4 - 8 - 4 - 8 Lighting Cycles

[ZoWhat]

OP here.

I modified my schedule to 6-6-6-6.

6am to noon = on
Noon to 6pm = off
6pm to midnight = on
Midnight to 6am = off

No fish stress. Everyone is eating fine.

Corals (which my tank is 95% zoas/palys) I've seen excellent growth and color. I'd say on average most...not all... colonies have doubled their head polyp count since Jan




.

 

[Angelwolf21203]

Wow! I have read this entire thread (including the water change hijacking. LOL) I also read the entire .pdf file that was attached to a report on the scientific study performed. It is a very interesting concept. I can see a couple of very good points for doing it too. I do have an issue with GHA, and although I am winning my battle, it took some very extreme measures which almost caused me to loose every one of my fish! That was my mistake, but thankfully, I only lost 2. I also have a couple corals who aren't exactly happy with my lights. No polyp extension, pale in color, and in one case, retracted into the skeleton but still alive. I can certainly see some benefits regarding lessening the time the lights are on, and I like the idea someone proposed: 7-5-7-5. Hopefully this would give less photosynthesis to the GHA, and more time for the CUC to actively clean the tank. I already run my refugium with a 24/7 ChaetoMax light. So I think I will give this theory a go, if I can figure out how to get my light to do it. I use an Auquamaxx Prism Slimline on the tank. Any advice or info on programming it would be much appreciated!

 

[CoralClasher]

OP here.

I modified my schedule to 6-6-6-6.

6am to noon = on
Noon to 6pm = off
6pm to midnight = on
Midnight to 6am = off

No fish stress. Everyone is eating fine.

Corals (which my tank is 95% zoas/palys) I've seen excellent growth and color. I'd say on average most...not all... colonies have doubled their head polyp count since Jan




.

Ok I started day one of this experiment. Do you mind If I post my progress to this thread and questions if needed? Or should I start my own thread?

 

[Chlorinated]

Do it here so we can all follow your progress

 

[92Miata]

BUT, we have tanks where our light is directly above them as long as we want them to be. So wouldn't they absorb longer than say, the "wild" where the sun is moving? Just playing devils advocate.

Photosynthetic organisms don't just "use" light. They use light to facilitate the conversion of CO2 and water into sugar and O2. O2 in highly reactive, and in high concentrations causes cell damage. Part of the reason corals bleach under high light is because they start expelling their xooxanthelle because they're getting burned.

 

[CoralClasher]

Tank info.
120 gallon DT mixed reef
55 gallon refugium
Temp 80-81
Salinity 1.026
ALK 8 DKH
Ca 490
Mag 1440
pH 8.1
No3 3ppm
Po4 0.12
Lighting Giesemann Vervve master and one slave for the DT. Maxspect Recurve for the refugium.
Two MP40
1400gph return pump
bag of carbon in return basket
Roller mat filter used occasionally
Oxadator A
Air pump outside and using wooden air stone
Dosing Triton core7, iron and iodine
Fishes: Fox face, parrot fish, copperband butterfly, sail fin tang, blenny, hippo tang, three clown fish, two leopard wrasse, cleaner wrasse

More pictures soon as light is on DT.

 

[Pancake]

Tank info.
120 gallon DT mixed reef
55 gallon refugium
Temp 80-81
Salinity 1.026
ALK 8 DKH
Ca 490
Mag 1440
pH 8.1
No3 3ppm
Po4 0.12
Lighting Giesemann Vervve master and one slave for the DT. Maxspect Recurve for the refugium.
Two MP40
1400gph return pump
bag of carbon in return basket
Roller mat filter used occasionally
Oxadator A
Air pump outside and using wooden air stone
Dosing Triton core7, iron and iodine
Fishes: Fox face, parrot fish, copperband butterfly, sail fin tang, blenny, hippo tang, three clown fish, two leopard wrasse, cleaner wrasse

More pictures soon as light is on DT.

Looking good Jon! More people experimenting will lead to more robust discussions. Looking forward to seeing your journey as well as the many others who are and will post their experiments and results in this thread.

 

[CoralClasher]

For tracking progress I just turned on just the white lights and took some pictures. This is day two 3:30pm lights have been off since 12:00pm and will turn on at 6pm. I have micro bubbles going when lights are off they are still going in the pictures.

 

[Pancake]

For tracking progress I just turned on just the white lights and took some pictures. This is day two 3:30pm lights have been off since 12:00pm and will turn on at 6pm. I have micro bubbles going when lights are off they are still going in the pictures.

Wow! Very interesting. I wonder if the micro bubbles are signs of respiration.

 

[CoralClasher]

Wow! Very interesting. I wonder if the micro bubbles are signs of respiration.

Nope I put a wooden air stone right in front of return pump at lights out.

 

[CoralClasher]

I don’t run a skimmer so I make sure there is oxygen in the tanks from outside air pump.

 

[CoralClasher]

10 minutes with lights on.

 

[Pancake]

10 minutes with lights on.

Hi Jon, so will you be adding more lights and attempt to get close to maximizing photo absorption of the corals in the 4 hour photo period as you continue your experiment? I am guessing that since your corals we’re doing well with 100% of your lights at twice the length of photo period that the corals will not be reaching their max absorption within the 4 hour photo period. Are you concerned they will not get enough light absorption?

 

[CoralClasher]

Hi Jon, so will you be adding more lights and attempt to get close to maximizing photo absorption of the corals in the 4 hour photo period as you continue your experiment? I am guessing that since your corals we’re doing well with 100% of your lights at twice the length of photo period that the corals will not be reaching their max absorption within the 4 hour photo period. Are you concerned they will not get enough light absorption?

I’m running 6-6-6-6. I’m not worried about the corals getting enough light. The corals have been through a lot of stress before and seem to come back every time.

 

[CoralClasher]

So far I’m happy with this light schedule. Fish all seem happy and hungry. This schedule works nice with my work schedule. I get a lot more time watching with lights on. Too soon to know if the corals will like this.

 

[CoralClasher]

Picked up a new stick on my way home today.

 

[CoralClasher]

6-6-6-6 light schedule one week update. Fish are all alive and eating very well. I did catch the wrasses sleeping with the lights on Friday. Corals are looking good they are retracting when lights are off and open fully with lights on. No major swings in parameters. Green algae is looking less Dino has not bloomed.

 

[CoralClasher]

I just took a picture with just white lights and discovered I have two white LED’s out on the master light right above the Duncan that I thought was looking a little off.

 

[ZoWhat]

OP here....

Jon.... thanks for all your input. You have my total blessing to keep driving this post.

UPDATE 5/24/20:

I'm being forced to go back to my original 4-8-4-8 sched after a GHA outbreak by adjusting to a 6-6-6-6 sched. 3 weeks of adding 6hr photo period seems to have brought on this GHA outbreak bc nothing-else-has-changed

I'm a HUGE believer that any lighting sched lasting longer than 4hrs does little to benefit corals. IMO any lighting sched over a 4hrs period just "cooks" the LR and develops GHA.

Immediately returning to my 4-8-4-8 and up'ing my vodka/vinegar dosing



.

 

[CoralClasher]

OP here....

Jon.... thanks for all your input. You have my total blessing to keep driving this post.

UPDATE 5/24/20:

I'm being forced to go back to my original 4-8-4-8 sched after a GHA outbreak by adjusting to a 6-6-6-6 sched. 3 weeks of adding 6hr photo period seems to have brought on this GHA outbreak bc nothing-else-has-changed

I'm a HUGE believer that any lighting sched lasting longer than 4hrs does little to benefit corals. IMO any lighting sched over a 4hrs period just "cooks" the LR and develops GHA.

Immediately returning to my 4-8-4-8 and up'ing my vodka/vinegar dosing



.

Green hair algae is a pain to get rid of. GHA don’t care what light schedule they get. I took a rock that was stained green from GHA put in a bucket with no light and a just a powder head for weeks without much change in color. Hydrogen peroxide is the only thing that helped me. Be careful with vodka not to drop nutrients and oxygen too low.

I’ve been without my master light for a week now and have the slave high enough to cover most of the tank. So I can’t say for sure the 6-6-6-6 light schedule is making my mushrooms explode with new growth or the sudden change in par did it. Everything else is looking good tho.