Refugium lighting periods

[bklynreef]

Interested in how many of you have a lighting period for your refugium and how many keep them lit 24/7.
Then the pluses and minuses for both.

 

[dubs]

apposite the tank or 12 hour at least that what i run mine imo the fuge need some period of dark the plant grow better that way in nature there not light 24 hours so i dont see y they would need that in ower fuge

 

[bklynreef]

some people run complete darkness 24/7 also
some people run the lights 24/7 so the macro algae doesnt go A sexual and start spreading throughout the tank. only question is how they keep the algae from growing in the fuge with so much light.

 

[xxxAngeloxxx]

Tagging along with this thread

 

[kenconnect]

I run mine 18 hrs.. Have to let them rest also..

 

[bklynreef]

I run mine 18 hrs.. Have to let them rest also..

Must be a religious refugium.

 

[Silkyslim]

12 hours when the main tanks lights are off.


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[bizzarro]

Must be a religious refugium.

It's the same reason why people don't keep the lights on their reef for too long.

It's a trial and error really. I have 2 6500W 9W (3X3W) pointing into a CPR fuge for almost 10 hours and I see new runners on the fern caulerpa and new growth on the red gracilaria. It's hard to see if the chaeto really grows but it's still green.

 

[homegrowncichlid]

I use to run mine during the reverse 12 hours from the main tank, but the fish in the refuge all died within 3 week. (since there was always daylight during the daytime, they never had a chance to sleep).

Yes hair and micro algae does grow all over the macro algae, but if you keep weeding out the overgrown macros, the new shoots fill in underneath. I weed out the macro algae once a month when they fill in.

 

[dannyd711]

i run mine 24/7. Been like that for almost a year. Have not had any problems with it so far. I am very interested in this topic though.

 

[OGGISPORTS]

12 hours when the main tanks lights are off.


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+1

 

[jab161]

24/7 for at least 6 years

 

[bklynreef]

Went 72 hours and getting red algae on the sand and on the rocks in the fuge.
The green haze algae on the dt did calm down a bit and wasn't coming in as strong. I turned the lights off now to control the red algae in the fuge but it seems like there is a fine medium and it might be somewhere in the realm of 18 hours on 4 hours off but I'm going to keep tinkering.

 

[skene]

kill lights in DT for 2 days and see if you can remove some of the cyano.

 

[bklynreef]

Skene,
My dt is crystal clear. The refugium is the one with the red algae coving the sand in a small area. I wanted to see how long it would take for algae to start taking hold of the refugium tank and if it can be controlled at what limit. My dt lights are on for 5 hours anyway. Can't cut those back or I won't get any growth for the corals.

 

[skene]

ah. watch it though... that will spread.

 

[turbotone]

new to the hobby (7 months) running reverse cycle off my display tank... i have mangroves in my tank and noticed they werent growing.... thought i had a bad batch of mangroves.. did some reading, read that plants need an off cycle without light to complete a photosynthesis cycle... since then plants are growing great... i have no fish and also have callerpa in the middle of my fuge as well... has not gone a sexual as off yet and has been three months so far in trial...

 

[BobNY]

I run opposite my DT lights. I did have a pretty bad outbreak of Red Cotton Candy algea in my fuge. I added a couple of Turbo Snails a month ago and they have it almost gone. I run my DT lights for 7 hours and have been running the fuge light the other 17 hrs for the past year. Just the other day I reduced the fuge light to 12 hrs.

 

[bklynreef]

+1 on the turbo snails in the fuge

 

[10reefman]

I run my lights in the fuge 12 hrs with caulerpa , for over a year so far no problems with it going asexual. Allthough im thinking of changeing it to cheato. Whats your opinion?