed generally means more light output. Granted, it's not a linear relationship, but the fact remains. One 23w bulb of the same type, brand, and K-rating will generally provide more usable light to a plant below it than a 18w bulb. That was my point.

pbmax wrote:I have a decent background in physics and chemistry. I understand all of what you're saying. I realize that watts are a measure of work that doesn't directly reflect on what plants require to photosynthesize. However, it's a simple fact that putting bulbs rated at higher energy consumption over my tanks produces better growth when supplied with increased amounts of fertilization. More energy consumed generally means more light output. Granted, it's not a linear relationship, but the fact remains. One 23w bulb of the same type, brand, and K-rating will generally provide more usable light to a plant below it than a 18w bulb. That was my point.

I will give you some ground here. And so you are correct in one regard. In the old days we only had incandescent light bulbs. Only one technology. Because we were limited to that one technology (at least in the common household and aquarium hobby), we could LOOSELY ASSOCIATE watts to what we now call PAR. But PAR and wattage are mutually exclusive. Our CFLs today are far more efficient than the incandescent bulbs of the past. Note, if we limited ourselves to this one technology and everyone was limited to CFL light bulbs, then we could again loosely associate watts with PAR but our rule would then be three-tenths (0.3) of a watt instead of 1 full watt per gallon of aquarium water. If we used the old rule with CFL, we would get three times the amount of light. This can actually kill our plants because we might express the upper allowable range as say 10 watts per gallon... but actually kill our plants because our CFL is three times the intended limit. The problem is that we have better and MANY different technologies of light (quartz halogen, metal halide, mecury verse sodium, CFL etc, etc). And so there is no one rule. And that is because there is no quantifiable or direct conversion of watts to the many different sources of light.

Pbmax, I really do not intend to be offensive. I care about people. How you use watts is more appropriately expressed as PAR. Watt is not a part of PAR. Watts are completely consuned and converted to lumens, wavelegth, etc including inefficiencies (friction, heat) that are not transferred to the builb or the light it emits. There is no quantifiable dirrect conversion.

Pbmax, I really appreciate our discussion here. While I tend to come across as a 'know-it-all' and offensive to some, I am learning things too in our discussion. Thank you.

[quote="EllensburgWA"]

pbmax wrote:
How you use watts is more appropriately expressed as PAR. Watt is not a part of PAR. Watts are completely consuned and converted to lumens, wavelegth, etc including inefficiencies (friction, heat) that are not transferred to the builb or the light it emits. There is no quantifiable dirrect conversion.

Haha, that's like telling some poor guy in a minivan that he'd appreciate the drive a lot more in a ferrari. In other news, the sky is blue (grey...) and water is wet.

I'll tell you what - you mail me a PAR meter and I'll express my tank lighting in PAR. Until then, I gotta slum it with wpg along with a detailed explanation of what sort of lighting I'm using.

[quote="pbmax"]

EllensburgWA wrote:

pbmax wrote:
How you use watts is more appropriately expressed as PAR. Watt is not a part of PAR. Watts are completely consuned and converted to lumens, wavelegth, etc including inefficiencies (friction, heat) that are not transferred to the builb or the light it emits. There is no quantifiable dirrect conversion.

Haha, that's like telling some poor guy in a minivan that he'd appreciate the drive a lot more in a ferrari. In other news, the sky is blue (grey...) and water is wet.

I'll tell you what - you mail me a PAR meter and I'll express my tank lighting in PAR. Until then, I gotta slum it with wpg along with a detailed explanation of what sort of lighting I'm using.

I would encourage you to express the lumens and wattage of your various light bulbs including the summations of lumens and the variuos wavelengths. This in another alternative to PAR readings. I apologize to you. If it is any consolation, I used to make a decent salary as a consultant to fortune 100 companies but today I am entirely indigent, unable to work, and cannot pay my debts. I live on the other side of the tracks now, actually driving a car much like your own but an older model with more rust and dents.

Don't get me wrong, I can certainly afford a PAR meter, I just don't want to spend $300 on something I don't really "need" (air quotes!).

You do make a good point, however, so I busted my ass and went into the other room to get my bulb boxes.

Once upon a time, Lowes sold "Bright Effects" compact fluorescent bulbs. These were available in 2700k, 4200k (if memory serves), and 6500k colors (I bought the 6500Ks of course). Unfortunately, they don't sell these anymore, which really sucks. I'm still using them, but when it comes time to replace them I'm not going to be able to get 18w 6500K bulbs. The Sylvania 6500Ks they sell now are twice as expensive (possibly more) and are only available in 13w and 23w varieties.

But I digress. I use dual-socket perfecto "incandescent" fixtures over my 10g tanks with coil-style Bright Effects 6500K bulbs - 2 per fixture. Over 2 of them I have 2x23w bulbs which are rated at 1600 lumens - 3200 lumens total. Over one I have 2x18w bulbs which are rated at 1100lumens - 2200 lumens total. Over my new 20g tank I'm using 3x13w Sylvania 6500K CFL bulbs in shop lights rated at 800 lumens each - 2400 lumens total.

In summary (L/g == Lumens per gallon):

2x10g tanks with 320L/g
1x10g tank with 220L/g
1x20g tank with 120L/g (low light by anyone's classification)
All 6500K

You're right about one thing - the lumens/w ratio changes with higher light output, a big nail in the wpg coffin. The 23w bulbs are at about 70L/w, while the 18w and 13w bulbs are at about 61L/w. Something about the bigger bulbs makes them slightly more efficient, it seems.

To bring this post back on topic - I currently have red root floater, frogbit, water lettuce (all floating plants) in my 20g, along with a heaping portion of floating guppy grass that seems happy so far. And the big female endler in there finally popped, so I have little endlers enjoying the floating plants now.

So the light bulbs at lowes aren't good anymore

Well, the Sylvania 13w and 23w 6500K bulbs are still good, but they're expensive and there's no 18w variety available anymore Make sure you get 6500K bulbs. The off-brand "daylight" bulbs they carry are 5000K - not as appropriate for plants.

Do a search on Amazon. I lookjed last night. Use the Amazon search, for "CFL 6500k".

They had 4-pack 23w 6500k bulbs for less than $3 each with free shipping if the order was more than $20 (?).

pbmax wrote:Don't get me wrong, I can certainly afford a PAR meter, I just don't want to spend $300 on something I don't really "need" (air quotes!).

You do make a good point, however, so I busted my ass and went into the other room to get my bulb boxes.

Once upon a time, Lowes sold "Bright Effects" compact fluorescent bulbs. These were available in 2700k, 4200k (if memory serves), and 6500k colors (I bought the 6500Ks of course). Unfortunately, they don't sell these anymore, which really sucks. I'm still using them, but when it comes time to replace them I'm not going to be able to get 18w 6500K bulbs. The Sylvania 6500Ks they sell now are twice as expensive (possibly more) and are only available in 13w and 23w varieties.

But I digress. I use dual-socket perfecto "incandescent" fixtures over my 10g tanks with coil-style Bright Effects 6500K bulbs - 2 per fixture. Over 2 of them I have 2x23w bulbs which are rated at 1600 lumens - 3200 lumens total. Over one I have 2x18w bulbs which are rated at 1100lumens - 2200 lumens total. Over my new 20g tank I'm using 3x13w Sylvania 6500K CFL bulbs in shop lights rated at 800 lumens each - 2400 lumens total.

In summary (L/g == Lumens per gallon):

2x10g tanks with 320L/g
1x10g tank with 220L/g
1x20g tank with 120L/g (low light by anyone's classification)
All 6500K

You're right about one thing - the lumens/w ratio changes with higher light output, a big nail in the wpg coffin. The 23w bulbs are at about 70L/w, while the 18w and 13w bulbs are at about 61L/w. Something about the bigger bulbs makes them slightly more efficient, it seems.

To bring this post back on topic - I currently have red root floater, frogbit, water lettuce (all floating plants) in my 20g, along with a heaping portion of floating guppy grass that seems happy so far. And the big female endler in there finally popped, so I have little endlers enjoying the floating plants now.

This is awesome description!!!

See my post from a second ago. 23w 6500K bulbs at Amazon for under $3 in a pack of 4. Use the amazon-search phrase I gave .

Note to self: EBurgWA wants MORE DETAILS next time

Yeah... but Lowes is only a couple miles from my house and it was super handy to be able to just go there and pick stuff up. I do love me some amazon prime 2-day shipping... but that's 2 days after I want a bulb most of the time. I should have what I want RIGHT NOW, right?

There is an effort by the light companies to increase the price of the 6500K bulbs. In fact some companies are holding back intentionally to cause increasing demand and thus profits. I went into two stores here recently and not one of them had 6500k bulbs anymore. The light packages have stopped advertising the K value hoping that you will buy the cheaper bulbs based on price alone. So be careful out there.

pbmax wrote:Note to self: EBurgWA wants MORE DETAILS next time

Yeah... but Lowes is only a couple miles from my house and it was super handy to be able to just go there and pick stuff up. I do love me some amazon prime 2-day shipping... but that's 2 days after I want a bulb most of the time. I should have what I want RIGHT NOW, right?

Yes!

Maybe... I'm thinking it's more that people just don't buy the 6500K stuff. People want 2700K; they whine it's too white at even 4100K. These stores don't cater to us aquarium nerds... which is why I was somewhat surprised to discover cheap 6500K bulbs at Lowes years ago.

Now, the light snobs will poo-poo you if you use coil-type CFL bulbs because of the double-strike issue and crappy reflectors in incandescent fixtures that fit them, but they do in fact work very well. And even a $4.50 sylvania bulb is better than $12 + shipping for a single T5HO bulb that I use in my high light tanks.

pbmax wrote:Note to self: EBurgWA wants MORE DETAILS next time

Yeah... but Lowes is only a couple miles from my house and it was super handy to be able to just go there and pick stuff up. I do love me some amazon prime 2-day shipping... but that's 2 days after I want a bulb most of the time. I should have what I want RIGHT NOW, right?

Actually, your description is perfect. I can actually use that quantitatively to buy other types of lights by comparing your parameters. Once we find two different bulbs that produce similarly, THEN we can use wattage to tell us which is cheaper to run.

Assuming they're not lying through their teeth on the specs. I don't have equipment to measure lumens either. I do have a watt meter!

pbmax wrote:Maybe... I'm thinking it's more that people just don't buy the 6500K stuff. People want 2700K; they whine it's too white at even 4100K. These stores don't cater to us aquarium nerds... which is why I was somewhat surprised to discover cheap 6500K bulbs at Lowes years ago.

Now, the light snobs will poo-poo you if you use coil-type CFL bulbs because of the double-strike issue and crappy reflectors in incandescent fixtures that fit them, but they do in fact work very well. And even a $4.50 sylvania bulb is better than $12 + shipping for a single T5HO bulb that I use in my high light tanks.

All you have to do is go to youtube and see what the 'growers' are using for mar-a-wana. Thousands of posts and praise for the CFL. I can get a wool sweater at fred meyers but family members will look down on me because the sweater has no "north face" emblem on it. Functionally, it works just fine.

If necessary, you can use a video camera or digitsl camera - two bulbs next to each other. The image will show difference in color (L) and intensity (lumens). There are youtube videos demonstrating this. After the first purchase but then we can share on line to demonstrate differences so others do not have to repeating the effort. .

pbmax wrote: I use dual-socket perfecto "incandescent" fixtures over my 10g tanks with coil-style Bright Effects 6500K bulbs - 2 per fixture.

Only a few people figure this out. It is so common to do a search on t5's and find a fixture with bulb for $100. People are getting ripped off. But few people like you observe that the same quality and quantity can be had for a fifth of the price - and use the money to buy more fish!

Yeah, searches for lighting related stuff turns up lots of weed sites. I'm not terribly enthusiastic about those popping up when I do searches from work over lunch

There is definitely something to be said for T5 lighting - much more light gets into the tank. I run a 30" Quad T5HO fixture over my 29g tank - it's a lot of light and the plants grow very well in there. Unfortunately, coralife doesn't publish lumen ratings for its bulbs - fail. And they're the only folks that make 30" T5HO bulbs.

I do like something with a lot of bang for the buck, but I also like the elegance of a good fixture with nice bulbs. It's a toss-up...

@EllensburgWA: I'm really impressed with what you have posted lately. Your progress is remarcable: from some hilarious postings you ended up bringing valuable information to the forum.
The best thing you did today was to edit/erase your first controversial post. The second best thing is to edit this post

Subject: Re: low light plant list Yesterday at 7:42 pm

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flo77 wrote:
Quote:
Example, I can but a '200 watt' light bulb over my tank putting out warm white light (actually 1,000k)

Wow! A 1000K bulb. Please let me know where you can buy a bulb rated 1000k. I'll try it over my shallow tanks.





MOST incandescent bulbs produce K values of 2000k (warm white light). But they do in fact go lower. K values under 1000k are infrared lights. You can buy them. So go ahead and try them over your shallow tank. The result will be death of the plant from heat. You can even go lower to a single K. We call it microwave. You can even go lower to what we call radio waves

I'll give you some reasons why. When you wrote that post is obvious that you couldn't tell the difference between light and electromagnetic radiation. Also you probably didn't know what is the color temperature and what what is used for. Extending the bondaries is ridiculous and unreallistic. Fortunately you stayed in the electromagnetic waves domain and didn't tell us what is the color temperature of your voice. Anyway thank you for your valuable advice: I won't put an antenna, magnetron nor a speaker above my aquarium and try to grow plants.
Also you need to make your mind: 1000K means warm white(as you said in your first post) or infrared spectrum as you said in your next post. Or maybe is a red bulb...
And by the way, there is another thing you need to edit: on your bill from your Electric Company you don't pay the Power(watts). I know it's not your fault, you just copied and pasted that one(yes I've noticed same mistake in an old article about watts/lumens/PAR).
In the future I'm sure that you can find some interesting articles about chlorophylle absorbtion, red and blue spectrum and their advantages and share the information with us.