How long do y'all keep the tank lights on for?

  • We are currently upgrading MFK. thanks! -neo
JoeBoxer

JoeBoxer

Candiru
MFK Member
Nov 9, 2012
228
99
46
Canada
Thoughts? Just replaced my fluorescent bulb with an LED strip. Love it. But if I keep it on more than 6 hours a day I seem to get a bit of an algae bloom. My tank is in my basement so no sunlight on it. I feel bad keeping them in complete darkness so if the tank light is off during the day I turn on a basement light for them.


Let me know your thoughts!
 
I used room lighting most of the time and turn on the light when I get home from work for 4 hours then switch to night light for 1 hour then turn it off. All my species refer low light so I turn the light on just for my own enjoyment :p
 
Mine are on for about 12h/day, should perhaps reset to about 10, but fish seem ok
 
one of my tanks is on a timer and gets 6 hours a day.. i think.

the other tanks are in the living room so they get natural lighting all day. as for the tank light, some times its on for a few hours and some times its off for a few days haha
 
My 180 tropical tank is in an unheated basement with very little light natural lighting. To conserve energy cost, the tank is covered on all sides with rigid foam insulation panels (I just remove the front panel during feeding time or when I just want to watch them.) I've also made a canopy out of the foam panels, so the tank is completely covered and things are in near blackness within the tank. I have 2 sets of lights set up under the canopy. 1 set is a very low wattage led rope light that stays on from 11:30am-11:30pm. The 2nd set is a regular brightness led lighting that's on from 5pm-11pm....since this is the time I'm typically home. This tank barely gets no noticeable algae growth
 
I don't keep on tank lights for 2 reasons:
1) Energy costs.
2) I'm not always home due to college.
Honestly I keep my room window shades open for natural lighting and only have some minor algae issues depending on how much sun was showing during the week. Fish are happy and it is at max 5-10 mins of scrubbing to clear out any growth.
 
My light in the Kitchen is on a timer. Since my wife like turning the light on/off on/off at all times of the night. I have them on a nightshift. It runs about 7P-7A. I don't care about algae(I have algae eaters).

The other tanks(2 inside and 1 outside) get natural lights
 
I have no plants, so once the weekly water change and vacuuming done, I turn the lights back off. enof ambient in my living room for my fish. my living room is my fish room. all 500g worth.
 
Four of my tanks are on timers for 8 hours. My qt tank I just turn on for a few hours when I get home from work.
 
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