DO FISH NEED DARKNESS AT BEDTIME?

[GinnyFinny]

MOONLIGHT LED SAFE FOR FISH ALL NIGHT?

I used to have a 5-6" "moonlight" LED that attached in a funky way and had to use tin foil over it to try to keep the light going down - not out. Does anyone use moonlight additions to their FW tanks? And does the "moonlight" effect disturb the night cycle of the fish? Lastly, can I buy these locally in the greater Seattle area?

The ones I've seen on Amazon are a piece of junk for $28 to $35.

I just wanna look at my fish in the middle of the night when I get up for a midnight snack and stare into my aquarium. :sleep:

 

[Madness]

Re: MOONLIGHT LED SAFE FOR FISH ALL NIGHT?

Fish need to sleep like you and me, all night lights are not a good idea, regardless of the color.

 

[GinnyFinny]

Re: MOONLIGHT LED SAFE FOR FISH ALL NIGHT?

Really, do fish really sleep? Are you pulling my fin? No, I get it. They and the plants in the tank need several hours of varying degrees of darkness.

So, what's up with the moonlight feature on so many aquarium lights? I like the lights that have a dimmer control on them. I don't think fish take too well to going from a brightly lit tank to dark in an instant.

Is the moonlight feature a gimmic, or is it to be used just for a very short time, say if I want to sit with my fish buddies at 2am for a few minutes?
Thanks for your comments! :sunny:

 

[GinnyFinny]

Are LED moonlights a bad thing to have on all night, or is turning them on in the middle of the night to check your fish or just look at them okay? Or should they have total darkness (more or less) ? Do fish really sleep and a need darkened room at night? [emoji276]


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[Madness]

Re: MOONLIGHT LED SAFE FOR FISH ALL NIGHT?

it's a feature that allows you to go from regular lights to it for only a couple hours and then dark. I have them on every single one of my lights and never use them. my lights go off one at a time via a timer.

 

[DMD123]

Re: MOONLIGHT LED SAFE FOR FISH ALL NIGHT?

I use two sets of lights and timers to get a sunrise/sunset effect. It is interesting to watch the fishes behavior when the lower watt sunset lights are on. You can tell they are settling down for the night and getting into their little sleeping areas. This is normal behavior that would totally get interrupted with a constant moon light. So I too am a firm believer that fish need rest just like we do.

 

[ziggyzoo]

I always keep The blue night light on the tank all night. I asked Cory at the coop and he said it's no issue unless your having algae problems or something.

 

[clownie]

http://oceanservice.noaa.gov/facts/fish-sleep.html

 

[GinnyFinny]

Re: MOONLIGHT LED SAFE FOR FISH ALL NIGHT?

Thanks everyone! I remember my dad always used to say that fishing at dawn and dusk were best times for salmon, and that at night there wasn't a hope of catching anything. Maybe he knew that salmon rested also. :sleep:

That settles the matter of buying some kind of moonlight gizmo!

 

[PokeSephiroth]

I've gone ahead and merged both topics, since they're pretty much on the same subject

 

[anthony]

If you have ever woke up at 3-4 Am and just decided to stay up and then walked to your fish tank and decided I'm up so your getting up also fish and turned on the light only to watch your fish dart around crashing into the glass and rocks even though your screaming stop it and no as they continue to injure themselves you know that fish need their sleep!!!! I know now that if I don't want my fish to get a huge gash on it's head or scratch on their eye, I should let them get their sleep.

 

[ziggyzoo]

My fish slammed the glass when I turned the lights completely out, I'd notice they would fight too if it was pitch black. I personally think I its a dim light maybe they appreciate being able to see just a little, like moonlight in the wild. They seem more vunerable and afraid when they ant see anything. Just my opinion/personal observation though.

 

[ArtPleco]

coming from a pleco addict. they sleep all day usually except a few. I dont think they care if its dark or moonlight. my moon light on tanks isnt that bright for the whole tank.

When I was in costa rica the moon was so bright on the beach you didnt need a flashlight. it was ridiculously bright out. This was in summer, and I am sure during a lot of times of the year its never that bright out.

I say figure out what region they are from, and base the lighting and water temps with that seasonally, and you will have very active fish that are almost in their own habitat. Or, maybe I am just crazy in playing god with my plecos haha

 

[MustangTess]

well i try to use the world as my stage.... durring winter months i dont leave lights on as long and in summer i leave them on alot longer. at night sometimes there is a full moon and on other nights there is no moon (new moon) so i try to gear my lighting and times etc to the natural enviroment around me. If i am breeding then i use the temps, lighting. etc for the area the fish originate from.

Just my two cents worth but so far it seems to work. and yes fish power down so to speak and rest , durring that time like us it gives the body time to heal and rejuvintate.