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I have a 16 in tube light hood that I got with my 32 gal tank. I really dont want to invest in a light kit and new flourecent bulbs is it really worth it? How big of a deal is it with plants would a 15 watt bulb be enough light?

It would depend on the bulb you use. I use repti-glo 2.0 bulbs, and my plants grow very well. I have not tried compacts yet, but a lot of people swear by them.
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Kyle
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Don't take this the wrong way but I think 15watts would be just enough to allow you to watch them die.

joe
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What the heck? I use those small watt bulbs on my plants and they thrive, including the broms, moss, etc.
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You need about 360 watts of flourescent light per square yard. That is if you want healthy plants.

Like kyle I too use repti-glo 2.0 lamps. Some people dont like them others do. I have a 38 gallon tank and two 30 watt repti-glo lights. For the most part my plants are doing fine. About 3 or 4 have died (im a 18 year old guy, i know nothing about plants). BUt i would say if you have have the cash for compact fluorescent from www.ahsupply.com, then repti-glow would be the best route.

I would have to agree 15 watts just isnt enough. What are the dimensions on your tank? My light fixture is just a $10 2 strip fluorescent light strip from lowes. On my next tank, I AM going to get compact fluorescents.

aj
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kungfu28181: My god. You are insane. -Mon Jun 30 21:41:05

That sounds about right to me. However, you can cut the wattage in half (maybe a little more than half) by using Compact Fluorescents. Of course, you also need to take into consideration the types of plants you will be growing. Club mosses, Java Moss, Fittonias, and some ferns will grow under lower lighting conditions while broms and other plants won't thrive or show off their best colors under less light. However, I am dubious about a strip light of 15 watts. I think at the very least you would want to go with a double 24" shoplight configuration (pretty darn cheap) for a tank of that size.
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Homer W. Faucett III, esq.
Purveyor of Trivialities and Fine Nonsense

15 Watts is not really a whole lot...but once again, it depends on the bulb as well as the type of plants you want to keep. The depressing aquarium light that comes with the fixture may be barely enough to see your tank inhabitant, so pick a good bulb.

As for the plants..
Pothos can virtually grow in the dark. You may also be able to manage certain varieties of selaginella and java moss. But in general, you are pretty limited in terms of terrarium plant diversity but you do have some choices. If you have live moss, it may actually not do so well, especially at the ends of the tank where the light is particularly weak. Keep in mind that the intensity is the highest in the center of the bulb. You may need more light if you want to keep gesneriads, episcas, orchids, and higher light requiring plants. Bromeliads will DEFINITELY need a bit more light I think.

Choose well, it's not worth having languishing, rotten plants to foul up your system and make life a pain.

Compacts are great but they are expensive. I try to use the fixtures that accomodate two strips when I can.

Hope it helps,

Ken

Whoa, I just saw that this was a 32 gallon tank we are talking about here. I imagine it's a tall tank? OK, this probably means that the measly 15 W bulb is sitting a good distance away from the plants down below. I was thinking that the plants would be about 10 - 12 inches from the light. I don't think that's what you're going to have. I think you'll definitely want something brighter even if it's for viewing purposes.

Don't forget if you double the distance from the source of the light, the intensity decreases by 4 times.

Distance really kills intesity.

Thanks