actinic lighting
- Thread starter tubedood
- Start date
Actinic lighting is seen as full daylight by most invertebrates. It is the only light that penetrates to any real depths in the ocean's waters. Lighting other than actinic is basically foreign to a lot of marine life forms until they are captured and brought up from their natural depths. If you are serious about lighting effects you would not normally ever consider using moonlights unless they are especially timed to the real moons lighting patterns. It is best once, the lights go out, to use red lighting if you want to view the marine organisms.
You would understand that LED moonlighting as it is commonly used and as I assume you recommend is entirely for the benefit of the viewing reefer and it is actually quite stessfu to the marine ocuppants. It is to much lighting in a spectrum which to them is daylight. The blue and the white moonlights used are both in the actinic wavelenghts. Would you like to spend 24 hours day every day in daylight.
I am sorry if you have an aversion to shared knowledge..:look:
Fishhead Junkie
Member
I agree, buy a few more LED moon lights for night viewing. They also sell powerbrite LED strips that have 2 white LED and 2 blue LED, only like $50 at drsfosterandsmith.com, good deal. Would really spice up your tank, depending on the size you could go with more than 1 if you wanted. I have been debating on whether or not to add more to my 29BC.
Steve
Steve
NCguy
WiseGuy
Would you like to lighten up and let people enjoy this hobby without being such a critic?You seem to spend more time trying to find faults and disagreeing with eveyones posts insted of giving someone a helping hand. Alot of things in this hobby are opinion rather than fact.There are MANY different ways to reach your goals. You should try to be happy for once.Try it you might like it.
blue_eyes53813
Well-Known Member
Alot of people use moonlights,,, many lighting systems have moonlights installed in them... Using them for short periods at night will not harm the livestock... Most of those LED moonlights are a small wattage. The ocean even has some moonlight effects... Nothing in this hobby are exactly like the natural ocean... I havent seen moonlights over a tank but I bet it is a cool effect...
I LOVE my LED moonlights. I have them on all four of our tanks and they run 24/7 on all of them. The "effects" of the LEDS shining at night is simply AMAZING! I've never ran a tank without them (only been here 18 months) but I don't seem any harm in running them.
I also have to say.. Frank's tank is SUPERB! Can't see anything he's done wrong there
Every thing I write is generally written to help others. I have been keeping reef tanks for over 35 years, and have seen a lot of fads and trends come and go, but there is science which is nearly always based on documented tests and that is proven through repeated trials and peer review, it is this base I try to draw upon and share, not opinions or feelings which every one has and that seldom are based on facts. I am an engineer and tend to apparently have fun in different ways than you. I do not contribute on reef sites due to any need for social interaction in the way of idle exchanges of pleasantries.Would you like to lighten up and let people enjoy this hobby without being such a critic?You seem to spend more time trying to find faults and disagreeing with eveyones posts insted of giving someone a helping hand. Alot of things in this hobby are opinion rather than fact.There are MANY different ways to reach your goals. You should try to be happy for once.Try it you might like it.
I see others disagreeing with me almost as often as I disagree with others. I am quite happy, it seems to be you that are not.
I hope people enjoy the hobby even more through learning as much as they can about the safe and sane keeping of marine organisms and therefore provide the best environment they can for those organisms.
I do not see why that should be a problem.
I, as do many other experienced coral growers, fish breeders and scientists in the reef community, recommend that the reef inhabitants get either at least 8 hours per night with total darkness or that moonlights be used that are set to mimic exactly or near to exactly the actual cycles of the moon to include the dimming of the moon lighting to mimic partial moon phases. As this, as of now, generally requires the use of expensive controllers it is best for the welfare of the marine organisms to have no light rather than constant "dim" lighting. By the ways, 4 to 12 or more, 3 to 5 watt moonlights hardly constitute "dim" lighting. It is strange that reef tank keepers will provide the macro algae in their refugiums at least 8 hours of no light but insist that even higher order marine organisms should suffer due to their desire for extended viewing.
As I have said before, the common method of viewing tanks inhabitants after the end of the lighting cycle is complete is to use a red light source. I see no real problem in extending lighting with actinic to the point of the inhabitants having lighting for 16 hours per day, as long as they then have controlled lighting or darkness during the other 8 hours.
"Moon lighting" usage was started in the marine industry by coral growers to mimic the sun to causing spawning by corals which seems to be induced by the moons cycles. Originally just small incandescent lights were =used that were controlled by timers to mimic the moon. It was found that tighter control was needed and the dimming of the lights became the standard. It has since then been turned into more of a manner for people to squeeze more enjoyment time out of their tanks, at the welfare of those tanks inhabitants. The usage of LED's just made things more convenient due to their small size as long lives, but with much increased costs.
This is true but since the vast majority of the life forms we keep in our tanks come from shallow water I don't see a problem in using moonlights of minimal wattage to extend our viewing pleasure.
I decided to purchase moonlights after my Triggerfish was eaten by a S. haddoni during the night and have not noticed any adverse affects of it's use in 3 years on both inverts or fish.
NCguy
WiseGuy
You know it's funny that you should mention something about being in daylight for 24 hours every day.....(hmm wonder where I'm going with this)
Reef inhabitants need 8 hours of COMPLETE DARKNESS hmmm ok If you don't know where I'm going with this..hold on for it..It's coming
My LED's hardly constitues "dim" lighting huh? The marine organisms are "suffering" in my tank as well as soooo many others with Moon lights?
uhhh
Ok then let me ask you this.....WHERE DO YOU LIVE?
(uh ohhhh)
ALASKA??
Correct me if I'm wrong (and I'm sure you would) How many hours of DAYLIGHT are you having right now in Alaska? WHOOOOOPS
Ohhhhh yeah I checked. You are getting anywhere from 20 to 24 hrs of DAYLIGHT every single day of the week.The DAYLIGHT hours not only last for days but the DAYLIGHT there lasts for WEEKS....even MONTHS there during this time of year...Hmm that's amazing isn't it.
How many hours of "complete darkness" does that leave the corals and fish in Alaska with???
Could you please explain (with all of your 35 years worth of infinite wisdom) how it is possible that the fish and corals there in Alaska survive for MONTHS at a time without virtually ANY "complete darkness"??? Do corals and fish not exist there in Alaska??? Bet it doesn't take your engineering skills to figure it out does it.
My 3-5 watt LEDs are not "dim" and its causing my reef inhabitants to "suffer" but yet they seem to be doing just fine in Alaska where during July/Aug/Sep it is basically DAYLIGHT allllllll the way through.
You dont have to chime in with "it gets kinda dark here for an hour or two" because trust me...That's not "DIM" enough and it surely isn't anywhere near 8 hours.
Man...It kind of makes you wonder why Greenpeace or PETA hasn't pulled together to do something about all of the "higher order marine organisms" there that are "suffering" due to incomplete total darkness.
As I stated earlier and so many others have agreed tubedood, You can get some LEDs for your tank and you'll be just fine.
As long as we are on the topic of lighting... I bought a cheap timer to turn on the 10000k lights at 10 am, off at what time do ya recommend? They went off at 6:30 tonight.... actinics are still a manual on and off. I turned em on at 6 am and they are still on at 7 PM. Any help as always is greatly appreciated!
I do plan on another timer to bring the actinics (2 PC 420/460 I think) on an hour before the 10000k's.
I do plan on another timer to bring the actinics (2 PC 420/460 I think) on an hour before the 10000k's.
Most marine orgainisms are taken from depths of meters, very often 10 meters or more. Not a matter of feet. There are not a lot of people keeping lagoonal specimens that actually come from shallow waters. In the marine trade 10 meters is considered shallow. Specimens for reef tanks come from 10 meters to 30 meters depths. Besides, look at graphs and charts and see how little light but blue penetrates beyond just a few meters.
I fail to see why you even wish to discuss very deep water fish when the discussuion is about corals fish tanks. Alaskan fish as do most fish only come near the surface for food. Very few fish actually chose to be siloeted by the sun as it makes them easy prey, or targets. Alaskan corals are deep water corals, very deep, there is barely even any blue light at their depths, they do not have algae living in their tissues. Nearly all fish in Alaska are dep water fish. THe nets, sringer lines and traps are not set or used in shallow awaters. Unless swimmers using mixed gases swimming down for them (fish or corals) they are typically only seen when deep sea trawlers bring them up in their traps/nets. Alaskan fishermen who sport fish use bvery large reals with extreme amounts of line on them. Alaskan corals are not dependant on sunlight as the are chiefly filter feeders and also utilize dissolved organics. Deep water fish and corals over a long period of evolution have adapted to a near absence of light, every where not just in Alaska.
Most coral fish (definitely not corals) never venture more than a few meters out of their territorries in their whole life spans. They do not swim through out the ocean and have not through evolution adapted to any changes in lighting etc. As do open ocean fish and zonal fish, from very deep depths.
If lighting was/is not an important issue with corals then there would be no multitude of tests on different bulbs and different lighting PAR, PUR and intensities. Periods of drakness is generally considered a common known fact that is beyond argument.
Skinner, a well known, actually famous man, in the field of mental health used to lock his own children in a closet without food and light and they had to perform different acts to get attention, food or to go to the bathroom. Some people would say that is OK, some people would say stressful at the least.
Any one can obviously do as they wish with their reef tanks, as unfortunitly there are not yet any licensing requirements involved in keeping them.
I am just repeating that knowledge that has come through study, work and research, not casual untested observation. Higher form invertebrates that are dependant on lighting need controlled moon lighting or complete darkness for optimum health and growth. The difference between optimal and good health and growth is obviously pretty hard to put numbers on. Quality reef keeping usually means making many efforts to try to mimic nature because that is what the organisms have evolved into seeing as best. Doing what ever we want for viewing enjoyment is usually not considered making efforts to mimic nature.
I fail to see why you even wish to discuss very deep water fish when the discussuion is about corals fish tanks. Alaskan fish as do most fish only come near the surface for food. Very few fish actually chose to be siloeted by the sun as it makes them easy prey, or targets. Alaskan corals are deep water corals, very deep, there is barely even any blue light at their depths, they do not have algae living in their tissues. Nearly all fish in Alaska are dep water fish. THe nets, sringer lines and traps are not set or used in shallow awaters. Unless swimmers using mixed gases swimming down for them (fish or corals) they are typically only seen when deep sea trawlers bring them up in their traps/nets. Alaskan fishermen who sport fish use bvery large reals with extreme amounts of line on them. Alaskan corals are not dependant on sunlight as the are chiefly filter feeders and also utilize dissolved organics. Deep water fish and corals over a long period of evolution have adapted to a near absence of light, every where not just in Alaska.
Most coral fish (definitely not corals) never venture more than a few meters out of their territorries in their whole life spans. They do not swim through out the ocean and have not through evolution adapted to any changes in lighting etc. As do open ocean fish and zonal fish, from very deep depths.
If lighting was/is not an important issue with corals then there would be no multitude of tests on different bulbs and different lighting PAR, PUR and intensities. Periods of drakness is generally considered a common known fact that is beyond argument.
Skinner, a well known, actually famous man, in the field of mental health used to lock his own children in a closet without food and light and they had to perform different acts to get attention, food or to go to the bathroom. Some people would say that is OK, some people would say stressful at the least.
Any one can obviously do as they wish with their reef tanks, as unfortunitly there are not yet any licensing requirements involved in keeping them.
I am just repeating that knowledge that has come through study, work and research, not casual untested observation. Higher form invertebrates that are dependant on lighting need controlled moon lighting or complete darkness for optimum health and growth. The difference between optimal and good health and growth is obviously pretty hard to put numbers on. Quality reef keeping usually means making many efforts to try to mimic nature because that is what the organisms have evolved into seeing as best. Doing what ever we want for viewing enjoyment is usually not considered making efforts to mimic nature.