how many here could afford MH?
i guess there aint gonna be too many of us here could? Mh does give the aquarist the advantage but it doesnt guarantee sucess...or elevate the user to Sifu.
the point is lets look at the majority, the common planters , folks who had just started out ...will they buy a MH?...well, i dont think so ...even if they could afford it.
the whole point of picking up aquatic plants as a hobby is to wreck our brains to see how to DIY stuff and keep the cost to the bare minimum...cut cost at all cost.
i have tried Mh and flo tubes...of course MH is the prefered choice but then flo tubes is a not too distant second...and much more easy on our wallet.

so what or which flo tubes to buy? what brand? how many to get? where to buy? at what price? is diy better or a complete set?
these are the most frequently asked question by beginners....so do we point them at the right direction or just aswer their question without knowing what we are actually talking about ourselves!!!

Here is my advice...if u are not ready to invest a few bucks in lighting..u might as well forget about giving aquatic plants a try...unless u have an outdoor tank.
Forget about the Flo tubes meant for home use ....they are near to useless and they will never work.if anyone tells u otherwise...then that person is a fool and u a bigger fool to believe him.
dont even dream of using that special house flo tube , take my word for it ...u will end up paying more money in the end...whats more its really a shame to see one's spirit snap due to dying plants.
be prepare to spend somewhere around rm150 to rm200 for a 4 footer tank.
either u come up with that money or dont get your hair wet! theres no cheap subsitute for lightings...u could come with all sort of rabbits from the hat for any other equipments...but never ever mess around with the lighting...GO FOR THE REAL STUFF...if u wannna stay in aquatic plant turf.
BE SMARTand START off at the right direction.

suppose u are ready to spend, the next question is how wisely do u spend that money?
i would say....the only thing u ever buy from the FS is the flo tube, the rest u could get at the fleas market, cheap electronic shops. ask around and try to get some help if u not good with the wirings....hey its DIY

so which flo tube to get....well thats a matter of taste...if u have a deep pocket then go for the expensive german tubes...they are expensive for a reason...they work 100%.
but then i would suggest the average priced ones...NEC and Hagen would be my choice(rm 25 to 30) , skip the cheaper Taiwan or PROC tubes (rm15 to 20)....they are sightly better than house flo tubes...so whats an extra ten bucks?
Planters nowdays are lucky in a way...when i started planting back in late 80s, theres only one tube avaiable for sale...a tube call sunglow,it looks like cork screw, with no indication of Ks or Lux or whatever...and the darn thing cost rm90...big money back then.

Next ...what type of tube to get?
many would recommand 6000K to 8000K tubes....but what are these numbers actually meant?
they will say its the closest to the colour of sunlight!....Yes , thats true!...but then the colour of sunlight at what time of the day?
its a known fact the colour sunlight is different at dawn , noon and sunset.

this is my formula which i worked out a few years back.....buy a 4 sets of tubes with different Ks. invest a little in Timers (the rm15 ones will do fine)...they would work wonders for u...and give your setup a touch of a professional.

2800K to 4500K...is the colour of sunlight at dawn
6000K to 10000k...noon and early afternoons...the brighest part of the day.(get 2 tubes at this range, this is the part of the day when plants are really on the move)
15000K to 18000K....is the colour of dust...its kinda reddish in colour, best for night viewing

set your timers for the lower K range to work at dawn and turn off at dusk, the mid range K to start up at noon and turn off at dusk, while the higher K works its way from noon to lights off .

next to look at the tube is the LUX....so what is lux??
LUX(lx)..is the international system for measurement of intensity or brightness of light....Candela(=im/sr)
the brightness of one candle light is 1.29LUX
Flo tubes with Lux of 85 to 135 will be good enough for planted tanks.
always check the side of tube box ...the lux will be written there.

and if u compare the lux of a home flo tube ...will know why they wont work , not only are Ks wrong , the lux are at the extrem low end

__________________
Everyone Has a Photographic Memory..........some just dont have film!