Lights, how long and moonlights

[lorenk]

This is a total nub question. How long should I run the lights? I just setup, 24g with 25lbs of LR adn 20lbs of LS. It's a 150w HQI sunpod.

Also, do I run the white and blue LED moonlights when the big lights not on?

Going to pickup a timer tomorrow so I can keep consistent.

Thanks in advance!

 

[glxtrix]

there are numerous ways to setup your light schedule....the most popular ways are actinics on 1 hr befor the halide turns on, halide on for 8-10hrs, actinics on anout hour or more after halide goes out. Moon lights usually are on after the actinics turn out. Some people keep moon lights on all night, some only have them on for a short period...all up to you.

 

[showtime305]

I'm running the Sunpod fixture on my tank right now. Here's my lighting schedule. I do want to point out that I do have the moon lights coming on in the morning since the tanks is somewhat shaded from any light. It's not much of a ramp up to the halides but it does provide some light prior to the halides turning on.

10:00am Blue moon light on
10:30am White moon light on
11:00am Metal Halide on
11:00am Both moon lights Off
8:50pm Both moon lights on
9:00pm Metal Halide off
10:00pm White moon light off
4:00am Blue moon light off

I keep the blue moon lights on until 4am because a look over my tank is the last thing I do before heading off to sleep.

 

[lorenk]

Great, thanks. I don't have the actinics.

So I guess I'll pickup 3 timers then.

 

[cameron]

I run mine like this:

Blue LEDs - 24x7
Actinic on from - 8am till 9pm
4x22w 10k T5s - 8:30am till 8:30pm
2x250w MH - 9am till 8pm

I have been having great growth and coloring compared to colonies of the same corals in other tanks. I am going to implement seasonal temperatures and daylight as well as moonlight very soon. I don't know if it will help, but I am hoping to get even more growth and spawning.

 

[haninja]

<span style="font-family: Tahoma;">I read a lot of posts about NOT running your lights while cycling your tank. You might want to look into that.</span>
<span style="font-family: Tahoma;">Any ARC opinions?</span>

 

[siege]

I have been running a very smiliar cycle to Caermon's:

.75W Blue LED's - 24x7 (unless I decide to cut them off... Totally at whim)
96w PC Actinics - 8am to 8pm
96w PC 10,000K - theoretically from 9am to 7pm, however, one of my timers died, so the 10,000K's go on when I get up for work (about 9:30am) and either go out with the rest of the lights automatically at 8pm, or somewhere around 7pm, if I or the roomies happen to be home.

I've kind of wondered about moonlights... The general consensus seems</em> to be that the don't really provide enough light to make any difference to the tank and only actually matter to humans, but I have a sneaking suspicion this is a bit of an over-simplification, what with the kind of positive health reactions reptiles show with the intorduction of a proper moon-light... Anybody have any comments in this regard?

At the moment, I'm trying the "three days lights off" method of algae control. I turned off my 10,000K's all day yesterday, left the LED's on last night, and turned off all lights today EXCEPT the LED's, which I plan to turn off tonight, and then on again Wednesday morning, bringing the actinic's back on on Thursday, and full light again on Friday, hoping to use all my lighting resources to make the cycle as gentle as possible on my livestock, while eradicating as much algae as possible.

 

[lorenk]

Good point...would appreciate some comments on this one.

I would have thought the light necessasry for the live organisms to be active and make their ammonia waste.

-b

haninja;36386 wrote: <span style="font-family: Tahoma;">I read a lot of posts about NOT running your lights while cycling your tank. You might want to look into that.</span>
<span style="font-family: Tahoma;">Any ARC opinions?</span>

 

[vettesarebest]

Yes no lights while cycling, you will have LOTS of Algae problems.