Wattage — the amount of energy used Kelvin — the color of the lighting low is a warm color, high is a cool color Lumens — its brightness as perceived by the human eye for general illumination PAR Photosynthetically Active Radiation — the light that is useful to grow plants and beneficial algae.
Unlike plants, fish do not have a biological need for light, so they require less. Natural sunlight at noon has a rating of Kelvin. To provide animals and plants the lighting they need, 10 to 12 hours a day is sufficient. Installing a timer or purchasing a unit with integrated timing can make lighting easier——just set it and forget it.
Keep in mind algae loves light as well. So if you notice algae growth starting, cut back on the duration. Talking about aquarium plants, you probably already know that plants — whether they are on the ground or in an aquarium — require light to flourish.
This is especially true for aquarium plants that are generally dependent on artificial aquarium light. Therefore, it is important to know for how long you should keep the lights on in your aquarium and set the lighting hours like a planted tank lighting schedule according to the needs of your planted tank. Unfortunately, sometimes, it can be tricky to set the right number of lighting hours for an aquarium.
This is especially true if you are just starting out with planted aquariums. Scroll down to learn all about aquarium lights and for how long you should keep them on in a planted aquarium. There are multiple factors that come to play when you are determining the amount of light that your aquarium requires every day.
Scroll down to learn about them. This is perhaps the most important factor that you need to consider. Plants require light for photosynthesis, which is the process through which they get their food. To carry out this process, they require plenty of light.
Some plants may require as much as 12 hours of light every day to remain healthy and flourish in your aquarium. The precise amount of light a plant requires in a day depends on its type and even its size. When it comes to aquarium plants, there are three types of plants that every aquarist should know about. As the name suggests, carpet plants are found at the bottom of the aquarium. Generally, these plants cover the base of the aquarium like a carpet.
These plants generally require medium to high light to survive at the bottom. They are very demanding and you may have to keep the light on for 12 — 14 hours to ensure they remain in good health. Some of the most popular carpet plants include the following:. Mid-ground plants are usually low-maintenance.
Generally, they require a low to moderate amount of light. The best part about these plants is that while they do not require a lot of maintenance, they will still look stunning in your aquarium. This is mainly because being kept in an aquarium with four glass sides gives them more access to light than their natural environment would. To put it simply, with regards to fish, additional lighting is really all about what we like. There are, however, exceptions to this, such as Cichlids , Tetras , and Elephant Nose fish who prefer dimmer light and have been known to be adversely affected by bright light.
It, therefore, is advisable to do some research on the fish species in your aquarium to see if they have any special lighting requirements. For those fish who do not have special lighting needs the general rule of thumb for lighting would be 8 to 12 hours per day. Most of this, especially in the summer months, will come from natural lighting, but in winter you will need to turn your lighting on more.
Useful Tip: Do not leave aquarium lighting on overnight. Fish do need to rest and sleep and the majority, like us, do this in the dark. They are easy to set up, reliable and inexpensive to purchase. The amount of ambient lighting your aquarium receives, as covered briefly above, will have a huge effect on how long you will need your supplemental lighting on.
For example, a bright sunny room will need less additional light than a dimly lit one, as will a room that is commonly artificially lit. Seasons also play a part in ambient lighting since in winter darkness sets in earlier than in summer. Useful Tip: If your fish appear to be resting or sleeping far more than they are active, it is a sign they are not getting enough light. Switch on your aquarium lights if this appears to be the case, to ensure they get 8 to 12 hours of light per day.
However, it is also just as important that they do not get too much light. This is mainly due to excess light being a huge cause of algae overgrowth. Whilst excess algae growth is more commonly linked to natural sunlight and having your aquarium directly in the path of it, it can also be the result of too much supplemental light. Either way, it is a nightmare to get rid of when it takes a hold of your aquarium, and not very attractive.
If you do find that your aquarium is suffering from an algae bloom, you should reduce the time your supplemental lights are on. There are a number of fish that can help you clean your aquarium by eating excessive algae.
Another really popular algae eater is the siamese algae eater which is sold in their thousands each year across the world and a great hardy freshwater fish that will eat a huge amount of algae. Useful Tip: Some algae in your aquarium is beneficial as it is a source of food for some species of fish.
It may not be your first thought but it should be taken into consideration that, not only does aquarium lighting produce light, but it also produces heat. This means, that your choice of lighting has the potential to heat your aquarium and cause problems with your fish.
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