Need help with vacation lighting schedule

[JT101]

Hello all,

I have a bit of a dilemma ....

We're going away for 4 days and I just realized I can't run my lights the way I want to :frown:

I have a CAD Lights 90W LED system from Aquarium Village in Westbury. The lights can be adjusted from 1% to 99% 10k in a combination of 10k white or actinic blue or 99% of just one light and 1% of the other (i.e., 1% daylight/99% actinic or 99% daylight/1% actinic). My preference is always 1%/99% and maybe once in a while I'll make it say 20%/99% or 50%/99% (again, with the latter figure always being the actinic).

Here's the problem:

There is no timer on this system. It's all manually adjustable via a remote or a small keypad on the side of the light. If you interrupt the main power (say, with a timer) and tell the system to power-up at a given time, it defaults to 99%/99%, which is way more daylight than I prefer, not only for aesthetics but I also believe it will promote nusiance algae.

For a four day period I'm going to have to live with this. Any suggestions on how long each day I should leave the lights running at this level?

Thanks in advance :biggrin:

Best,
John

 

[DREUTZ]

You could put some egg crate on top to break up the light so its not as intense.

Hello all,

I have a bit of a dilemma ....

We're going away for 4 days and I just realized I can't run my lights the way I want to :frown:

I have a CAD Lights 90W LED system from Aquarium Village in Westbury. The lights can be adjusted from 1% to 99% 10k in a combination of 10k white or actinic blue or 99% of just one light and 1% of the other (i.e., 1% daylight/99% actinic or 99% daylight/1% actinic). My preference is always 1%/99% and maybe once in a while I'll make it say 20%/99% or 50%/99% (again, with the latter figure always being the actinic).

Here's the problem:

There is no timer on this system. It's all manually adjustable via a remote or a small keypad on the side of the light. If you interrupt the main power (say, with a timer) and tell the system to power-up at a given time, it defaults to 99%/99%, which is way more daylight than I prefer, not only for aesthetics but I also believe it will promote nusiance algae.

For a four day period I'm going to have to live with this. Any suggestions on how long each day I should leave the lights running at this level?

Thanks in advance :biggrin:

Best,
John

 

[JT101]

You could put some egg crate on top to break up the light so its not as intense.

Thanks for the tip. Can you recommend a lighting interval? Right now I have:

1 favia
1 leather
1 large (12" dia) pagoda/plate coral
1 small zoa colony (ab 4" across)

Thanks
John

 

[MatthewScars]

Go the 4 days with no light. With those corals, it will be totally fine. You'll kill some algae in the process. Win/win!

 

[JT101]

Go the 4 days with no light. With those corals, it will be totally fine. You'll kill some algae in the process. Win/win!

Hmmmm....no light. Really? I was totally not expecting that!!! Not even say a couple of hours a day?

 

[MatthewScars]

If its all or nothing, Id go nothing.

When you have an algae bloom it's suggested you do 3 days of no lights. So 4 is fine. Not like everything will explode after that. Plus you have all soft corals. I wouldnt worry too much. Maybe the plate, but just feed it a lot the day before you leave.

I mean, what else can you do?

 

[JT101]

If its all or nothing, Id go nothing.

When you have an algae bloom it's suggested you do 3 days of no lights. So 4 is fine. Not like everything will explode after that. Plus you have all soft corals. I wouldnt worry too much. Maybe the plate, but just feed it a lot the day before you leave.

I mean, what else can you do?

I suppose you're right. The choice is between anywhere from 1 minute a day to 20 hours a day of full-power lighting, OR none at all. I was kinda expecting to hear that maybe I should go with 1 or 2 hours a day with that lighting but I guess with the softies as you said they should be OK.

Thanks
John