No lights ~ Natural death to Algae problems
- Thread starter broreefr
- Start date
I ran across that thread a few weeks ago. It seems like it would be a great idea to try. I can't imagine it harming your corals much if you slowly acclimate them back to the light.
- Messages
- 1,524
- Reaction score
- 0
So he turns off all the lights? Or does he just keep the actinics on?
All lights are off for the duration of the cycle. The actinics are on by themselves for a day, then the daylights are back on then next day.
By the way, Broreefr, where have you been man?
By the way, Broreefr, where have you been man?
I HAVE been having algae problems, and lately have been cutting out my 10,000K's periodically from time to time if I'm home, and shortening the full daylight cycle a bit. I may not be a Marine Biologist, but I did start off as a Biology and Ecology major, and a little critical thinking makes obvious the fact that, as they mention in that thread, most reefs don't get anything remotely like the 12+hr, 365 day light cycle as they do in the home reef. Obviously, being photosynthetic, they like the light, but like all living things, there is definitely too much of a good thing... You get fat form over-eating, and skin-cancer from to much sunlight, and I imagine corals and fish suffer similar detrimental effects - They need periods of photorest, just as they need the occasional water-change simulating the influx of waters from different regions carried in by strong tide or current activity. It's also why, outside of ensuring that water chemistry values aren't too highly effected, I'm not to concerned about using straight, unsalted RO/DI water to replace evaporated water... After, fresh-water falls out of the sky and into the ocean all the time, does it not?
My real concern had been any potential negative effects on my corals... Again, not being a marine biologist in particular, and relatively new to the marine portion of the hobby, I've been hesitant to do anything too outside the norm without other advice, but I'd been heading on the right tracks, I just wasn't brave enough to do it full bore, until now. I just cut my 10,000K's out for the rest of the day (I'm home, for once, and wanna still be able to see my fish, ****it), and the lights are going out Monday thru Wednesday - we'll see how things look then, and I'll report back here on the results, while I continue doing my 10% daily water changes, bringing the actinics back on Thursday. My tank gets only very little indirect sunlight, so I think I'll leave the LED's on. Wish me luck! A friend said he might bring a camera by today - if he does, I'll try to get before and after pictures for everyone.
My real concern had been any potential negative effects on my corals... Again, not being a marine biologist in particular, and relatively new to the marine portion of the hobby, I've been hesitant to do anything too outside the norm without other advice, but I'd been heading on the right tracks, I just wasn't brave enough to do it full bore, until now. I just cut my 10,000K's out for the rest of the day (I'm home, for once, and wanna still be able to see my fish, ****it), and the lights are going out Monday thru Wednesday - we'll see how things look then, and I'll report back here on the results, while I continue doing my 10% daily water changes, bringing the actinics back on Thursday. My tank gets only very little indirect sunlight, so I think I'll leave the LED's on. Wish me luck! A friend said he might bring a camera by today - if he does, I'll try to get before and after pictures for everyone.
Argh, that prior post really needed further edititng... Anyway, I forgot to add something on a side note some of you geekier types (like myself) might find interesting: http://www.physorg.com/news95605211.html">http://www.physorg.com/news95605211.html</a>
Oh... and I do have ONE thing I'm worried about in the tank... my shaving-brush plants! We ordered a pack of five, but they sent us six, one of which looked a bit bleached on arrival, and it has since, I believe, very nearly given up the ghost, I think... There are a few green strands left in it, and I'll of course monitor the tank daily; if it appears to be totally dead and coming apart, I'll of course remove it before it just becomes a giant nitrogen dispenser.
Oh... and I do have ONE thing I'm worried about in the tank... my shaving-brush plants! We ordered a pack of five, but they sent us six, one of which looked a bit bleached on arrival, and it has since, I believe, very nearly given up the ghost, I think... There are a few green strands left in it, and I'll of course monitor the tank daily; if it appears to be totally dead and coming apart, I'll of course remove it before it just becomes a giant nitrogen dispenser.
- Messages
- 239
- Reaction score
- 0
i dont tihnk you can quite compare tapwater to rainfall in a reef zone. without factoring in acid rain, polluttion, etc, the water cycle on earth results in a sort of natural distillation. rainwater is clean for the most part...very clean.
"...I'm not to concerned about using straight, unsalted <u>RO/DI</u> water to replace evaporated water... "
... which is almost certainly cleaner than most rain that has fallen near the continental US in the last >80 years.
Tap-water == bad is a given
But don't forget... That natural distillation only serves to spread the gunk around, it doesn't get rid of it; that's what wetlands are for. When water is evaporaated, it leaves anything with a higher evaporation point than it has behind, whether that be in the ocean or on the sidewalk. Acid rain is the result of water soluble contaminants finding their way into the atmosphere and then being draged down by rainfall, where they evaporate again if not trapped by soil or plants, etc.
Pior to the industrial era, water was only "dirty" when it was somehow bacteriologically fouled, otherwise any good mountain spring or swift-running river was likely a good source of fresh, clean water. Tap water should be clean, too, and I find the crud added to it to be a mite silly, myself. No, I didn't only by my RO/DI for my fish, I bought it for me, too; Fulton Co. has way too many "Boil Water Advisories" for my tastes.
... which is almost certainly cleaner than most rain that has fallen near the continental US in the last >80 years.
Tap-water == bad is a given
But don't forget... That natural distillation only serves to spread the gunk around, it doesn't get rid of it; that's what wetlands are for. When water is evaporaated, it leaves anything with a higher evaporation point than it has behind, whether that be in the ocean or on the sidewalk. Acid rain is the result of water soluble contaminants finding their way into the atmosphere and then being draged down by rainfall, where they evaporate again if not trapped by soil or plants, etc.
Pior to the industrial era, water was only "dirty" when it was somehow bacteriologically fouled, otherwise any good mountain spring or swift-running river was likely a good source of fresh, clean water. Tap water should be clean, too, and I find the crud added to it to be a mite silly, myself. No, I didn't only by my RO/DI for my fish, I bought it for me, too; Fulton Co. has way too many "Boil Water Advisories" for my tastes.
- Messages
- 239
- Reaction score
- 0
ah i just misinterpreted that sentance. but yeah your right
Well, the equivalent of 1 day in ten on a monthly schedule certainly wouldn't hurt, it may not be ideal either; I'm going to be a bit more conservative, as per the suggestion in the original RC thread - give it an initial try, and then wait until I see any signs of problems before I turn the lights off again. Though who's to say what is or isn't ideal - within a certain margin, of course - when those little marine critters can be incredibly hardy in some circumstances, and so very fragile in others, the causes of which we can often times never be completely certain of.
I'm pretty sure in that read it said that it wouldnt kill bryopsis but it would weaken it so you could then pluck it out easier. I have some of that develish crap in my tank and I just did 2 days of no light on my 15g reef and while it did weaken it, its still there. Maybe if you had a seperate tank completely in the dark for a much longer time and obviously no corals could be in this one but that "might" kill it....unfortunately its really hard to get rid of.
