Moonlight

Jesse

Many people place moonlight in their aquariums, even simulating the phases of the moon. This raises the question - what is it for? Who benefits from it and why? Additionally, what should be the power of such light? I have come across the opinion that 2-3 regular LEDs are sufficient for a 1-meter long aquarium.

Katherine

For freshwater, it doesn't matter, but for the sea - it affects many phases of the life of invertebrates and not only that, there was a film either from Discovery or National Geographic, I don't remember exactly...

John5528

Moonlight reduces stress in some species of fish. When the light is turned off, some fish may even jump out of the aquarium in fright. I think a couple of regular blue LEDs will be enough. A very powerful moonlight is not necessary. Additionally, it is interesting to observe the life of the aquarium inhabitants that can only be seen at night in moonlight.

Gary6376

My aquarium is 1.7 meters long. Do you think two regular LEDs will be enough?

Chelsea567

I bought a 50cm blue LED strip and an adjustable power supply. I stuck the strip directly onto the light fixture.

Scott8536

It's a matter of taste. I like it when the "moon" doesn't evenly illuminate the entire aquarium but acts as a point source. This creates a light gradient along the length of the tank, and also produces "bunnies."

Stephen5857

I'll give it a try. If it works out, I'll let you know.

Troy8808

I did the same. But now I don't use the light at night... Before, when there was no "moon," the fish would go into hiding and rest after the last light was turned off. When I installed the "moon," I started to notice that the fish swam restlessly around the aquarium all night. I thought it was temporary—they would get used to it—but nothing of the sort happened. Eventually, I decided to give up on this idea. Apparently, natural moonlight is something different in terms of spectrum. So, as it should be: when it gets dark, all the small fish go into hiding or burrow into the sand (like wrasses, for example), while predators like sharks and morays become active.

Angela6489

Since none of us sits by the aquarium all night long (unless necessary), as an option, the moonlight can be left on after the main lighting until about 11 PM or midnight and then turned off. This way, the fish will get their rest, and you can enjoy the aquarium. And this is for people like me, who only see the aquarium at night during the week. P.S. I also noticed another benefit of the moonlight – dirt on the front glass is clearly visible. During the day, it seems like the glass is clean, but at night, you look and see a spot here, a spot there.

Tanner

That's true... Moreover, even there, in nature, the moon doesn't shine every night. There are also cloudy days and nights...

Breanna9982

I have compartments left on both sides of the lamp (the bulbs are a bit shorter than the aquarium). I think I'll install LEDs directed downwards at an angle. Approximately like this:

Laura3673

Set up a variable power supply, and when you admire the aquarium under the moon, reduce the brightness of the moon so that only the silhouettes are slightly visible; my clownfish immediately go to sleep in their anemone after that.

Christopher4125

Do you have diodes with reflectors?

Catherine

I don't have any for now, but I will install them with reflectors. I'll buy a couple of Chinese flashlights and take them apart for parts.

Caroline1599

I installed two LED lamps like these from Luna. The market price is around 5 euros. It was quite enough, I removed them when changing the light, and now I'm thinking about how to put them back.

Leslie

Isn't 20 LEDs too many? That would make it 40 for me. And what about brightness adjustment?

Joshua448

Off-topic. I don't really find any special beauty in all of this; everything turns out to be somewhat "phosphorescent." If someone likes it, they can put up to 10 moons, but I don't want to.

Amber1273

It had 2 pieces for a 95 cm display part - just right. You can even put 3 on your aquarium. They are not very bright. There was inadequate light, a lot of shadows, twilight... just right for the moon.

Kenneth7210

I agree with Anatoly, I also don't find much beauty in all of this. To me, night is night, and I haven't observed any stress in the fish and invertebrates from turning off the lights, as the lamps operate in three modes, and the switching on and off happens smoothly with an interval of one hour. P.S. Off-topic: The marine aquarium with the moon reminds me of how I saw a foreign car, and under it, blue LEDs were glowing on the license plates and on the windshield wipers. How is that to be understood? Ridiculousness.

Jeremy

I feel the same way. We need to do something while the system is maturing.

Jason9952

I set up a Chinese night light for myself (brought it from Kyiv) with 12 blue LEDs. I directed them to one point, and it turns out that 80% of the aquarium is in shadow, 20% in light, and even that is partial since the light shines from the back glass to the front. The fish seem comfortable, and I feel calm about them. But I want to switch to UV LEDs, about 3 of them... I read that fish don't really see this spectrum, but corals glow.

Rebecca

That's exactly what I do. And in the photo, I increased the brightness to make it look better.

Loretta5483

Once, I bought a weak blue fluorescent light by chance. It’s in a bulb, both leads are on one side, and it plugs directly into the socket (there's a small block hanging on the cord). I just placed it on the back tie. You can only observe the ornatus this way, for example. During the day, they live in a distant corner under a piece of driftwood with bolbitis, and under such lighting, they rise above it.

Gene1948

Considering that there are many more inhabitants in the sea that are active only at night, "Luna" is very relevant, at least during observation hours. Phases and other features are, in my opinion, unnecessary.

Courtney4094

My last group finishes at 24:00. That's all the "moon"............

Jeremy

Turn on the LEDs permanently and don't worry. They work around the clock for me.

Chad4168

PWM

Larry

And what if there is a power supply in the case?

Jasmine

I took the ice strips, will stick them on the edges, and will see what comes of it when I set up the marine aquarium. The strips are called 2x Blue 96-LED Aquarium Fish Tank Light Strip Moonlight. It might be too much light, then I'll sell it; I have some smaller ones as well.