Would the benefit for the plants and the general look of the aquarium be outweighed by the increase in algea or any other problems ? Any advice welcome.
2006-09-27 03:22:38 · 10 answers · asked by Martin 2 in Pets ➔ Fish
If you have live plants in your aquarium, you're going to want a light specially made for live plants (trichromatic bulb). The algae in the tank will thrive but so will your plants. Hopefully the plants will use the co2 before the algae can, but algae isn't hard to scrape off the sides, providing you take care in not messing up the binding. the aquarium light isn't necessary if you don't have plants, and the longer you keep the light on, the more algae will grow. you can try getting a plecostemas, a suckerfish that eats the algae, but if you have live plants they may get eaten if you don't make sure the pleco is well-fed and supplemented using algae wafers or a clip with sweet potato, romaine lettuce, or zucchini. But you can't have plants without a trichromatic lightbulb left on all day long. Algae is a small annoyance to deal with when compare it to the beauty and rewards of fish keeping.
2006-09-27 05:04:07 · answer #1 · answered by JillyBean 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Plants in your aquarium will REQUIRE lighting to survive and grow. You need about 2-4 watts of light per gallon to keep plants in your aquarium alive. Most people use power compact bulbs these days. Yes, the alage also use light to grow. However, light is just one part of the equation. Algae (like plants) need nutrients in the water. If there are plants in the aquarium the plants can usually outcompete the algae for the nutrients. Overall, l this will inhibit algal growth.
2006-09-27 07:21:20 · answer #2 · answered by Rags to Riches 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I generally agree with the answers so far I would'nt leave the light on 24/7 though as the heat generated may promote algae growth, I noticed this with my tank I only put the light on now for a few hours in the evening and the water stays clearer also good filtration helps.
2006-09-27 05:28:10 · answer #3 · answered by jlb 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Providing that your bulb is replaced every six months with a bulb that produces 10,000 K, you should not have too much of an algae problem with increased light (up to 10 hours). The bulbs lose the ability to produce certain light spectrums. The older they are the more beneficial to algae and less to plants.
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2006-09-27 03:36:11 · answer #4 · answered by iceni 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It does affect the algae growth. But I think it looks really nice in the evenings with the light on. I don't actually think that the fish or the plants benefit from the light though.
2006-09-27 03:26:53 · answer #5 · answered by ♥ Nicola ♥ 3 · 0⤊ 1⤋
leaving the light on absolutly promotes algea growth
2006-09-27 03:25:58 · answer #6 · answered by alanc_59 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Absolutely - any light is going to spur Algae in your tank (especially sunlight).
Keep it on for no more than 12 hours a day, and get yourself a common plecos (provided your tank is at least 55g or more).
2006-09-27 03:48:16 · answer #7 · answered by sly2kusa 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
a light shouldnt stimulate the growth much. alge will grow anyway. it is far more important to have an adequate filtering system and water aeration than having a light or not.
2006-09-27 03:25:25 · answer #8 · answered by Bistro 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
definite. The elements algae opt to advance are gentle and nutrition (which includes carbon dioxide, nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium). With better gentle, you'll many times get better algae.
2016-12-02 04:12:18 · answer #9 · answered by ? 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Try a UV light.. That will kill all algea... Fits on to your filter hose.. Trust me on this one,
2006-09-27 03:24:56 · answer #10 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋