lighting cycle help!

[Andrewz00]

some of you may have been following my 90 gal build for the past week or so.... i finally picked up my first live plants!! woohoo!

2 Isoetes lacustris and i cant remember the name of the others...

Question: how long does the light need to be on? 12-on / 12-off?

lights in question are Hagen Glo T5 HO Lighting System - Double - 48" with 2 Life-Glo HO t5 bulbs.

 

[mgamer20o0]

normal is between 8-14 hours. number of different factors. i would try 12 and see how that works for you.

 

[CA_BroncoFan]

I dont have a planted tank per se i have real plants and just use regular light and they thrive just fine, I do on at 7am till 11am, off till 5pm on till 10 pm.

 

[Andrewz00]

ok so ive set my timers for 12 on 12 off.....

i have 2 48" Hagen GLO Life-Glo 54W 6700K bulbs.... is that enough? too much? what is the K? kelvin? i see 10000K advertised... is bigger better?

 

[BigJim]

I've got my lights set to come on around 4:45AM, go off at 9:00AM, come back on at 3:00PM, and go off again at 9:30PM. I've heard that breaking up the light cycle helps with BBA problems. Not sure I believe it, but that's not really why I do it. I wanted my lights on before I leave for work and after I get home, so I had to split the cycle to prevent algae from the lights staying on too long.

 

[Andrewz00]

yeah ive been thinking about the Algae growth.... i think ill have to either cut back on the time the lights are on... or get weaker bulbs? i know just about nothing about planted tanks, soooo guess ill learn as i go....

 

[jackdaniel]

My $0.02: Splitting the light cycle is disruptive to photosynthesis. That's something I would definitely not do if I cared at all about my plants. The fish may not mind, but the plants will have trouble with their light cycles.

 

[mfdrookie516]

I've run my lights 4 on, 4 off, 4 on, off till the next day for several months now since i had an outbreak of bba. My plants all look great and i dont have any algae problems since starting.

 

[BigJim]

I've had some BBA, but I think it's because of fluctuating CO2 levels due to a half-hearted DIY system. My other algae has been reduced significantly. I actually cut a six quart bucket worth of plants out of my 20L because the fish were struggling for room to swim.

Andrewz00, don't go with weaker bulbs for longer time. It'll just lead to more algae issues.

 

[Andrewz00]

My $0.02: Splitting the light cycle is disruptive to photosynthesis. That's something I would definitely not do if I cared at all about my plants. The fish may not mind, but the plants will have trouble with their light cycles.

That was my thought... so ive decided against breaking it up.

I've had some BBA, but I think it's because of fluctuating CO2 levels due to a half-hearted DIY system. My other algae has been reduced significantly. I actually cut a six quart bucket worth of plants out of my 20L because the fish were struggling for room to swim.

Andrewz00, don't go with weaker bulbs for longer time. It'll just lead to more algae issues.

i was considering weaker bulbs but still keeping the 12/12 cycle... but for now i will see how it plays out with the lighting i have...

is the lighting i have sufficient? they are 2 48" 6700K GLO Life-Glo bulbs... being that the tank is in the bedroom, my wife hates the new lights.

on the old 45 gal i had whatever light came with it, kind of a purply-ish tint... but muuuch less bright compared to the new ones.


Ive also noticed some lights come with 2 different type bulbs, is that needed? why are they different?

 

[mgamer20o0]

My $0.02: Splitting the light cycle is disruptive to photosynthesis. That's something I would definitely not do if I cared at all about my plants. The fish may not mind, but the plants will have trouble with their light cycles.

many people break up the light cycle to help with algae. the plants should still be fine.

i have 2 48" Hagen GLO Life-Glo 54W 6700K bulbs.... is that enough? too much? what is the K? kelvin? i see 10000K advertised... is bigger better?

what do you want to grow? yes k is kelvin. normally people shoot for 6500k-10000k personally i like to put one of each. bigger isnt always better it has to do with the color the light emits.

 

[Andrewz00]

UPDATE:
so ive been running a 12/12 cycle and im starting to grow a lot of algae on my DW.... i have 2 octopus plants in the tank right now.... can i cut the light down? maybe 8 on 16 off?

 

[mgamer20o0]

yea try less. whats a octopus plant?

 

[mfdrookie516]

looks kinda like a grass?
Octopus Plants