Fenriswolf Posted March 13, 2006 Report Share Posted March 13, 2006 OK, I feel like I've started waaay too many topics already - hope I'm not repeating other's questions! Well, people here have been talking about moonlighting etc... What different kinds of lighting are there? Most people here seem to use fairly bright lights - I've gathered that's good for a lot of plants, but is it generally the best choice? When are "dim" lights a good choice - and what wattage would be defined as "dim"? Also, there are all the different numbers of lights - is this more important than wattage? Is there a point to the blue lights I've seen at pet stores? Would it be a good idea/do-able to have different wattages (or numbers?) of lights in the same tank, either to have it going from bright-dimmer from back to front, or perhaps to have the different lights on in succession to create a night-sunrise-day-sunset routine (although that sounds a little overcomplicated! Unless I rigged the lights up to a timer, but that's definitely getting ahead of myself!) Ach, so complicated! Too much to learn... I just want to get onto the fun part! :roll: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dee_jay_01 Posted March 13, 2006 Report Share Posted March 13, 2006 IMO the only time you really need very bright lighting is if you have a planted tank, as plants thrive on light to grow. I dont have a very planted tank as my fish keep digging them up, but I did have a bright light in there which I had to take out after about a week, as I had a algea bloom which clouded my water and also made my fish look really dull in colour. The blue lights area mainly for Saltwater tanks I think, but it does look nice if there is a blue light in there to simulate a moon lit night for the fish. I have yet to try it. anyways if anyone else can explain in more detail for both of us it would really help, as I have been wondering the same thing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pegasus Posted March 13, 2006 Report Share Posted March 13, 2006 Not really into the planted side of things as much as I was in my younger years.. but a good basic guide is to look at the "type" of plant and its structure. Most often you will find plants with lighter green foliage are quick growing.. and often require a fair amount of light.. whereas the darker thicker leaved plants.. such as the Crypts and such, require much more shaded areas of the tank. The secret I suppose.. (if there is one).. is to get the plants to grow without getting an overabundance of algae.. which can be caused by too much light.. or an over supply of nutrients that the plants and filtration system can't absorb fast enough. Often we see tanks with absolutely no filtration of any kind.. but are heavily planted without any sign of algae.. despite the seemingly bright lighting. These hobbyists have done lots of study and found the correct balance of light.. nutrients.. and often fish.. that will keep things in order. The Blue.. or Violet tubes you often see in pet stores are what were commonly called Growlux tubes.. and they did two things, which were mainly to assist plant growth, and make the fish look much more colourful than they really were Here are some of the common ratings. 1500 k Candlelight 2680 k 40 W incandescent lamp 3000 k 200 W incandescent lamp 3200 k Sunrise/sunset 3400 k Tungsten lamp 3400 k 1 hour from dusk/dawn 5000-4500 k Xenon lamp/light arc 5500 k Sunny daylight around noon 5500-5600 k Electronic photo flash 6500-7500 k Overcast sky 9000-12000 k Blue sky Bill. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dee_jay_01 Posted March 14, 2006 Report Share Posted March 14, 2006 Thanks for that Pegasus, Helps alot, I have one major problem with my tank. I have to keep the lids on at all times so my Salmon Tails, and Black Shark dont jump out of the tank. We already have had our Black Shark try to kill himself with in the first hour of getting him. Now because of that I have to clean the lids all the time because of the calcium build up on the underside of the lids, which reduces the light into the tank. Is there anyway of stoping the calcuim build ups??? or do I have to just keep cleaning them. Here is a picture of my tank, before I renovated it, Mine is the bottom one and My Fiances is the top one. I have thought about closing it up completely but I dont have the time and money at the moment. Both tanks are 122cmx46cmx46cm, and built into a 90mmx35mm Pine Stand Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caper Posted March 19, 2006 Report Share Posted March 19, 2006 calcium build up Is that the "white" stuff? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
suphew Posted March 19, 2006 Report Share Posted March 19, 2006 Is that the "white" stuff? Yes Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caryl Posted March 19, 2006 Report Share Posted March 19, 2006 "white stuff" is the technical term for it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caper Posted March 26, 2006 Report Share Posted March 26, 2006 "white stuff" is the technical term for it I love those technical terms Caryl :lol: :lol: My lids are the black plastic kind...is there anything that will remove the calcium? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
suphew Posted March 26, 2006 Report Share Posted March 26, 2006 Soaking in white vinigar might do it, or get a paint scraper Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caper Posted March 26, 2006 Report Share Posted March 26, 2006 Ok...I'll try that...its not too bad but if I can get it off I'll try 8) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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