What timer are you using for your lights?

[seangee]

If you use LED lights and also need a dimmer the Nicrew ones are good value (available on Amazon and eBay). Their lights are pretty good too unless you are going for a high tech setup.

 

[HaveFishWillTravel]

Hello all....

Just curious....what brand of timers are you all using on your lighting for your tank?

Also....any recommendations on a light for a 75 gallon?


Thanks for your input!

Hi there, I use Smart plugs. BNLink and WEMO. You can get 2 of them for about $10 bucks on Amazon. They are easy to set up, they work great, they integrate into other lights in your house, you can turn your aquarium lights on and off no matter if you are home or not. Pretty slick! The lights I have are Satellite Plus LED. They have a remote control. You order the size you need and the larger the size, the more lights you get. There are 4 custom settings, there is a 6500K white light for plants and a cool and warm light setting. Pretty ingenious. There are also thousands other settings that you can create. Lightweight, not that expensive. For a 75 gallon tank at about 48”, they are about $150 - $200 bucks. Worth the money.

 

[ember04]

I use a cheap digital timer from amazon. I would suggest getting a digital one as it means you can be more precies

 

[ember04]

If you use LED lights and also need a dimmer the Nicrew ones are good value (available on Amazon and eBay). Their lights are pretty good too unless you are going for a high tech setup.

hi there what is the large stringly plant in the right hand side of the tank, I really like the look of it

 

[seangee]

hi there what is the large stringly plant in the right hand side of the tank, I really like the look of it

That is Amazon frogbit. Its a floating plant that grows quite quickly

 

[Utar]

If you use LED lights and also need a dimmer the Nicrew ones are good value (available on Amazon and eBay). Their lights are pretty good too unless you are going for a high tech setup.

I also use the Nicrew dual channel light timer for my 48" Nicrew Classic 2 dual channel light. I really like it and it is cheap, the Nicrew lights work very well for me. The only problem I have found is that when I unplug the timer it looses all its settings, but I found a way around that by unplugging the light from the timer and leaving the timer plugged in to power.

NICREW ClassicLED Gen 2 Aquarium Light

NICREW Dual Channel Aquarium Light Timer, LED Digital Dimmer for ClassicLED G2

 

[WhistlingBadger]

As long as you have wifi in your home and a smart phone, smart plugs are great devices. And they have come way down in price. On amazon right now, you can buy one for $8 and a 4 pack for $20. Also, with your smart phone, you can set it up and control it via an app.

My wife put everything on smart plugs and I hate the things. Now instead of simply turning on a switch when I get up early in the morning, I have to talk to Alexa, remember the various names for all the devices, lights, and even the fake fireplace, and try to do it all without waking anybody up. It does, however, save me the grave hardship of lifting my arm and flipping a switch. So there's that.

 

[DAnCSF]

What a great variety of answers from those who like the newest of tehc bluetoothm smart phont apps etc...to dufferd like me who prefer the KIS methof a cheap simple dial timer for me....like I need yet another app on my phone....

 

[HaveFishWillTravel]

My wife put everything on smart plugs and I hate the things. Now instead of simply turning on a switch when I get up early in the morning, I have to talk to Alexa, remember the various names for all the devices, lights, and even the fake fireplace, and try to do it all without waking anybody up. It does, however, save me the grave hardship of lifting my arm and flipping a switch. So there's that.

You can put your smart plugs on an active on/off timer for each specific smart plug. Depending on which one you have, they are often called ‘Rules’. You won’t have to worry your pretty little head about saying a word, being quiet or flipping a switch

 

[eatyourpeas]

I refuse to let my life be driven by "the other woman", as I refer to the Alexa thing. She and the husband get along fabulously, though. I prefer turning things on and off myself, or having a good old fashion timer. The only thing I use a smart plug with is the pump that fills the tank water because the source is 50 ft. away.

 

[HaveFishWillTravel]

I refuse to let my life be driven by "the other woman", as I refer to the Alexa thing. She and the husband get along fabulously, though. I prefer turning things on and off myself, or having a good old fashion timer. The only thing I use a smart plug with is the pump that fills the tank water because the source is 50 ft. away.

I totally get it. In fact, I don’t use Alexa at all and I refuse to talk to my phone unless there is an actual person on the other end. I despise IVRs or machines that tell me to Freakin’ press 1...cannot deal with them at all. Unfortunately, it is the world we live in. Just like commercial interruptions, I tune them out. You can go your way and I’ll go my way. I’ve always said that Burger King had one of the best marketing schemes ever,
“Have it your way!” Cheers! JL