Lighting question

[coolhandgoose]

I just built my scrubber for my nano 6 gallon tank. It sits at the top of my tank and is a horizontal design. I made it out of a toolbox (6 bucks) from Canadian Tire. I drilled holes at the bottom that drain back into a holding area then the tank. The top lid has the light attached. I'll try and get pictures posted at another time. My question is about the lights I'm using. I found a T4 flourescent unit that's 8w and 4100k. Is this powerful enough lighting? It's the perfect length for this setup so I hope it's okay. I went to three different hardware stores to find t5ho lights and ballasts for a 12" setup.

[kcress]

So the lamp is about 12" long, and how many watts is that?
An how many inches from the screen?

[coolhandgoose]

It's 12 inches long and is about 3 to 4 inches from the screen at the maximum. It is 8 watts.

[kcress]

I would call that marginal lighting.

It could be enough or too weak. I'd run with it - but just keep that in mind.

BTW: Great idea - that toolbox.

[coolhandgoose]

Thanks for the help.

Here's a link so you can see the light I'm using http://www.liteline.com/product.php?pro ... 4-8-4100-3 (http://www.liteline.com/product.php?product_id=ALFT4-8-4100-3)
The advantage of this is I can add more lights in series with it, So if I add 1 or 2 more, should give about 16-24 watts of power. Would that be better? I'm guessing more is better, right?

[kcress]

Dah! More is better! Up to a point. Then you can cause photo inhibition or just heat your tank unacceptably.

Alternatively you can run for less hours with brighter light.

If after a week you start to see stuff appearing you can just hold tight with what you have and see what transpires.