Lighting of a tank

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J

jason41230

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
May 29, 2011
20
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West Virginia
I need to know about lighting for my tank. I have a white floresent bulb and i have heard that if u leave it on to long your fish will die. I have also heard that the fish need the lighting and that it would not kill them. plzs tell me the truth. I have angelfish, neons, and a algeaeater.


I would also like to know what kind of bottom feeders i could get the woudnt eat the fins off my neons and angels.:headbang2
 
fish need a regular light cycle to maintain proper health&happiness, but i'm sure if you left the light on for days it could be detrimental. most of my lights are on timers. i have a heavily-planted tank that i keep lit around 14 hours a day. my fish are all completely dependent on the light-cycle to know what 'time' it is'; when the lights come on, it's feeding time&they beg at the top- an hour before the light goes off they all somehow know and start to beg at the top of the tank again.
keep a consistent cycle going and your fish should be fine.
most bottom feeders shouldn't bother your angels or anyone, really [though depending on the algae eater you have-- i had a chinese algae eater that was really aggressive but have heard the siamese aren't quite so]. i have spotted raphaels, weather/dojo/clown loaches, eels, and cories. none of these will pick on your fish, and IMO cories are pretty hard-working bottom feeders. you might also invest in some shrimp [large ones, like flower or vampire shrimp]- they might get eaten by bigger fish but they make really cool additions if possible. even clawed frogs make great bottom feeders, but they kind of eat EVERYTHING and it can be dangerous when they get in a fervor. mine's eaten a betta fish and almost swallowed my baby dojo- just because he was in food-mode. there are so many bottom-feeder options!
 
ok that thank you. i have a chinse algeaeater i have taught it to let me pet it lol its awsome. my 8yr old girl thinks hes to slime.
 
Actually the fish don't care about the light. That is for you too see them. I use subdude lighting. I keep a light for a 10 gallon tank on my 65. Most fish except catfish have no eyelids so bright lights can bother them. Shut your lights off during the day and watch how much more your fish will move. Also fish need a rest period where they hover on bottum or near top and this is acheived when it is pitch dark in the tank. For your tank any or the corydoras catfish will work fine. They like to be in schools and you can mix and match these little peaceful catfish. They will ignore your other fish and also be ignored.
 
To reincarnate this thread, I was also thinking of what would be the most appropriate lighting source for my planned 240g North American native fishes tank. Flourescent lights just seem unnatural, so I was thinking of two to three 40-watt incandescent pot-style fixures within the custom-built (by me) canopy (over the tank). Some light bulbs are meant to simulate a 'daylight' color temperature, and I had thought about putting these on a timer to come on for a couple hours in the early morning until the sun is up enough to illuminate the room (the aquarium will be in a finished part of my basement) and perhaps for a couple hours in the late-afternoon/evening. The fixtures will be on a dimmer, so that I can adjust the intensity of the light as necessary.

I get kinda geeky about these things and tend to over-plan.
 
Incandescent lighting can cause an algea bloom. If you like subdued lighting and still want to see the fish use a combination Actenic and 10K T-5 fixture on a timer. I like the 10K because even though it's a cooler (as in temp K) color it has a spike in the red spectrum and tends to bring out nice colors. I use a black background and PFS substrate in combination with with the lighting I suggested on some of my tanks, for a more subdued look with good visability.
 
Seems like as good a place as any to ask: I have a 55 gal saltwater tank and would like to turn it into a little reef tank. Right now I only have a lamp and a window for light for my fish but that's not going to be enough for coral. I have been advised that my best option is a Metal Halide 250w Lighting System but I have no clue what brand to get or even the best place to get it. Any suggestions?
 
KellyFrancis said:
Seems like as good a place as any to ask: I have a 55 gal saltwater tank and would like to turn it into a little reef tank. Right now I only have a lamp and a window for light for my fish but that's not going to be enough for coral. I have been advised that my best option is a Metal Halide 250w Lighting System but I have no clue what brand to get or even the best place to get it. Any suggestions?
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Try Aquamedic aquastar light. they have pretty sturdy Mh lights.
 
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