24 Hour Lighting

[Thuggerz]

Hi, is it really bad for aquarium lights to be on 24/7?


Kind Regards, Richard

 

[Marshall..]

I wonder why your asking that at 3 o clock in the morning he he

 

[SuperColey1]

If you want the fish to never sleep, then yes. The more natural you can be then the better it is for the fish surely.

 

[jlOisAhoTti]

Depends on how strong the lighting is. If it's a higher k count (5000k+) then you can get algae that you don't want.

 

[Marshall..]

You could always buy a moonlight for at night.

 

[wei0204]

You might get algae problem, and your fish might not like it at night.

 

[Mr Miagi]

If im not mistaken, plants do need darkness (ie. no direct light), because they cant photosynthesis 24/7, and need to respire.

 

[voo]

I was thinking that plants do need some darkness too. But so do the fish. Even bright moonlights can keep the fish awake.
Why would you want lights on 24hrs though? Isn't is just a waste of electricity, especially as people wont be around for 24 hrs a day to see the tank

 

[George Farmer]

Fish (and plants) need darkness. Leaving lights on 24/7 is not a good idea for lots of reasons, the health of the livestock being the biggest.

Mr Miagi is correct ref. plants.

One exception is reef owners that run macroalgae refugiums, where the 24/7 photoperiod (over the refugium, not the display tank) prevents pH swings.

 

[Rhiannon]

I think you should turn your lights off when you go to bed.

Fish need to sleep.

If you turn them off for an hour in the night, turn it back on and see them all resting on the bottom.

Just like you, they need to sleep.

I also turn mine off when I go out for the day or know I am going to be longer than 1 - 2hrs out. No point in wasting electricty.

 

[Scott MacAdam]

If it's for viewing, why not go with some blue LEDs and rig them to your tank...... it keeps it dark enough for the fish to sleep, but light enough to watch any noctornal fish, such as a pleco! But just in general, I don't leave them on in the night time....