Greetings! Stupid but quick question..... Should my lights be on to cycle my tank (30gal) and LR (45lbs). I read on article it says lights off for the cycle, and then another that says to start a regular photoperiod. Any suggestions, comments, pleasantries....Thanks, M
tank cycling- light or not to light
- Thread starter root2dfruit
- Start date
comatose":3o15c610 said:
there shouldn't be a need for a full photoperiod during the cycle, unless you have LR with tons of corals growing on it already and you think there's a chance that you can keep it alive through the various spikes.
1/2 time is probably more than enough.
I'd suggest running your lights full blast, just as they would when the tank is established.
There are two arguments for leaving the lights off: 1) Save electricity and 2) Prevent algae growth. You need not worry about algae growth if the nutrients are properly controlled via waterchanges (from a freshwater source of known purity), protein skimmer, 'fuge, resins, restricted feeding, etc. The downside to leaving the lights off, as has already been said, is that the light dependant critters and those that eat them (which you've paid a premium for!) will suffer, become light deficiant, and either die during the process or be fried when the lights do eventually come on.
There are two arguments for leaving the lights off: 1) Save electricity and 2) Prevent algae growth. You need not worry about algae growth if the nutrients are properly controlled via waterchanges (from a freshwater source of known purity), protein skimmer, 'fuge, resins, restricted feeding, etc. The downside to leaving the lights off, as has already been said, is that the light dependant critters and those that eat them (which you've paid a premium for!) will suffer, become light deficiant, and either die during the process or be fried when the lights do eventually come on.
Laura D":2g7op3x1 said:
sadly, when my tank was cycling the only thing the light really did for me was show me what was dying each day in exquisite detail. :?
that said, i did have macro algae that started growing pretty much the day after the tank finished cycling, so it might have had a bit of a head-start.
IMO, temp and skimming are probably more critical during cycling than light... but i'm unlcear if there's a downside to using a full photoperiod during the cycling process (e.g., would it give microalgae a stronger presence)...
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