Highlander
Aquarium Advice Newbie
Hello all,
My kids won some goldfish from a fair and now 6 months later they are doing great and getting big. We have upgraded to a larger tank, 20 Gal Long. It looks great and they seem to love it.
Before I was able to get a new hood/light combo I used a plywood cutout and the old incandescent light. No problems, they loved the new space.
I bought a new hood from Petsmart, Perfect-a-light which comes with a 40w florescent bulb.
When I turned the light on the fish freaked out. All 3 darted around extremely fast and then hid under a large rock decoration. They refused to come out, even for food. The room light was on so it was not a case of going from complete darkness to bright light.
I turned it off and waited until the next day when there was more natural daylight in the room. I turned on the light and they freaked out again.
Later that day I set the old Incandescent light on top of the new hood and turned it on, and they didn't react to it at all.
We have no live plants so that is not a problem with selecting a light. I preferred the more gentle light of the incandescent bulb. The florescent light seems much more harsh and operating room like.
Is this unusual? What are my options?
Thanks for the help.
My kids won some goldfish from a fair and now 6 months later they are doing great and getting big. We have upgraded to a larger tank, 20 Gal Long. It looks great and they seem to love it.
Before I was able to get a new hood/light combo I used a plywood cutout and the old incandescent light. No problems, they loved the new space.
I bought a new hood from Petsmart, Perfect-a-light which comes with a 40w florescent bulb.
When I turned the light on the fish freaked out. All 3 darted around extremely fast and then hid under a large rock decoration. They refused to come out, even for food. The room light was on so it was not a case of going from complete darkness to bright light.
I turned it off and waited until the next day when there was more natural daylight in the room. I turned on the light and they freaked out again.
Later that day I set the old Incandescent light on top of the new hood and turned it on, and they didn't react to it at all.
We have no live plants so that is not a problem with selecting a light. I preferred the more gentle light of the incandescent bulb. The florescent light seems much more harsh and operating room like.
Is this unusual? What are my options?
Thanks for the help.