myrrhlin
New Member
Hello,
I'm just wondering if anyone could help me out with some suggestions as to what kind of timed lighting cycle might be most effective for my salt water aquarium? I have about a 30 gallon tank (36"W x 16"H x 10"D) with a new CoralLife 50/50 96 Watt compact fluorescent lighting fixture. I've had my tank going for about two and a half years now, but am finding that more and more of my live rock is slowly losing it's purple and turning brownish green and white in some areas. I realize that this could be related to other factors as well, however, my primary question at the moment is "am I using the correct amount of lighting"?
My old lighting fixture (which I have just replaced) was only 72 watts total and may not have been sufficent for a 16" deep tank. My "Typical" time cycle has been (for the last year or so) ON at around 4 PM and OFF at 12:00 AM (Midnight). I'm wondering if this just just a really BAD idea. It's an eight hour time cycle, but perhaps I need 10? Perhaps I should not have the lighting on so late into the evening? My apartment is very shaded durring the daylight hours, so not a whole lot of light gets in throughout the day.
I was also wondering if it's okay to split the time cycle into two parts? Say, 4 to 5 hours in the morning and 4 to 5 hours in the evening? I like for the lighting to be on when I'm at home (not while I'm gone all day at work). Is it okay to run the lights in one long afternoon and evening cycle like I've been doing? Does anyone have any "optimum" time cycles to suggest? I'm just trying to find the best compromise between having the lights on when I'm at home and creating the most healthy environment for my tank.
My inhabitants are just some basic green star polyps and a few button polyps (most are gone now). One blue tang, a red and white banded coral shrimp, a couple of small hermit crabs and one green emerald crab.
Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!
Thanks!
~Greg
I'm just wondering if anyone could help me out with some suggestions as to what kind of timed lighting cycle might be most effective for my salt water aquarium? I have about a 30 gallon tank (36"W x 16"H x 10"D) with a new CoralLife 50/50 96 Watt compact fluorescent lighting fixture. I've had my tank going for about two and a half years now, but am finding that more and more of my live rock is slowly losing it's purple and turning brownish green and white in some areas. I realize that this could be related to other factors as well, however, my primary question at the moment is "am I using the correct amount of lighting"?
My old lighting fixture (which I have just replaced) was only 72 watts total and may not have been sufficent for a 16" deep tank. My "Typical" time cycle has been (for the last year or so) ON at around 4 PM and OFF at 12:00 AM (Midnight). I'm wondering if this just just a really BAD idea. It's an eight hour time cycle, but perhaps I need 10? Perhaps I should not have the lighting on so late into the evening? My apartment is very shaded durring the daylight hours, so not a whole lot of light gets in throughout the day.
I was also wondering if it's okay to split the time cycle into two parts? Say, 4 to 5 hours in the morning and 4 to 5 hours in the evening? I like for the lighting to be on when I'm at home (not while I'm gone all day at work). Is it okay to run the lights in one long afternoon and evening cycle like I've been doing? Does anyone have any "optimum" time cycles to suggest? I'm just trying to find the best compromise between having the lights on when I'm at home and creating the most healthy environment for my tank.
My inhabitants are just some basic green star polyps and a few button polyps (most are gone now). One blue tang, a red and white banded coral shrimp, a couple of small hermit crabs and one green emerald crab.
Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!
Thanks!
~Greg
