Chromis Posted July 16, 2002 Share Posted July 16, 2002 I'd love to have a night bulb on my future 20L... I see some use a blue "moon bulb" while others go with red. What are the positives and negatives of each color? I would think that red is un-noticable to the animals while blue is noticable but if low enough just seems to be a little moon light. Hellolights.com has a 13w red PC ... would that work? Another thought I had was just a couple (maybe even one) blue or red Christmas tree light.... Thoughts... Link to comment
Sahin Posted July 16, 2002 Share Posted July 16, 2002 From what I read around, most people say that the red light doesnt bother the night creatures, so from that I guess the red is better. If you go with the blue, I'd use very low wattage so as not to light up the tank too much and disturb the creatures of the night. Link to comment
Satchmo Posted July 16, 2002 Share Posted July 16, 2002 I've been meaning to look into this too. My LFS sells "reef nite-lite" kits that are simply red PC kits. Thy have a tank setup with one... looks too bright for me. I'd like to find one of those tiny NO florescent fixtures in red (you know the ones that are only 6-8" long?) I think that would provide more than enough red light to see- hell, my penlight wrapped in red cellophane works just fine now. In the dark, you only need a small amount of light to see well. Link to comment
Christopher Marks Posted July 16, 2002 Share Posted July 16, 2002 On nano reefs, most any red lamp will be too bright. On larger tanks they work fine though. If you can find an incadescent red bulb, in the lowest wattage possible, that would work. Even a 25w one would be too much for most nano reefs. Maybe there is a night light one or something... Link to comment
Chromis Posted July 16, 2002 Author Share Posted July 16, 2002 I might just have to try 2-3 red Christmas Tree lights... Link to comment
Satchmo Posted July 16, 2002 Share Posted July 16, 2002 I like that idea. Let me know how it works out. Link to comment
MKramer Posted July 16, 2002 Share Posted July 16, 2002 I use a bunch of red high-intensity discharge LEDs off a 12V supply. Once I get my new control module set up, I'm going to add some blue ones, too. That way I can control when and how long they're on, in an attempt to mimic moon cycles. Link to comment
Dave ESPI Posted July 16, 2002 Share Posted July 16, 2002 ALL my tanks utelize a night light...... less quarrels, no nipped fins, no casualties, and the corals respond to a lunar cycle at times. on 10 gal or larger, I use 25 watt incand Blue bulbs. I get a socket, power cord with roller on/off switch, a photo electric sensor screw in adapter for less than 10.00 at Home Cheapot. As far as Nanos, the christmas tree Bulb thing works. Link to comment
epon Posted July 16, 2002 Share Posted July 16, 2002 I have used a blue nightlight bulb in a photosensative nightlight with great results on my 10g. I bought the bulb at wal-mart and had the nightlight laying around in the garage. It cast a very dull blue glow at night, whice seems to be just right. Link to comment
HuBu Posted July 16, 2002 Share Posted July 16, 2002 Originally posted by Sahin From what I read around, most people say that the red light doesnt bother the night creatures, so from that I guess the red is better. If you go with the blue, I'd use very low wattage so as not to light up the tank too much and disturb the creatures of the night. most nite creatures cant detect the red spectrum in light, hence the use of a reb bulb. theres no point in using a low wattage bulb, the creatures will still dectec the blue spectrum. i dont think theres a w that is low enough. Link to comment
glazer Posted July 17, 2002 Share Posted July 17, 2002 I bought a 2-pack of those Indiglo nitelites at WalMart... know the kind I mean. They are about as thick as a saltine cracker and plug directly into an outlet. I took a dremel and cut the prongs off leaving about a 1/16" sticking up then cut the outlet end off and extension cord... soldered the wires onto the nubs and then coated them with the two part epoxy, the kind in the two syringes you mix together. I just sit this flat on top my glass top... It, well, looks kick@ss! It bathes the whole tank in this soft blue... hell, looks like moonlight to me! Link to comment
NaNO ReeFiN Posted July 17, 2002 Share Posted July 17, 2002 I was thinking about using one of those indiglo lights as well on my tank... I wasn't sure if it was okay to use though... anyone know if it's alright to use...? Link to comment
Strife Posted July 17, 2002 Share Posted July 17, 2002 HmMMm,, i might be wrong here,, but i have read that one cause of cyano bacteria is when lights go bad cuz it starts putting out red spectrum....added to yellow and blue wont a red bulb put out red spectrum? Link to comment
DaveESPI Posted July 17, 2002 Share Posted July 17, 2002 heheh Stryf makes a good point. I was going to say something like that...... BUMP. the indiglo is a good idea. Im going to try it. Link to comment
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