Tiger Barbs Lighting

[k2snowboards88]

Is low light better for tiger barbs? I'm thinking of getting some dimmer bulbs because i have some nocturnal fish. And my tiger barbs seem to be more active with the lights out too. is this normal?

 

[ReDraGon]

Well i have tiger barbs and they are in a very planted tank so the plants need alot of good light which the tiger barbs seem not to mind ... they chase eachother all the time no matter if the light is on or not..

IMO its up to your personal preference

 

[k2snowboards88]

My barbs do chase each other all day. But at night when i turn the lights in the tank off, but my room lights are still on, they school alot more. They almost never school with their lights on. What would i have to do to lower the lights anyway? I think it would be good for my tank, as i have a peacock eel, and i'm planning on getting clown loaches.

 

[Max Action]

I use some folded fabric on top of my glass tank top - I get different lighting depending on how I position the light hood on top of it. It's kinda hard to explain, but I have it folded the long way, so that it's one layer of fabric thick toward the back side of the tank, then gets increasingly thickly layered. For darker lighting, I move the hood onto the thicker fabric - for brigher lighting, move it onto the thin side. It's highly adjustable and low-tech, it works great. In the wild, there's variable changing light that fades in and out - why not in my tank?

The fish like it, and it looks really neat. I have also noticed that my Tiger Barbs (as well as my African Butterfly fish and some other species), seem to get more active when I've got the "dawn/dusk" lighting on instead of the full effect of the light. The dynamic of the tank and the way the fish interact and school certainly changes with the lights, which is cool - I get to see a greater range of behaviors.

It also helped me avoid the problem of startling the hell out of the fish by suddenly going from darkness to high noon lighting, since I use the "dimmer" to transition between full lighting and darkness.

 

[k2snowboards88]

That sounds like a great idea. I wish i could do that, but my hood only has a narrow glass slot for the lights. My fish really seem to be most active in what would be dusk lighting too. Its when the tank lights are off, but the lights in the room are on. I just bought four more tiger barbs today though, and now they seem to be alot more active.

 

[gwlee7]

My tiger barb is wide open all the time. I don't think they ever sleep. Oh, I just upgraded to 60 watts of light on this tank and that hasn't changed anything

 

[sylvia]

I think lighting in aquariums is generaly a matter of personal prefference.
However...

Increased schooling behaviour in relative darkness is because the fish cannot see as well/far around them so feel safer as a group. The same can be achieved by dense planting/decor where the fish cannot wonder far from each other but still be in view of each other or adding larger/predatory fish which make them feel more nervous.

The other thing to consider is that in the wild fish live in much deeper water and so less light gets to them and they can vary their depth so that the light varies as well. That means that dimmer light is actualy a lot more natural.

Dimmer lighting also brings out the fish's colors more though obviously it may also be more difficult to see them. A balance must be achieved for the best effect.

Another option is varying light intensities, as mentioned, or heavy planting/decor to offer shade without sacrifising visibility.