Lunar Cycle & Spawning

chriswho · 10-19-2008, 07:09 PM

I've read about some controllers that can reproduce natural lunar cycles and promote spawning in both fish and corals. These controllers are currently out of my price range and I was wondering if there was a way that I could set my lunars up on a seperate timer and achieve the same effect. Has anyone ever tried this? Does anyone know how I would attempt? (Natural lunar cycle periods, and date they start?)

chriswho · 10-19-2008, 09:05 PM

Nobody think this would work?

chriswho · 10-19-2008, 11:34 PM

Anyone got any opinions on the subject at all?

Frankie · 10-20-2008, 12:50 AM

Here's a moon phase calendar Chris. Try and control the moon lights to this chart StarDate Online | Moon Phase Calculator
And times to this one StarDate Online | October 2008 Sky Almanac
Let me know how you make out.

Adam Black · 10-20-2008, 12:59 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Frankie

Here's a moon phase calendar Chris. Try and control the moon lights to this chart StarDate Online | Moon Phase Calculator
And times to this one StarDate Online | October 2008 Sky Almanac
Let me know how you make out.

Wow I've never seen a Moon phase calendar. That's cool!

chriswho · 10-20-2008, 01:28 AM

Cool thanks Frankie

chriswho · 10-20-2008, 05:19 AM

How do you think I could use my Lunars to replicate this. It seems as though a timer wouldn't do much good.

BigJay · 10-20-2008, 06:48 AM

I tried to figure out how to make something work also. My solution .. an aquacontroller Jr.
All timers out there are based on a 24 hour clock and exact time of day replication. Find a timer based on a 25 hour day and you got somethign you can work with.

BigJay · 10-20-2008, 06:59 AM

just thought of something. Not sure why I couldn't think of this before.
Buy two non digital timers. Set the first one to something like 23 hours a day on. Set the second timer to something like 8 hours a day on. Plug the second timer into the first and it should shift the on time by 1 hour a day.

chriswho · 10-20-2008, 07:27 AM

I'm not quite sure how you're thinking this would work big jay... Could you please elaborate? I was wondering how I would replicate like, quarter, half, and 3 quarter moons short of putting electrical tape over the lights. I guess I don't know quite what you're talking about. Could you please explain step by step the process you're thinking of?

BigAl07 · 10-20-2008, 09:11 AM

Chris if you're just wanting the lunar cycle look into the Neptune AC Jr. It's one of the least expensive controllers and since you're only wanting to do some simple lunar stuff it should be able to take care of you.

Just so you know..... it's a gamble (that's probably an understatement) that this will help in any way. There are literally colleges and entire groups trying to simulate an accurate lunar cycle and test if it really makes any difference in spawning or not. Hey it's worth a try... shouldn't HURT anything other than you wallet and then it wont be a huge hurt

Frankie · 10-20-2008, 09:19 AM

If I was trying to do it manually without spending money on controllers I would do just that. Turn it on and off manually.
TO do so I would get a 24/7 push pin timer and turn it on at the correct time and just set the pin for the off time so I could go to bed. You would need to do this every day though~ Other then that, start a piggy bank and buy a real controller.

BigJay · 10-20-2008, 12:40 PM

Basically a lunar timer works by moving the time the lunar lights come on. Unless your using a dimmeable LED or have a Dimable module connected to the LED's or an incadescent light all the lunar timer does is adjust when the moon normally appears in the sky. Which naturally is near an hour different every day.
By setting the first manual timer at 23 hours you shut down the second timer by 1 hour per day. basically advancing the time the lunar lights come on by 1 hour every day. Its a 10 dollar solution to you buying a controller that will only do the same thing.
Obviously if your going to invest in dimmable lights or an incadescent that can be dimmed plus a controller.. then no there is no other method I can think of that will accomplish that then spending the money on it or doing it manually every day which is pretty much impossible.

example

day 1 moon on 8 pm to 6 am
day 2 moon on 9 pm to 7 am
3 - 10 pm to 8 am
4 - 11 pm to 9 am
5 - 12 pm to 10 am
6 1 to 11
7 2 to 12
8 3 to 1
9 4 to 2
10 5 to 3
11 6 to 4
12 (the lights now come on during your normal regular lighting period simulating no moon) 7 - 5
13 8 -6
14 9 - 7
15 10 -8
16 11 - 9
17 12-10
..... on the 23 day you have a full moon again.

Octoman · 10-20-2008, 01:13 PM

Jay, I see what your saying and that's not a bad idea. Sometimes while the moon is "up" you would have an hour out when the 23 hour timer shuts off, but otherwise, it would give 25 hour lunar days... However, it would get out of sync with the moon and have to be reset periodically - the full lunar cycle is ~ 29.5 days and this would cycle every 24 days.

A controller can provide an accurate lunar cycle that always stays in sync. The ACjr was one of the best purchases I made for my system, the lunar cycle was really just an added bonus...

Octoman · 10-20-2008, 01:21 PM

If you had the ability to add 1.25 hours each day (on a timer with 15 minute pins...) it would give a cycle of 30 days which would be a bit closer.

10-19-2008, 07:09 PM	#1 (permalink)
chriswho Cabbage Leather Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Oklahoma Posts: 395 View Gallery Karma Komment	Lunar Cycle & Spawning I've read about some controllers that can reproduce natural lunar cycles and promote spawning in both fish and corals. These controllers are currently out of my price range and I was wondering if there was a way that I could set my lunars up on a seperate timer and achieve the same effect. Has anyone ever tried this? Does anyone know how I would attempt? (Natural lunar cycle periods, and date they start?) __________________ Nobody, as long as he moves about among the chaotic currents of life, is without trouble. -Carl Jung 55g 35#LR, 55#LS, 4x65w PC, 2 Koralia PH's, Remora Pro HOB skimmer, 1 Oscellaris clown,1 Yellow tailed Damsel, 2 Clarkii Clowns, Assorted color Zoo's, Green frilly mushrooms, Flower pot coral, Orange sponge, Candy cane Coral.

10-19-2008, 09:05 PM	#2 (permalink)
chriswho Cabbage Leather Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Oklahoma Posts: 395 View Gallery Karma Komment	Re: Lunar Cycle & Spawning Nobody think this would work? __________________ Nobody, as long as he moves about among the chaotic currents of life, is without trouble. -Carl Jung 55g 35#LR, 55#LS, 4x65w PC, 2 Koralia PH's, Remora Pro HOB skimmer, 1 Oscellaris clown,1 Yellow tailed Damsel, 2 Clarkii Clowns, Assorted color Zoo's, Green frilly mushrooms, Flower pot coral, Orange sponge, Candy cane Coral.

10-19-2008, 11:34 PM	#3 (permalink)
chriswho Cabbage Leather Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Oklahoma Posts: 395 View Gallery Karma Komment	Re: Lunar Cycle & Spawning Anyone got any opinions on the subject at all? __________________ Nobody, as long as he moves about among the chaotic currents of life, is without trouble. -Carl Jung 55g 35#LR, 55#LS, 4x65w PC, 2 Koralia PH's, Remora Pro HOB skimmer, 1 Oscellaris clown,1 Yellow tailed Damsel, 2 Clarkii Clowns, Assorted color Zoo's, Green frilly mushrooms, Flower pot coral, Orange sponge, Candy cane Coral.

10-20-2008, 01:28 AM	#6 (permalink)
chriswho Cabbage Leather Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Oklahoma Posts: 395 View Gallery Karma Komment	Re: Lunar Cycle & Spawning Cool thanks Frankie __________________ Nobody, as long as he moves about among the chaotic currents of life, is without trouble. -Carl Jung 55g 35#LR, 55#LS, 4x65w PC, 2 Koralia PH's, Remora Pro HOB skimmer, 1 Oscellaris clown,1 Yellow tailed Damsel, 2 Clarkii Clowns, Assorted color Zoo's, Green frilly mushrooms, Flower pot coral, Orange sponge, Candy cane Coral.

10-20-2008, 05:19 AM	#7 (permalink)
chriswho Cabbage Leather Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Oklahoma Posts: 395 View Gallery Karma Komment	Re: Lunar Cycle & Spawning How do you think I could use my Lunars to replicate this. It seems as though a timer wouldn't do much good. __________________ Nobody, as long as he moves about among the chaotic currents of life, is without trouble. -Carl Jung 55g 35#LR, 55#LS, 4x65w PC, 2 Koralia PH's, Remora Pro HOB skimmer, 1 Oscellaris clown,1 Yellow tailed Damsel, 2 Clarkii Clowns, Assorted color Zoo's, Green frilly mushrooms, Flower pot coral, Orange sponge, Candy cane Coral.

10-20-2008, 06:48 AM	#8 (permalink)
BigJay Golden Moray Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: SW Florida Posts: 2,551 View Gallery Karma Komment	Re: Lunar Cycle & Spawning I tried to figure out how to make something work also. My solution .. an aquacontroller Jr. All timers out there are based on a 24 hour clock and exact time of day replication. Find a timer based on a 25 hour day and you got somethign you can work with. __________________ Reefing off and on since '92 BigJay's Oceanic 90g bowfront chronicle See my pyrex products and target feeders here

10-20-2008, 06:59 AM	#9 (permalink)
BigJay Golden Moray Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: SW Florida Posts: 2,551 View Gallery Karma Komment	Re: Lunar Cycle & Spawning just thought of something. Not sure why I couldn't think of this before. Buy two non digital timers. Set the first one to something like 23 hours a day on. Set the second timer to something like 8 hours a day on. Plug the second timer into the first and it should shift the on time by 1 hour a day. __________________ Reefing off and on since '92 BigJay's Oceanic 90g bowfront chronicle See my pyrex products and target feeders here

10-20-2008, 07:27 AM	#10 (permalink)
chriswho Cabbage Leather Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Oklahoma Posts: 395 View Gallery Karma Komment	Re: Lunar Cycle & Spawning I'm not quite sure how you're thinking this would work big jay... Could you please elaborate? I was wondering how I would replicate like, quarter, half, and 3 quarter moons short of putting electrical tape over the lights. I guess I don't know quite what you're talking about. Could you please explain step by step the process you're thinking of? __________________ Nobody, as long as he moves about among the chaotic currents of life, is without trouble. -Carl Jung 55g 35#LR, 55#LS, 4x65w PC, 2 Koralia PH's, Remora Pro HOB skimmer, 1 Oscellaris clown,1 Yellow tailed Damsel, 2 Clarkii Clowns, Assorted color Zoo's, Green frilly mushrooms, Flower pot coral, Orange sponge, Candy cane Coral.

10-20-2008, 09:11 AM	#11 (permalink)
BigAl07 Do I look as lost as I am Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Waynesville, North Carolina Posts: 21,549 View Gallery Karma Komment Add yours!	Re: Lunar Cycle & Spawning Chris if you're just wanting the lunar cycle look into the Neptune AC Jr. It's one of the least expensive controllers and since you're only wanting to do some simple lunar stuff it should be able to take care of you. Just so you know..... it's a gamble (that's probably an understatement) that this will help in any way. There are literally colleges and entire groups trying to simulate an accurate lunar cycle and test if it really makes any difference in spawning or not. Hey it's worth a try... shouldn't HURT anything other than you wallet and then it wont be a huge hurt __________________ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~ *Live Rock Rubble will do the SAME thing as Bio-Balls and is NOT a suitable replacement for BIO-BALLS in a Reef System! It's ALL gotta go!!* Nitrate (NO3) reduction is directly proportional to percentage of Water Change. Allen's home-made formula...currentNO3-((%WC.01)currentNO3)=finalNO3 (thanks Luukosian) This means if you change 50% of your total water volume (That's EVERYTHING) you'll get a net reduction of (NO3) somewhere around 50%. Ask me about how to increase your REEF budget without going without FOOD!!* Big Al's 10g Julie's (BigAl's Gal) 6g NanoCube Gone but not forgotten BigAl's Slow 90g Tank Chronicle Allens OFFICE 12g Nano-Reef

10-20-2008, 12:40 PM	#13 (permalink)
BigJay Golden Moray Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: SW Florida Posts: 2,551 View Gallery Karma Komment	Re: Lunar Cycle & Spawning Basically a lunar timer works by moving the time the lunar lights come on. Unless your using a dimmeable LED or have a Dimable module connected to the LED's or an incadescent light all the lunar timer does is adjust when the moon normally appears in the sky. Which naturally is near an hour different every day. By setting the first manual timer at 23 hours you shut down the second timer by 1 hour per day. basically advancing the time the lunar lights come on by 1 hour every day. Its a 10 dollar solution to you buying a controller that will only do the same thing. Obviously if your going to invest in dimmable lights or an incadescent that can be dimmed plus a controller.. then no there is no other method I can think of that will accomplish that then spending the money on it or doing it manually every day which is pretty much impossible. example day 1 moon on 8 pm to 6 am day 2 moon on 9 pm to 7 am 3 - 10 pm to 8 am 4 - 11 pm to 9 am 5 - 12 pm to 10 am 6 1 to 11 7 2 to 12 8 3 to 1 9 4 to 2 10 5 to 3 11 6 to 4 12 (the lights now come on during your normal regular lighting period simulating no moon) 7 - 5 13 8 -6 14 9 - 7 15 10 -8 16 11 - 9 17 12-10 ..... on the 23 day you have a full moon again. __________________ Reefing off and on since '92 BigJay's Oceanic 90g bowfront chronicle See my pyrex products and target feeders here

10-20-2008, 01:13 PM	#14 (permalink)
Octoman 8 left feet... Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: West Haven, CT Posts: 1,960 View Gallery Karma Komment	Re: Lunar Cycle & Spawning Jay, I see what your saying and that's not a bad idea. Sometimes while the moon is "up" you would have an hour out when the 23 hour timer shuts off, but otherwise, it would give 25 hour lunar days... However, it would get out of sync with the moon and have to be reset periodically - the full lunar cycle is ~ 29.5 days and this would cycle every 24 days. A controller can provide an accurate lunar cycle that always stays in sync. The ACjr was one of the best purchases I made for my system, the lunar cycle was really just an added bonus... __________________ Mark My tank thread... Octoman's 55 gallons of euphoria Tank build... 55 Construction

10-20-2008, 01:21 PM	#15 (permalink)
Octoman 8 left feet... Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: West Haven, CT Posts: 1,960 View Gallery Karma Komment	Re: Lunar Cycle & Spawning If you had the ability to add 1.25 hours each day (on a timer with 15 minute pins...) it would give a cycle of 30 days which would be a bit closer. __________________ Mark My tank thread... Octoman's 55 gallons of euphoria Tank build... 55 Construction

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