In addition to sunlight, provide supplemental lightning to fulfill the needs of plants. At the initial stage of plant growth, it is recommended to provide light for a longer period. So that the plants may grow easily. Remember: Choose the plants according to the fish species.
If you have tropical fish, choose tropical plants for the tank. They will need the same amount of light as the fish. Tropical plants like java ferns, Anubias, and Moss balls are good for tropical fish tanks. While for cold water fishes, plants like Anacharis and Hornwort are the best match. The light requirement of cold water plants varies with the season. These plants are easy to care for and maintain the natural ecosystem of the tank.
Providing light to the fish tank is the first step and controlling its timing is the next step. It is somewhat kind of bother for fish keepers to on and off the lights. Too high and low duration both negatively affect the fish and plants. The timer will help you a lot in controlling the light of the fish tank. Fix the timing and the timer will automatically on and off the light. The timer is cheap and easy to maintain.
Glass walls of the fish tank act as a magnifying glass. It transmits light to the inside of the tank with intensity. If your tank is placed in a well-lit room with windows where sunlight also has contact, you will need less aquarium tank light.
Enough ambient light or an approach of sunlight to the room will minimize the need for aquarium lights. If the fish is inactive, it may be the sign they are not getting enough light. Immediately turn on the lights to keep fish healthy. Algae grow at a greater ratio when exposed to light. If you provide sunlight in addition to aquarium lights, algae will grow extensively. You can use the growth of algae as an indicator of light need.
If the algae are growing at an extensive rate, it means you are providing enough light and vice versa. But your goal is not to keep track of algae. Some fishes also eat algae as food. So algae must be in sufficient quantity in the tank. The salt cell is powered by the control panel. Many salt chlorinators also have a fuse inside the cabinet that is designed to blow in the event of power overload or a lightning strike.
The salt cell needs a certain amount of water flow to operate effectively. Flow rates can be reduced by a clogged pum p or skimmer basket , a dirty filter or closed directional valves. The salt cell needs a certain amount of salt in the water to be able to convert the salty water to chlorine.
Each salt cell is calibrated to work within a certain range of salinity, generally around ppm. Most salt chlorinators use a salt sensor and display the measured salt level or have an indicator light or error code to let you know when the salt level drops below the minimum threshold.
Your pH, alkalinity and calcium hardness should all be within range so that the created chlorine has the optimal efficiency, or killing power. A low pH can accelerate the activity of chlorine, burning it off more rapidly, while a high pH can reduce the activity, making your chlorine sluggish and less effective.
You can test these water levels yourself using a 5 in 1 Test Kit. The salt cell needs to be cleaned regularly to remove calcium deposits that slow water flow and bridge the gap between metal plates, preventing the electrolysis from happening. The majority of the salt cell chlorinators are now self-cleaning by reversing polarity on the metal plates to slough off the collected calcium, which is then swept away by the water flow.
However, even self-cleaning cells need regular inspection, and, perhaps, occasional cleaning. The acid will eat away at the plates given enough time, so be sure to bathe the cell for no longer than 10 minutes.
Can't find your Salt Water Cell model? Check out our collection of Salt Water Cells , we're sure it's there somewhere. If you need help in identifying your Salt Water Cell, shoot us an email with a photo of your Chlorinator and Salt Cell to support mrpoolman. Terminal corrosion can be removed with an old toothbrush dipped into an acid solution.
Metal Halide. Non Dimmable T5s. If your light unit is only a single bulb metal halide or the T5 fixture only has one plug, then all you can do is have the lights on at full intensity or completely off.
Set the time for 6 hours and go from there. Corals going brown, increase the On time. Corals going white, reduce the On time. Keeping lights constantly on is also not recommended! This will stress the fish, overexpose corals leading to bleaching and lead to unwanted algae growth. The main thing you want to achieve is to try and have the lighting schedule on for as much time as you are in the room. If the aquarium is in an office, start the lighting period at 7am, so the lights are on for your viewing pleasure while at work.
If the aquarium is at home you will want to have the lights on in the evening when you are sat relaxing. In this case, start your lights to come on early afternoon so you get the viewing pleasure. There is no point in having a beautiful reef aquarium if the lights go off when you finally get to sit and enjoy it.
So long as the lighting schedule stays consistent your fish and corals will know no different. This is where timers come in! Aquarium lighting should simulate as close as possible the behavior of natural sunlight as well as the day and night cycle. Using timers in conjunction with lighting equipment removes the necessity of manually turning the lights on or off.
A process that could be, and usually is very unreliable! Successful reef tanks are all built around consistency and stability. As humans, we are hopeless at both of these! Timers are a perfect way to ensure that the lights go on and off at the same time every day. In the real world, the sun rises gradually and sets just as gradually. This can be somewhat simulated by dimmers.
For lights like non-dimmable T5s and Metal Halides that can only be turned on and off a timer or a series of timers used on individual or pairs of bulbs is a great way to increase or decrease light intensity as well as duration. In case of algae thriving in your tank even in fairly low light, consider adding algae eaters siamese algae eaters, shrimp like ghost and Amano, Amano shrimp , and snails mystery, nerite.
Proper aquarium lighting is essential to fish and plants, but so is the period of darkness for them to rest and replenish. Keep your aquarium light on for the recommended 8 to 12 hours then turn off the light to mimic the natural day and night cycle. In case your fish gets restless when the lights go out, turn off the room overhead light an hour before your tank lights. This should give the fish eyes an hour to adjust to the lower light setting before complete darkness.
Most people will remember to feed their fish when leaving for vacation but fewer remember to schedule their aquarium lights for when they are away. While some aquarists are not even sure whether to leave the lights on or off while they have a good time away from home.
If anything, leaving the lights on could be a fire hazard and will encourage algae growth. But if you have plants in your aquarium, then you will need to leave the lights on with a timer recommended running a diurnal setting. Alternatively, if your aquarium room is properly illuminated, leave the tank near a window to take advantage of the natural day-night cycle.
This is especially true for smaller aquariums where the possible increase in temperature can be significant. Generally, metal halides and incadescent bulb produce a lot of heat and are therefore not the best for aquariums. Besides, incadescent technology is pretty much outdated. The more obvious and appropriate light source would, therefore, be either LED or fluorescent, but given the two, LEDs are the harder hitter.
A thing to note if you choose to go with fluorescent; T5 or T8 fluorescent lights are not synonymous with VHO-fluorescent, which like metal halides, will spike your aquarium water temperature. Also, T5 bulbs are preferable as opposed to T8 and T12 because of their skinny bulbs, narrow footprint, availability, efficiency, and low heat output.
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