How long do you leave your lights on?

[Fluffeh]

Just wondering, how long does everyone leave their lights on? What is too little? What is too much?

[Benny314]

It's all subjective.

 

I run a 12 hour cycle (10:00-22:00) as my new DIY LEDs will ramp up and ramp down on the controller, so they are only at the maximum output set (currently 59%) for 2 hours as my high noon period then they back down again.

 

There is ambient light from day break as the tank is in the middle of the room between 2 large windows, but it's not bright enough to grow anything. But the fish do wake up at dawn.

 

It's harder to run lights that don't ramp up and down for a long time as the high light levels will be detrimental and cause unwanted algae etc.

[amphipod]

Don't follow my lighting method. I use the sun as my light, and it grows valonia like a charm.

[CrazyEyes]

Whenever I remember to turn it on - to whenever I remember to turn it off. I really need to just buy a timer for it.

[Dlc27]

Mine starts up at 6:30am. My blues ramp up first for an hour, and the whites start at 7 for an hour so we are full sun by 8. They are consistent throughout the day except for cloud coverage (I think every 10 minutes) that just lowers my whites for a minute or so. Then at 6:30pm they start ramping down whites first then blues. By 8 it's on it's lunar cycle with only two lunar lights, which I've set to mimic my geographic location.

[GokesReef]

I run my blues from 11 am - midnight and whites from (I think) 2p-6p - I'm up late, so I like to be able to see my tank.

[jlangtree]

Split cycles 6 on, 6 off, 6 on and 6 off.

 

Trying to stimulate growth with two photo-periods.

[Benny314]

Split cycles 6 on, 6 off, 6 on and 6 off.

 

Trying to stimulate growth with two photo-periods.

 

Interesting, is this working for you?

[GokesReef]

 

Interesting, is this working for you?

 

Last I read it doesn't do anything different than a single 12 hour pp

[jlangtree]

 

Last I read it doesn't do anything different than a single 12 hour pp

Having not run it that long I cant really be sure if any growth I am seeing is a result of the lights, or the increased level of attention I am giving my tank ha ha.

 

All that aside, the lighting schedule actually works better for me because when we sit down to dinner is during the 6 hours on in the evening 6pm-12am).

 

And in the morning it is on while everyone is in the kitchen getting ready for the day (6am-12pm)

 

So if anything it suits us better to have it run like this, I haven't noticed any detrimental effects on the corals/inverts, so I think we will just run with this :-)

[RollaJase]

My dawn cycle starts at 8am and dusk ends at 8pm, then I have 2 hours of moon lights to 10pm.