[Ross]

Originally Posted by Swanwillow

oh, in saltwater aquariums we go for light... not effect its like a planted freshwater tank, but more light. Seriously, when you have a 250 watt metal halide over a little ten gallon aquarium, you know theres a problem. I'm not as big into the high-light corals, more low-light corals.. but heres a high-light coral tank, and its specs: Tank of the Month - February 2007 - Reefkeeping.com I can't spew out info on foot candles and such..

hmmm, I have a bromeliad thats sitting next to me I've been trying to ID... It won't take up much space. I can whittle down my list, no worries!!!

I can happily save my pocketbook that way... this is a starting list... really, it is!!

I'll learn bout foot candles, I will... gimme a few days

Let me give you a head start on foot candles. Most Flourescent lights are rated in lumens (a measurement of light output). The rating will be at a certain ambient temperature and at the glass surface (remember it is light output). To get foot-candles divide lumens by 10 (close enough) Now you also need to know light falls off (gets dimmer) as the square of the distance. So if a light puts out 2000 foot candles, plants at a distance of 1 foot only "see" about 500 of those. I've over-simplified this so see this site for more detail --> Lumens, Footcandles, Candlepower, Measuring Light Output