# finnex ray 2 on my 20 gallon long, will it work?



## Canuckgame (Mar 2, 2013)

Hey everyone I need advice on lighting, im setting up a 20G long, and im not sure what to do for great lighting.

im going to be running pressurized Co2, and my substrate will be ADA Aquasoil, if that matters.

I have heard the finnex ray2 is a good light but before I make the purchase would like to get some opinions.

I found this on amazon for a great price, will it do the trick for me? And will I be able to grow anything I want?

or are there better options out there?

heres the link to the one I found

http://www.amazon.ca/gp/aw/d/B00BDD...finnex ray2&qid=1395900112&ref_=sr_1_5&sr=8-5


----------



## 2wheelsx2 (Apr 21, 2010)

The answer is yes as I believe a 20 gallon long is 12" high? See this thread. LED Lighting Compendium


----------



## Ra's al Ghul (Apr 28, 2010)

There's some good videos of these fixtures on youtube

Sent from Petguide.com Free App


----------



## Canuckgame (Mar 2, 2013)

so i should go ahead and make the purchase? or are there better options?


----------



## 2wheelsx2 (Apr 21, 2010)

It will achieve the light that you need to grow even high light plants. As to "better" that's a matter of personal opinion and what you're trying to achieve.


----------



## Canuckgame (Mar 2, 2013)

Thanks for the reply, im trying to achieve a dense planted tank, with a beautiful HC carpet, there is a 80% chance this is going to be a Crystal red shrimp tank.

i also found this Finnex unit, its on sale for even cheaper than the first one i posted

http://www.amazon.ca/Finnex-AL-R30W...ie=UTF8&qid=1395949435&sr=1-2&keywords=finnex

which one would YOU go with?


----------



## 2wheelsx2 (Apr 21, 2010)

I would go with the FugeRay as I think it would be enough light. This is assuming you will inject CO2. I have founf it tough to keep crs with high light/CO2 as they are too sensitive. And my general practice is to use the lowest amount of light which will do the job. A 20 long is a pretty shallow tank so I think FugeRay should be fine.


----------



## Ra's al Ghul (Apr 28, 2010)

I agree with Gary, The ray2 is good for deeper tanks. There's a few members on here using these lights. I only heard good things about these fixtures

Sent from Petguide.com Free App


----------



## charles (Apr 21, 2010)

You can try our 24" 0.5w fixture for total 39w or 24" 0.2w fixture for total of 15.6w.
Both fixture will have extendable bracket to sit on a 30" tank. You can come and see for yourself.


----------



## greenfin (Nov 4, 2013)

I have just bought a fugeray planted+ 20" for my 10g and a 30" ray2 for my 27 gal. Went with the ray2 for the 27 gal because I'm putting high light plants under it. The 27 gal is 16" high; probably deeper than your 20 long. The ray2 should arrive on Monday. 

The planted+ on the 10gal will grow my medium light plants like java fern, anubias. I've had the planted+ for 2 weeks and the plants all look great. No CO2 at all. Previous light was old-school incandescents! Growth is pretty darn good. Tank only 12" high. Nice looking fixture. Seems plenty bright enough to grow HC at 12" of depth. I'm quite happy with the planted+ so far.

I did some online research and for the growth I wanted and the price I could afford, the finnex lights were "it" for me.


----------



## fisherman (Apr 22, 2010)

greenfin said:


> I have just bought a fugeray planted+ 20" for my 10g and a 30" ray2 for my 27 gal. Went with the ray2 for the 27 gal because I'm putting high light plants under it. The 27 gal is 16" high; probably deeper than your 20 long. The ray2 should arrive on Monday.
> 
> The planted+ on the 10gal will grow my medium light plants like java fern, anubias. I've had the planted+ for 2 weeks and the plants all look great. No CO2 at all. Previous light was old-school incandescents! Growth is pretty darn good. Tank only 12" high. Nice looking fixture. Seems plenty bright enough to grow HC at 12" of depth. I'm quite happy with the planted+ so far.
> 
> I did some online research and for the growth I wanted and the price I could afford, the finnex lights were "it" for me.


did u buy the 30" off amazon or finnex.ca? i plan to get a 30" too but dont wanna get it with a brokerage fee... i just got the planted plus too for my 10g, i thought it would be high light with 2 inch substrate??


----------



## indefine (Aug 10, 2013)

There were some par charts out for this light. I forget the values but i think at 12inch or less its par was considered high. And btwn 14 to 18inch above substrate medium. Higher was low. 

sent from Samsung GS3


----------



## greenfin (Nov 4, 2013)

Bought mine off amazon (.ca). On sale. I bet that the planted+ on a 10gal (10"-- factoring substrate) would be pretty bright. Not too experienced with HC yet.

Saw a thread where it was said they haven't released par graphs for the planted+ because of getting the red bulbs to read on the meter. Claimed the red is very beneficial for the plants but doesnt read on the kind of meters people commonly use. Forgot the scientific explanation but it had to do with the spectrum dropping off. Par on the other models is available. Maybe the info is out now...


----------



## battmanh (Jan 7, 2014)

Here's the link to the PAR data for the FugeRay Original and Ray II: Finnex RAY II & FugeRAY PAR Data

Its commonly believed that the PAR for the Planted+ lies somewhere between the FugeRay Original and Ray II so if you gathered PAR data for the same length fixtures for the two, that would give you a range of where the Planted+ may fall.


----------



## Canuckgame (Mar 2, 2013)

Sorry guys I know nothing about par or any of that, im still trying to research as much as I can.

if I get the fugeray planted+ will I be able to grow HC successfully as well as high light plants in a 20 long? With co2?


----------



## greenfin (Nov 4, 2013)

Most likely, but I'm only guessing. I base it on the brightness my planted+ seems to show on my 10gal. Which is the same height as the 20L. (12"). I think a 30" fixture will have slightly more PAR than my 20". In a few days I'll see what the ray2 looks like but maybe you'll have made a decision by then, Canuckgame. I suspect the ray2 will be too bright for a 12" deep tank, just like 2wheelsx2 said. But if you're worried, get the ray2 and you can always hoist it higher above the tank to lessen the intensity.


----------



## shift (Dec 21, 2012)

For shallow tanks use fugeray or planted plus. Deep tanks use ray2. If you use ray2 and shallow tanks you will likely need co2 to balance out the high light


----------



## 2wheelsx2 (Apr 21, 2010)

With CO2, in all instances you will be able to use less light, as the CO2 is often the limiting factor and not the light. You'll be fine with the FugeRay.

Forgot to ask which length you were going to buy. If you get the 30" you should have enough to grow HC as long the HC is not too far away from the centerline of the light.


----------



## fisherman (Apr 22, 2010)

anyone know where to get hc?


----------



## Canuckgame (Mar 2, 2013)

ok awesome, ill buy the fugeray thanks for the tips guys, yes i will be buying the 30" unit, i hope it will be able to help me achieve my goals.


----------



## shift (Dec 21, 2012)

I have HC growing under one and it is working great


----------

