alot of people seem to think that the lights are the cause of the algae problems.
the sun in is beating on the ocean for liek 17 hours a day, if you go to a reef how much algae is there. now go to a port and how much algae is there.
its more how much nutrience is in the water rather then how much light there is. i have no algae issues with my 26g and my lights are on from 6am -9pm. and only have one asteara snail left.